The Digital Inclusion Expo held on Wednesday 29 April at the Pan Pacific Perth brought together educators, community organisations, and training providers to explore a shared goal: closing the digital divide and ensuring everyone can participate confidently in today’s digital world.

Read Write Now and the North Metropolitan TAFE General Education program were actively involved, engaging attendees through their stall and conversations across the day. As a Digital Inclusion Partner, Read Write Now connected with visitors around the link between literacy, numeracy, and digital skills, highlighting how personalised, one-on-one support builds confidence with technology. Alongside this, the NMTAFE General Education team showcased how their programs strengthen foundation skills while developing the digital capabilities needed for further study, training, and employment.

Key themes throughout the expo included cybersecurity awareness and AI literacy, reinforcing that these are now essential life skills. An emerging concept that sparked interest was “vibe coding,” highlighting more intuitive and accessible ways for people to engage with technology without needing advanced technical expertise.

The expo also emphasised the importance of First Nations digital inclusion, with a focus on culturally appropriate, community-led approaches. Across all discussions, there was a strong emphasis on designing learning that is inclusive, relevant, and responsive to community needs.

Overall, the Digital Expo reinforced a clear message: closing the digital divide requires more than access to technology—it requires confidence, capability, and strong community connections to support meaningful participation in the digital world.