Revi Sterling
I focus on the intersections of gender, development and technology, primarily the use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) to enable empowerment for women in underdeveloped communities. Research and practice alike demonstrate that women’s empowerment and community poverty alleviation go hand in hand, and that women’s access to information is a critical requirement for development. Despite this, many efforts to close the so-called digital divide often risk exacerbating the underlying gender divides in communities, as women face significant and unique barriers to ICT access and use. This underscores a point we cannot make enough -- in order for development initiatives to be successful, they have to be appropriate, sustainable and gender equitable. I do research, product development and consulting into large and small organizations alike to create and evaluate technologies designed to benefit women, and thus benefit the larger community.
Currently at the ATLAS Institute, U Colorado. Prior to that, ten years at Microsoft Corporation.