This year for #GivingTuesday, we're challenging you to #DigitizeTheDivide experienced by many older adults. Feelings of isolation and lack of connection are the realities for many older adults impacted by the #DigitalDivide. Did you know? Feelings of isolation are as dangerous to an older adult's physical health as smoking 15 cigarettes a day (Source: CareMore Health).
Many of us experienced increased feelings of isolation and experienced lack of connection during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. To connect us all during this season of gratitude and giving, we're challenging you and your loved ones with the benefit of older adults in mind.
Help us:
1. Raise awareness for the dangers and hardships related to lack of digital connection
2. Raise funds to help us provide critical device and internet access, support, and education for older adults vulnerable to health impacts from isolation
Wondering how to rise to the challenge?
Starting Tuesday, November 30th, challenge yourself and three of your friends to go a full day without Internet. Can't last the full 24 hours? You have until December 7th to make your $10 donation towards the cause.
- Get Informed: Direction Home’s 2021 #DigitizeTheDivide Campaign helps us raise awareness for the dangers and hardships related to lack of digital connection for older adults vulnerable to health impacts from isolation. More importantly it helps us provide critical device and internet access, support, and education for older adults.
- Mark Your Calendars: Starting Tuesday, November 30, challenge yourself and three of your friends to go a full day without Internet
- Take the Pledge: Check the box below to take the pledge starting November 30th.
- Donate: Can’t last the full 24 hours, or just want to give? You have from November 30th until December 7th to make your $10 donation towards the cause using the link below.
- Connect: We want to hear about your experiences. Share successes and failures with us on our Facebook Event Page.
Click HERE to watch a short video illustrating the digital divide.
Make your $10 donation HERE starting November 30th!
Take the pledge to #DigitizeTheDivide HERE starting November 30th!
What is the "Digital Divide?"
The Digital Divide is a loose terms referring to the inequities in access to technology in a tech-heavy society. This includes access to technology devices, the Internet, and technical knowledge. Many factors contribute to the divide between populations, including education, socioeconomic status, geographic location, and age.
"The idea of the 'digital divide' refers to the growing gap between the underprivileged members of society, especially the poor, rural, elderly, and handicapped portion of the population who do not have access to computers of the internet; and the wealthy, middle-class, and young Americans living in urban and suburban areas who have access." Read more HERE.
Lack of connection contributes to feelings of isolation for older adults. Click the following graphic to learn more about negative health effects of the loneliness epidemic:
What counts as the Internet?
Media surrounds us every day, everywhere we look, even if we do "cut the cord." There are labels and logos on all of your household products and clothes. Non-digital sources like books, newspapers, and magazines are all considered media. Media is more than something we see, hear, or touch-- it can also be something we experience. In many cases, people use all sorts of media for entertainment, companionship, or simply to pass the time.
The Internet is often what people think of when they think of media. It includes social networking websites (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, Snapchat, Reddit, dating apps, and more), email, online and connected video games, search engines (Google, Safari, Bing, Edge, FireFox), streaming platforms (Netflix, Hulu, Disney+, Prime Video, Sling, HBO Max, YouTube, etc.), and any informational websites. If you work in an office or are a virtual student, it would be nearly impossible to go without Internet for a day.
This is a struggle for those who cannot regularly access Internet-capable technologies, and for those who don't have a strong knowledge of how to use the Internet. This can make it difficult for them to obtain higher education, higher-paying or accessible jobs, and even survive comfortably in day-to-day life. For the #DigitizeTheDivide challenge, try going without Internet use. Challenge your children to avoid gaming systems, apps, or even TV if they don't have access to the Internet! This gives you an idea of what it's like to be unable to connect with someone from a distance or to lack an immediate abundance of resources to occupy your brain. Now imagine living this way, every day.
What is "Giving Tuesday?"
Giving Tuesday is a global day of giving (the Tuesday following U.S. Thanksgiving) "that unleashes the power of radical generosity around the world.
GivingTuesday was created in 2012 as a simple idea: a day that encourages people to do good. Over the past nine years, this idea has grown into a global movement that inspires hundreds of millions of people to give, collaborate, and celebrate generosity.
GivingTuesday strives to build a world in which the catalytic power of generosity is at the heart of the society we build together, unlocking dignity, opportunity, and equity around the globe.
GivingTuesday’s global network collaborates year-round to inspire generosity around the world, with a common mission to build a world where generosity is part of everyday life."
Read more HERE
Where does my donation go?
100% of your donation will go towards helping us provide older adults in Portage, Stark, Summit, and Wayne Counties with Internet and device access, education, and resources.