NORTH BAY – Registration is open for the next Canada’s Rural and Remote Broadband Communities (CRRBC) conference, with i-Valley, taking place Monday, Dec. 13 from 11 a.m. to 3:20 p.m. ET.
“Covid has fundamentally changed our expectations for connectivity anywhere in Canada,” said conference founder Amedeo Bernardi, in a press release. “Access to reliable, sufficient and affordable broadband has become an essential public good as opposed to just a consumer good.”
The event will feature panel discussions and keynotes on several topics including Canada’s digital divide, rural broadband technology, open access, the supply chain crisis and rural funding project deadlines and supply chains.
“Dr. Karen Barnes will lead off the day with her presentation of Waiting to Connect, the expert panel report from the Council of Canadian Academies (CCA),” the press release says.
“The report examines the systemic issues that have resulted in a persistent connectivity gap, and the promising practices and guiding principles that can help achieve equitable connectivity.”
Dr. Barnes, who recently retired as president of Yukon University, will later be joined by Pam Tobin, who “is working with i-Valley in BC on an innovative approach to broadband with the Tsilhqot’in Nation,” and Mellissa D’Onofrio-Jones, Ontario Library Service CEO, to discuss the report further, according to the press release.
Barry Gander, co-founder of i-Valley, which is working on Canada’s largest rural municipal broadband project in Nova Scotia, will moderate the panel.
“We have treasured our association with the CRRBC,” Gander said in the press release. “They are pulling together critical elements of Canada’s broadband solution.”
Registration for the CRRBC event is free for community and government attendees and is $249 plus HST for industry attendees.
For the full schedule, and to register, please click here.
