This morning Bernadine Joselyn spoke to the US Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation’s Subcommittee on Communications, Technology, and the Internet. The topic: Broadband Adoption: The Next Mile. She spoke with representatives from Pew Research Center, Comcast Corporation, California Emerging Technology Fund and The Honorable John Sununu from Broadband for America. (You can access Bernadine’s full testimony online.)

Here’s a quote from Bernadine’s speech taken from the Blandin site…

Joselyn told a Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation subcommittee about efforts in Minnesota to put refurbished computers and subsidized Internet subscriptions into the hands of low-income residents and entrepreneurs. Sometimes it’s not the speed of access, but simply making sure the information about your business is correct on Google so a smart phone user can find you, she said.

“Broadband adoption is not just a policy imperative; it’s a community imperative,” said Joselyn, Blandin’s director of public policy and engagement.

“Rural communities need broadband access and the ability to use it in order to thrive in this globalized economy,” she added. “Access to broadband is key but so is adoption, and community-based community engagement efforts work.”

Each speaker really hammered home the need for an inclusive approach to expanding broadband – both deployment and adoption. I thought that Bernadine and Ms. Sunne Wright McPeak (from California) had the most compelling stories, mostly because both had firsthand accounts of lives changing because of access to better technology and broadband. Comcast’s Mr. Cohen made a good point that while devices are valuable, no one is writing a research paper on a laptop – poignant because one senator had made the point that he mostly uses a device these days. I think it’s good for policymakers to use technology but to get such reminders that we all use it differently.

Some speakers focused on minimizing regulation; others pointed out that regulation and/or federal funding makes a difference to adoption programs.

It was great to see the session spur conversation in a few outlets.

Senator Klobuchar posted a news release…

As Minnesota continues to work to bring high-speed Internet to rural communities, we need to make sure that businesses, families and students can utilize these connections to help boost local economies and compete in a global marketplace.” Klobuchar said. “Organizations like the Blandin Foundation are doing good work to get more communities online, and I will continue to fight to ensure all Minnesotans have access broadband regardless of where they live.”

And Minnesota Public Radio picked up the story…

Bridging the digital divide in rural America requires investment in people’s capabilities, not just technical infrastructure, an officer with Minnesota’s Blandin Foundation told Congress today.

Bernadine Joselyn urged continued federal attention to the need to bring high-speed Internet access to rural communities. She stressed what Blandin, based in Grand Rapids, Minn., has been emphasizing for years in rural Minnesota — teaching residents and businesses how to make better use of their available Internet access.