At this year’s Women In Innovation Awards, held on October 25th in New York City, Dr. Yvette Marrin, co-founder of Digitunity, was honored with the 2024 Leaders Award. This prestigious recognition underscores Dr. Marrin’s exceptional contributions to digital equity and her unwavering commitment to making technology accessible for those who need it most. Her achievement is particularly meaningful as Digitunity marks its 40th anniversary, celebrating four decades of groundbreaking efforts to ensure computer ownership is within reach for everyone.
The WIN Awards are an annual tribute to visionary women who are shaping the future of innovation. This event is hosted by the non-profit Women in Innovation, which was founded in 2016 to tackle gender disparities in the innovation sector. WIN provides a supportive community and essential resources to empower women innovators, enabling them to drive significant change. The organization’s mission focuses on dismantling barriers for women in innovation through action-oriented programs and tools that foster a future where women lead and shape the innovation landscape.
Dr. Marrin’s nearly forty years of leadership in digital inclusion have transformed the approach to reusing technology to benefit underserved communities. Her journey began in 1981 in Yonkers, New York, while interning with children who had multiple disabilities. It was there that she discovered the transformative power of technology. Motivated to enhance her students’ learning experiences, Dr. Marrin raised funds to introduce a computer into her classroom—a pivotal moment that ignited her trailblazing work in technology reuse and digital equity. This dedication ultimately led to the formation of Digitunity, a national nonprofit focused on making computer ownership attainable for all.
Digitunity’s sustainable device ecosystem model has set a benchmark in digital equity, inspiring other organizations to adopt similar practices while magnifying the impact of technology reuse across the nation. By facilitating the donation of refurbished computers from businesses and individuals, Digitunity ensures that these devices reach a broad network of 1,600 nonprofit refurbishers and partners. To date, Digitunity has enabled the donation of over 465,000 technology items, creating valuable opportunities for education, employment, telehealth, and community engagement.
“It was an incredible honor to meet Dr. Marrin in person at our Awards ceremony in NYC,” said Amanda Ramos, CEO of WIN. “After the announcement, she boldly took the stage and reminded us how important it was to dream big, to imagine possibilities, and to keep up our lifelong drive to innovate. The room full of women was so moved to learn of her legacy as a tech advocacy pioneer. We were humbled to award her leadership in powerfully walking the talk of inclusive innovation.”
For more details about Digitunity’s mission to ensure that everyone has access to computer ownership, check out Digitunity.org. By advocating for technology reuse and nurturing community-led deployment networks, Digitunity works to empower communities, paving the way for digital inclusion and broadening opportunities for underrepresented populations.
