NORTH BAY, Ont. – Canada’s Rural & Remote Broadband Conference today announced the line-up of speakers for its inaugural event.
Victor Fedeli, Ontario’s Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade will keynote Wednesday’s lunch address. “A theme for the conference is how rural and remote broadband impacts economic development, and as such Minister Fedeli’s insights cannot be missed,” said conference founder Amedeo Bernardi, in the press release.
The conference, themed “Bridging the Digital Divide” will be held at the Best Western Hotel and Conference Centre in North Bay, from November 12th to 14th.
Chris Seidl, the CRTC’s executive director, telecommunications will offer a dinner address and John Jung, chairman and co-founder of the Intelligent Community Forum, will illustrate how rural and remote communities can maximize their urban planning models in a speech.
With municipal networks gaining popularity, Strathcona regional district senior manager of strategic initiatives, Victoria Smith will explore how investment in broadband is a key factor in addressing economic development, rural outmigration and community well-being.
Distributel CEO Matt Stein has also agreed to speak and will keynote Thursday’s lunch session.
Additional speakers and panel moderators include:
- Rob McCann – founder, Clearcable Networks and president, Hamilton Technology Centre
- Stephen Eyre – vice-president, Calix cloud and smart home and business solutions
- Dr. Reza Rajabiun – research fellow, Ted Rogers School of Information Technology Management at Ryerson University
- Greg O’Brien – editor and publisher, Cartt.ca
- Laura Bradley – general manager, YorkNet
- Ron Pickett – president, RDM Management Group
- Melanie Pilon – economic development officer, community and economic development corporation of Dubreuilville
- David Bernardi – manager, business excellence and analytics, OEC
- Nick Riddel – program manager, UTS Consultants
Please check out the detailed agenda and speaker profiles here.
“This summit presents a unique opportunity for stakeholders to come together and share their knowledge, experiences, lessons learned and advice via a gathering focused on the challenges and realities of creating a sustainable and ubiquitous digital economy for the rural and remote regions of our country,” added Bernardi about this new conference.
“The agenda is focused on educating and informing community leaders and related stakeholders about the challenges and options surrounding the implementation of broadband solutions in their regions and the evolving technological landscape, specifically in rural and remote areas.”
This conference will be essential for anyone who wants to better understand rural and remote broadband challenges, engage with other stakeholders to learn about their experiences, and explore the options to collaborate so to deliver effective solutions.
Early Bird registration is available for Public Sector and Community Leaders until September 30th.
Sponsors include Calix (founding sponsor), Cartt.ca (media sponsor), Clearcable Networks, Planview Utility Services Limited, UTS Consultants (OEC Group of Companies), Ontario North Consulting, Fonex, and Telonix Communications.
For more information, or if you wish to be a sponsor, please contact Amedeo Bernardi at amedeo@amedeobernardi.ca.
