Societal and Economic Needs
— Identifying and characterizing societal demands and economic needs to set forth a sustainable 6G business case.
The Societal and Economic Needs WG is identifying and characterizing relevant social and economic drivers (e.g. societal demands, market needs, operational necessities and strategic imperatives) to recommend how they should influence North American 6G R&D and deployment priorities.
The approach taken to identify and prioritize relevant social and economic issues is informed by Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) materiality assessments. A base inventory of social and economic issues was established, grouped into common outcomes, and connected to needs as identified by the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals. This group also mapped its base inventory of social and economic issues to the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which provide global goals as “a shared blueprint for peace and prosperity for people and the planet, now and into the future.” As the inventory of issues and thus outcomes are further defined, future areas for research, technology investment, and market opportunities will be identified.
Digital Equity
Digital equity should be understood as the requirement of the system to achieve three conditions for each user: financial affordability, physical accessibility, and geographic availability of network services.
Trust
The system must be a valid and safe entry point to information services, including demonstrating compliance with ethical frameworks, to ensure that users trust it to the greatest degree possible.
Sustainability
The challenges of global climate change and the need to reduce our carbon footprint makes vital that the deployment and operation of Next G networks reflect the most energy-efficient available technologies, reduce our dependence on non-renewable sources and use renewable and ambient sources of energy as much as possible.
Economic Growth
Economic growth may be fostered by leveraging Next G to increase productivity, innovation, efficiency, effectiveness, and creating new value propositions, business models, and market segments.
Quality of Life
Next G will be important to improving quality of life in North America and its local communities, including for public services such as healthcare, education, safety and security, and the environment. It also supports human rights, freedom, peace, and democratic values.
Publications
Leadership
- Amir Gomroki (Ericsson), Chair
- Joseph Schumacher (AT&T), Vice Chair
- Jeremy Nacer (Verizon), Vice Chair
- Carroll Gray-Preston (ATIS)
Contributions
- Sustainability Metrics: Are Data Centers and Core Networks Ready? (Webinar – 10/30/2024)
- Empowering North America with 6G: A Multi-Stakeholder Dialogue on Balancing Digital Equity, Trust, Sustainability, Economic Growth, and Quality of Life (Webinar)
