We are a national network of ‘Digital First Communities’ powered by their local ConnectedHub with grassroots reach into local communities of small businesses and social enterprises
Being a focal point for the benefits of digital will bring the community into their local Connected Hub while digital will bring the impact of the hub out into the local community! It’s a win/win.
Eoin Costello, DigitalHQ clg
Our Rural Future
Our Rural Future, the most ambitious and transformational policy for rural development in decades, was launched by Minister Humphreys in 2021 with a personal appeal by the Minister to make the most of this once-in-a-generation opportunity offered by the pandemic for the regeneration of Rural Ireland.
The European Union has stated its objective is to make this ‘Europe’s Digital Decade’ and yet many rural communities have not yet leveraged the power of digital to revitalise their locality and achieve the objectives of Our Rural Future.
What started out in 2016 as a local grassroots initiative under the name @Digital Dún Laoghaire, has evolved under DigitalHQ’s leadership to become a testbed for what digital tools and frameworks work in enabling localities to collaboratively attract investment, remote workers, homebuyers, shoppers and visitors to their place. DigitalHQ clg calls this framework ‘Digital-First Communities’.
‘Digital-First Communities’ use digital growth tools and techniques to increase footfall with a high capture rate, attract remote workers and new innovation-driven businesses and create sustainable jobs for places through digitally activating key stakeholders; namely the locality, traditional businesses and innovation-driven businesses.
Our founding members comprises two key groups – the founding organisations listed below, and the individual localities themselves for example @digitalmountrath @digitaledgeworthstown. Membership of the network will be free.
New Localism is a problem-solving practice for communities in the twenty-first century whereby the real power of regeneration lies locally in communities where people live and work.
Bruce Katz, The New Localism
Our Vision
In the twenty-first century Ireland can reduce its national dependence on mobile multinationals and city centric economic growth. However to achieve this the work of local digitalisation cannot be about dickying up a localities website or sharing a couple of social media posts. It has to be about root and branch culture change, empowering people in rural Ireland to think differently about the challenges and obstacles their locality faces and leveraging digital to do what they can with what they’ve got to work collaboratively to attract investment, remote workers, home buyers, shoppers and visitors.
Imagine if within five years
- Localities embrace the concept of new localism, that the real power of regeneration lies locally in communities where people live, work and raise their children. As in former times Chambers of Commerce were established across Ireland to advance the economic interests of one group of stakeholders in localities, a new cohort of social enterprises need to be established in rural communities to capture the energy and commitment of all local stakeholders towards a common goal of implementing the tools and techniques available to it to attract and retain remote workers, home buyers, shoppers and visitors.
- Each locality is empowered to take control of its economic destiny by becoming a Digital First Community. The social enterprise advances the work of the Digital First Community via a Digital Growth Hub that is part of the ConnectedHubs.ie network. Their work is empowered by its @Digital<Locality> steering group.
- That these communities are deeply interconnected via the ConnectedHubs network and a new model for rural economic development is fashioned in Ireland with the same momentum as the founding of the GAA or Tidy Towns.
- What are currently seen as liabilities and sources of lost hopes and ambitions for rural communities, vacant historic buildings (school houses, mills, court houses, libraries etc), become reframed as assets for the regeneration of local communities.
This is our hope, join us and be part of making it happen!
DigitalHQ predicts that within 10 years 50% of vacant town centre space will be filled with remote workers located in high quality repurposed office space.
MESSAGES OF SUPPORT FOR Digital Ireland Network
Tomás Ó Síocháin CEO |
The Western Development Commission fully supports the establishment of a network nationally, connecting communities and social enterprises that seek to use the benefits of digitalisation for their sustainable economic development by attracting remote workers, home buyers, shoppers and visitors to their locality.
Digital Ireland Network, a national network of social enterprises leading ‘Digital First Communities’ in their locality, is strongly aligned with the work of the National Hubs Network (Connectedhubs.ie) and the broader work of the WDC. |
Tara Collins |
At National Broadband Ireland we believe that better broadband networks promote social progress, equality and sustainability. With equal access to local, national and global opportunities every person, community and organisation in Ireland will be empowered to do more.
Our goal is to bridge the digital divide and create a truely limitless Ireland where nobody will be left behind. In that regard we are aligned and support the goals of the new Digital Ireland Network. |
John Evoy |
Our organisation, Grow Remote, endeavours to support the economic and social sustainability of communities throughout Ireland by supporting the development of the remote working ecosystem. We see the goal of the proposed Digital Ireland Network to be closely aligned to our work.
We support the establishment of a network nationally connecting communities and social enterprises that seek to use the benefits of digitalisation for their sustainable economic development by attracting remote workers, home buyers, shoppers and visitors to their locality. Accordingly, we believe that the proposed Digital Ireland Network, a national network of social enterprises leading ‘Digital First Communities’ in their locality, is very welcome. |
Jennifer Carroll MacNeill T.D. |
Digital HQ supports the establishment of a network locally and nationally connecting communities and social enterprises that seek to use the benefits of digitalisation for their sustainable economic development by attracting investment, remote workers, home buyers, shoppers and visitors to their locality. This has been particularly important during the pandemic.
Digital HQ wants to expand on its work by launching Ireland’s first network of Digital First Communities, “Digital Ireland Network.” They have briefed me on the need to encourage the creation of social enterprises to in turn encourage communities across Ireland to tap into the benefits of digitisation for sustainable economic development and enhanced future prosperity which I fully support. |
.IE |
At .IE, our purpose is to enable and empower people, communities and businesses across Ireland to thrive online. In that regard, we are aligned with the goals of the proposed Digital Ireland Network.
We support the establishment of a network nationally connecting communities and social enterprises that seek to use the benefits of digitalisation for their sustainable economic development by attracting remote workers, home buyers, shoppers and visitors to their locality. Accordingly, we believe that the proposed Digital Ireland Network, a national network of social enterprises leading ‘Digital First Communities’ in their locality, is an ideal initiative which should be supported. |
Ronan Herron |
The Digital Strategy Office of Dún Laoghaire Rathdown County Council supports the development of this much needed initiative.
Our ‘dlr Digital Strategy’ sets out objectives across the four broad pillars of Infrastructure, Economy, Skills and Government: the development of this national network of connected communities and social enterprises aligns perfectly with our goals; to ensure that all sectors of society benefit from the opportunities afforded by ‘Digital’. |
Alison Harvey |
Our organisation, the Heritage Council, has core elements of its strategic plan – Heritage at the Heart 2018-2022, which are relevant to the goal of the proposed Digital Ireland Network.
We support the establishment of a network nationally connecting communities and social enterprises that seek to use the benefits of digitalisation for their sustainable economic development by attracting remote workers, home buyers, shoppers and visitors to their locality. |
