Home > Summit > 2021 CTU Summit

2021 IEEE Connecting the
Unconnected Summit

The 2021 IEEE Connecting the Unconnected Summit brought together innovators, regulators, multinational companies, standards-setting bodies, and nonprofits to address Internet connectivity and the digital divide.

The first-time event, held virtually from 3-5 November, featured a robust program of four keynotes, six invited talks, six panels, and presentations from several of the 2021 IEEE Connecting the Unconnected Challenge winners.

550 participants from 70 countries attended this inaugural CTU Summit, and many provided positive feedback during and after the event:

“It is such an interesting discussion. We are all passionate about a people-centered connectivity approach.”
“I followed the summit very closely this week and I am extremely impressed by the quality of the material presented. There are some very interesting ideas that may help our provincial government explore solutions for our own connectivity programs.”
“I just want to say thank you to you and your team for such a wonderful program in bringing together different ideas, people & projects! This program was amazing!”
“This is a good discussion. I am so glad I joined. The insight I am getting here is going to help me a lot in my pilot study in deploying technology for my doctoral program to connect unconnected high school students in remote areas in Africa.”
“I wish we had a whole morning to carry on the conversation.”

2021 Summit Program

    Day 1
    Day 1
    10:00 AM – 10:15 AMOpening Remarks from CTU Co-chairs
    Keynote: Fatema Kothari, Microsoft
    10:35 AM to 10:50 AMInvited Talk: Duncan Drury, NetHope
    10:50 AM to 11:35 AMParallel Tracks
    Panel 1: Infrastructure
    Panel 2: Unique and Unexplored Applications and Services
    11:35 AM to 11:45 AMBreak
    11:45 AM to 12:05 PMKeynote: Jean-Phillipe Gillet, Intelsat
    CTU Challenge Winners x2
    12:25 PM to 12:35PMInvited Talk: Sampathkumar Veeraraghavan,
    IEEE Humanitarian Activities
    12:35 PM to 12:40 PM Closing Remarks from CTU Volunteer
    12.40 PM to 13.10 PMOpen Discussion with Awardees (Individual Breakout Sessions)
    Day 2
    Day 2
    09:00 AM to 09:05 AMOpening Remarks from CTU Volunteer
    09:05 AM to 09:25 AMKeynote: Alex Aime, Facebook Connectivity
    09:25 AM to 09:40 AMInvited Talk: Paul Garnett, The Vernonburg Group
    09:40 AM to 10:25 AMParallel Tracks
    Panel 3: Envisioned Business Models in Future Networks
    Panel 4: Community Enablement: Local Content, Skills & Inclusion
    10:25 AM to 10:35 AMBreak
    10:35 AM to 10:55 AMInvited Talk: Huguette Diakabana, World Health Organization
    10:55 AM to 11:25 AMCTU Challenge Winners x3
    11:25 AM to 11:30 AMClosing Remarks from CTU Volunteer
    11.30 AM to 11.50 AMOpen Discussion with Awardees (Individual Breakout Sessions)
    Day 3
    Day 3
    09:00 AM to 09:05 AMOpening Remarks from CTU Volunteer
    09:05 AM to 09:25 AMKeynote: Kiran Thomas, Reliance Jio
    09:25 AM to 09:40 AMInvited Talk: Jordan Sun, City of San Jose
    09:40 AM to 10:25 AMParallel Tracks
    Panel 5: Policy and Regulatory Issues
    Panel 6: Standards: Opportunities & Challenges
    10:25 AM to 10:35 AMBreak
    10:35 AM to 10:50 AMInvited Talk: Monisha Ghosh, University of Chicago
    10:50 AM to 11:10 AMCTU Challenge Winners x2
    11:10 AM to 11:15 AMCTU Challenge Summary Remarks
    11:15 AM to 11:20 AMClosing Ceremony
    11:20 AM to 11:50 PMOpen Discussion with Awardees (Individual Breakout Sessions)