In June, Cat Blake, our Senior Program Manager, and Christopher Mitchell, our Policy Director, attended MountainConnect in Dillon, Colorado. Each year, this conference connects communities in the region to resources and industry experts to help inform their decisions around telecommunications infrastructure. MountainConnect focuses on specific topic areas, including smart infrastructure, economic development, healthcare, education, policy impacting broadband and more. 

Cat moderated a panel on Next Century Cities’ recently released Becoming Broadband Ready toolkit. Becoming Broadband Ready compiles the building blocks of a successful broadband project into an easy-to-use and impactful resource. After giving an overview of the toolkit, experts and community leaders from across the country talked about how communities can learn from one another in the drive for better broadband. Panelists included Colman Keane, Broadband Executive Director for Fort Collins, Colo.; Kim McKinley, Chief Marketing Officer for UTOPIA Fiber; and Brian Snider, CEO & Founder of Lit Communities.

Christopher moderated the event’s closing keynote conversation, called “Wireless vs. Fiber.” He was joined by industry experts, including Jonathan Chambers and Randy Klindt of Conexon; Matt Larsen of Vistabeam; and Claude Aiken of WISPA, who discussed the strengths and challenges of each technology. Find a recording of Christopher’s panel here. 

Next Century Cities attends many national and regional events throughout the year. Reach out to us to learn more about our upcoming presentations and to connect with us at conferences!