While serving as the Chief Futurist and Executive Director at the University of Nebraska’s Rural Futures Institute (RFI), I had the privilege of working with Microsoft. I developed a great relationship with Shelley McKinley, Microsoft’s General Manager of Technology and Corporate Responsibility.

RFI hosted Shelley and learned a lot from her and Microsoft about the future of broadband. We convened numerous partners and stakeholders to explore the future of technology and rural-urban collaboration. This rich engagement, as well as key findings, were published in the document below: The Future of Rural America: Moving Beyond Broadband.

Rural Futures Podcast Season One: The Future of Leadership, Technology & Rural-Urban Collaboration

Shelley also graciously guest-starred on the first season of the Rural Futures podcast. We were so excited to have Shelley, alongside several other thought leaders, talk about the future of technology, humanity, and life. A synopsis of our learnings from season one is available below.

One of my favorite projects at RFI was expanding partnerships with companies like Microsoft and Apple to help rural communities increase their access to broadband, coding, and other technologies in an effort to position individuals and businesses for more prosperous futures.

Microsoft even invited me to speak on the future of cities and economies at the 2018 Women’s Forum Global Meeting in Paris, France. I was on a panel with incredible female leaders. You can watch the panel on YouTube! https://youtu.be/TE20LnnmMfU