It seems to me like many of the problems here <i>shouldn't</i> necessarily be addressed by specially-targeted programs run by the tech industry. That will just make things more fragmented for people like Maurice who might want to be, for instance, mechanical engineers instead of programmers.<p>It seems like the <i>genuine</i> ways to address this would be:<p>* <i>Some</i> kind of telecom/internet access becomes a social right, provided universally. The easiest <i>actual</i> ways to do this are municipal public libraries, open libraries at community colleges, and municipal wifi.<p>* Transit and mobility subsidies for the poor, or possibly just for <i>everyone</i>. It simply shouldn't happen at all that someone lives mere miles away, in the same city, from hackathons and other educational/career-building activities and yet can't afford the trip. I also can't count the number of poorer people I've met who simply have fewer chances in life because they were born in a rural area and cannot afford to move until there is a signed-and-sealed job offer with relocation provided.<p>* Trades training and job counseling as part of the public education system. Because <i>duh</i>.<p>Making even the most basic infrastructure and opportunities for-profit has resulted in a "You must be <i>this</i> well-off to enter" barrier for things that we <i>like to believe</i> are normal and universal. We should make them <i>actually</i> universal.