Back in Action: Catching Up and Going Forward!

​

January 22, 2024

​

​

Hi suma friends,

we're back after a much need break and we're hitting the ground running. We left on a good note, feeling satisfied with our execution of our Holiday Special (Turkey Hacking). Coming back we have a heavy focus on our applications for the Portland Clean Energy Fund (PCEF), with the deadline just around the corner on February 15th. We're turning our attention to suma users and surveying some folks on their experiences, so we can take notes. We also wanted to update ya'll on the possible ending of the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP).

Thanks for being here and keeping up with us,

Jacqueline

Turkey Hacking:

Suma would like to thank all the partner organizations and volunteers who made Turkeyhacking 2.0 happen! We were able to double the amount of folks we reached, with 100 holiday meals in the hands of the suma community!
​

Working to do logistical coordinations (shout out to b-line!), customer service, and tech support for 100 customers was no small feat for the mighty suma team! The much needed holiday break gave us some time to reflect on the work put into the project, and we are very much looking forward to a team retrospective and user survey with the goal of performance improvement so we can serve even more folks in 2024!

Portland Clean Energy Fund:

2024 is off to a running start with the suma team working on our Portland Clean Energy Fund (PCEF) applications to grow the suma app 2025-2027 by: adding more users; increasing clean mobility, regenerative agriculture and utility options available on the app; and designing and implementing the app’s first comprehensive accommodation for a specific disability community. Feel free to take a look at our 3-year suma app goals if you want our latest thinking about where we’re headed together.
​

If you are an organization who would like to partner with suma on any of the following application focus areas, please reach out ASAP by emailing info@mysuma.org!
There are different partnership options depending on partner capacity:

• App accommodation
• Clean mobility
• Regenerative agriculture
• Utility

Affordable Connectivity Program:​
The federal ACP (Affordable Connectivity Program) is coming to a possible end, with new sign ups and enrollment only being accepted through February 7. Legislation has been introduced to extend the life of the program with an additional $7 billion requested to add to the program. Suma and other community organizations have signed on to support the continuation of this program.
​
Eligibility is determined by income, which must be at below 200 percent of the federal poverty guidelines, or by qualifying a number of assistance programs, including Medicaid, WIC, SNAP, veterans pensions and Social Security Income.

​

Eligible households can also receive a one-time discount of up to $100 to purchase a laptop, desktop computer, or tablet from participating providers.

​

If this sounds like you or someone you know, make sure to jump on the opportunity to enroll before February 7!!

​

Surveys:

Suma friends, we did a lot of great work together in 2023 – farmers markets, e-scooter integrations, the holiday special – and now it’s time to step back and learn from this work before we build again.

​

This means we’re going to take the next couple months to survey our holiday special purchasers and complete 1-on-1 sessions with the suma user community. These sessions are a way for users to give us in depth feedback on the app – ease of use, terminology, Spanish & English translations, payment options – so the app can grow to help more community members save more money on the things they buy the most. Look for more information in our next newsletter!