[Advisors] "digital strategy" canada?
michael gurstein
gurstein at gmail.com
Mon, 25 Feb 2013 05:25:06 +0100
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Maybe Kristina and all rather than carrying this discussion forward in the
abstract and focusing on participation in conferences and so on, it might be
better to identify a specific area of possible common interest and start
working on how a collaborative approach might be developed.
The most recent information from Stats Can (from 2010) indicated that
roughly 20% of the Canadian population were not accessing the Internet and
of those roughly half indicated that it was because of financial or other
reasons (training, availability, location etc.), not because of a lack of
interest. The current Federal government has closed its only program
responding to this need (CAP) and currently they (and I don't believe anyone
else) have any initiatives underway to respond to this approximately 3.5
million Canadians who are currently denied the opportunities that the
Internet provides because of financial and other presumably resolvable
considerations.
Would iCanada be willing and able to collaborate with TC to develop a
strategy for responding to these significant matters (and numbers) of
Digital Exclusion?
Mike
From: advisors-admin@tc.ca [mailto:advisors-admin@tc.ca] On Behalf Of Marita
Moll
Sent: Saturday, February 23, 2013 9:36 PM
To: Kristina Verner; TC Advisors
Subject: Re: [Advisors] "digital strategy" canada?
Hi Kristina. Thanks for your points below. We want to stay positive and we
want to keep discussions going.
Many of the people on this list would love to showcase what they are doing
and share their ideas on how a digital strategy should evolve in Canada. In
fact, TC and its community partners have been active participants in any
digital economy consultations that have been accessible to them. But it
costs $600 to go to your meeting not including transportation and
accommodation costs. That kind of disposable money simply does not exist at
the community level for people who are actively working on connecting
communities. They are many, small and under resourced -- both with time and
money.
I am guessing that not many of the participants at I-Canada events are
funding their participation out of their own pockets. And, as far as I know,
the funding pockets that support these sorts of things (research grants,
industry outreach/pr budgets) are not usually accessible to community
workers -- catch-22.
Some of this is documented in papers (all online) in the book about Canadian
community networks that came out of the SSHRC funded Canadian Research
Alliance for Community Innovation (CRACIN)
http://www.aupress.ca/index.php/books/120193.
Marita Moll
On 2/23/2013 2:38 PM, Kristina Verner wrote:
Hello Everyone,
I have been quietly following along with the discussion, and, while James
has articulated much of what I was going to say, I did want to share some
additional information regarding i-CANADA, as there appears to be a
continued misunderstanding of what i-CANADA is doing, who is involved, and
how it may be able to help move the discussions forward for many intelligent
community related matters in the Canadian context, including broadband
services, digital inclusion, and also in terms of helping to craft a digital
strategy moving forward.
As many of you may know, I am also actively involved with i-CANADA and have
been since fairly close to its inception when I was in community-University
research initiative down at the University of Windsor. The co-founders of
i-CANADA reached out to me when Windsor-Essex was named in the Top 7
Intelligent Communities globally to see if there were transferrable lessons
that they could share with other communities to help them overcome some of
their digital economy challenges.
After the ICF awards cycle completed, I also worked with i-CANADA and served
as host for the first national summit in Windsor, where we had
representation from approximately 80 communities from across the country,
and approximately 150 folks in attendance. The majority of the attendees
were either municipal leaders or economic development staff. However, we had
representation from the health, education (both K-12 and post secondary,
arts, digital media, planning and design and, the ICT sector (both private
sector and accelerator-type of groups in the form of not-for-profit regional
RICs). The private sector representation was focused on some of the "art of
the possible" discussions to help illustrate to the attendees that broadband
was simply a means to an end, but not the end itself. Various projects were
highlighted from various sizes of communities - ranging from Golden BC to
Waterfront Toronto (some of these presentations showcased projects that were
municipally lead, with others driven significantly by the grassroots and
cross-sectoral in nature). There were discussions across various sectors
include arts and culture, health, sustainability, etc. While there were
sponsors (as is the case at any conference), there was no exhibition space,
and no real vehicle provided for private sector agendas to be pushed along.
The second national summit was held in Montreal in October. While there
were more private sector attendees, they were sharing lessons learned on
topics such as social business and business process transformation - they
weren't priming the pump or peddling their wares in the least. Attendees
were able to hear about the latest developments in the research and
education networks (including how ORION is now working more closely with the
municipal sector), and first responders. Crowd-funding as a creative
solution to overcoming the financial barriers to innovation was also
discussed. It is key to remember that a great deal of value at both of
these events is the significant amount of knowledge exchange that occurs
among the attendees.
I am getting ready to host the third national summit in Toronto since I have
moved onto a new position. This event will be held in June. Topics will
include how to create a sense of community (be that defined by geography or
interest) in connected environments, how open data and analytics can support
healthy communities, sustainable transportation systems, clean water, energy
savings etc., social and digital inclusion, an update on the regional
initiatives that have been developing (there have been strong developments
particularly on the east coast and also through James' leadership in the
west), and a glimpse into global best practices relating to intelligent
community development.
Last year, I suggested that i-CANADA might be a valuable ally for TC to work
with when CAP was being wound up. However, this type of discussion came up
at that time, and to be honest, I found it a bit disheartening that people
were judging i-CANADA not based on fact, but based on perception. I'm not
sure if that's due to past experiences with CATA (which as an active part of
i-CANADA I see as a sponsor of the activity - not the controlling body) or
simply due to a lack of exposure to the i-CANADA programs. They have been
doing a terrific job on the first key topic that they were focused on - the
push to keep the discussion moving on broadband. They have recently met with
the head of the CRTC to discuss potential ways to move the bar nationally
and try to make the moonshot that was defined by the attendees at events
such as the national summits and Canada 3.0 real. (Important note:
i-CANADA's leadership is acutely aware of the fact that broadband is only a
tool - it is not the solution to the challenges we face as a nation.)
I really don't understand the perception that i-CANADA has been created to
benefit the private sector in the least. Their focus has been in the
creation of a solid base of community leaders to help keep the discussion
moving forward. The i-CANADA Council of Governors includes 17 Mayors from
across the Country, 2 Premiers, 3 University Presidents and academic
leaders, 8 representatives from various ICT industry clusters, 4 other
private sector CEOs (e.g. Peter Aceto - who has effectively embraced a
social business strategy in his leadership of ING Direct), Presidents of 4
of the regional research and eduction networks, the director of a federal
agency, and 2 private consultants (one of which is Bill St. Arnaud). This
group will continue to expand so that a more representative tapestry of
views can be woven into the messages and initiatives. These folks are
collaborating on a number of responses to key issues and are preparing to
announce some engagement type of initiatives that will further raise
awareness of some of the issues that Canada is struggling to overcome from a
Digital Economy perspective.
In addition to the Council of Governors, there is a Board of Advisors that
is a larger group or more front line folks, such as myself - essentially
Intelligent Community practitioners that are bringing opportunities and
lessons learned to the table.
The LinkedIn group is not in the least a fair representation of the scope of
i-CANADA's activities. Based on the comments coming from this group, I am
concerned that the message is getting misconstrued as a result of the nature
of the activity that tends to occur in that space. We may need to consider a
more active moderation role to ensure this outlet does not convey a
different set of values from what the i-CANADA mandate actually is.
i-CANADA's key areas of focus are on fostering best practices among Canadian
communities, knowledge transfer among those communities, and advocating on
the gaps that exist to ensure that our nation remains competitive in the
global broadband economy. Admittedly i-CANADA needs to have some sponsors to
underwrite the events and programs as there are costs associated with these
activities.
If i-CANADA is not necessarily taking on an area of interest that this group
has, it simply may be as a result of this group not being active
contributors to the dialogue that is occurring. They have a genuinely open
door and are more than happy to work with other groups that are doing great
things to benefit Canadian communities (with a broad definition of the term
"community"). I would suggest that a great course of action would be for
this group to reach out to i-CANADA and explore how they may be able to
assist TC in achieving its objectives - and vice versa. Maybe a great first
step would be to have a few folks attend the conference in June to gain an
understanding and appreciation from first hand exposure to the community
champions and various subject matter experts that will be in attendance?
I have always seen the two groups as very complimentary to one another and
had hoped last year that TC would have been open to working with i-CANADA
with a particular interest in amplifying the digital inclusion concerns.
If anyone is interested in attending the conference, preliminary information
can be found at: http://icanada.nu/events/ . I would also welcome any
direct questions if you have a specific area of interest.
Have a great weekend everyone!
Kristina
On 2013-02-22, at 10:20 PM, imaginit <imaginit@eastlink.ca> wrote:
James:
I am optimistic that with yourself and Marita involved there will be two
forces within iCanada to help steer them towards more real community
involvement.
I only hope that the emphasis is place upon involve the community itself,
rather then trying to fix the issues with government representation of those
communities. I cannot get excited with the announcement of a Mayor or
government CTO joining iCanada. Necessary? Yes. Sufficient? Hardly.
I question how anyone can bring the governments up to speed with the
needs of the community without understanding those needs. And I don't
believe any of us really understand all the communities in the municipality
we live in, never mind across Canada.
A difficult task? Certainly. Indeed, some would propose it is impossible
- a rationalization often used to justify autocratic governance.
Good Luck.
Gary
-----------------------------------------------
More people are killed every year by pigs than by sharks, which shows you
how good we are at evaluating risk.
- Bruce Schneier, Beyond Fear
THE INFORMATION CONTAINED IN THIS DOCUMENT IS PRIVATE AND CONFIDENTIAL.
On 2013.02.22, at 7:22 PM, James Van Leeuwen <jvl@ventus.ca> wrote:
On 2013-02-22, at 3:04 PM, Gary W Kenward <garykenward@eastlink.ca> wrote:
James:
Thank you for your perspective. I find it interesting that you say iCANADA
wants to get the two sectors working together. CATA started the iCanada
initiative, and as far as I have been able to determine, have not tried to
reach out to any community.
As just one member of i-CANADA's Advisory Council, I have personally reached
out to at least twenty communities large and small here in western Canada
over the last two years.
Elected officials from some of these communities now serve on the Governance
Council of i-CANADA, and CIOs and IT Managers from some of these communities
have joined the Advisory Council.
I have done the same with western Canada's major Research & Education
networks, which are now also represented on i-CANADA's Governance Board.
The Premier of New Brunswick is Chairman of the Governance Council, and
Mayor Brad Woodside of Fredericton also serves on the Governance Council.
"We don't charge you to walk on our sidewalks. Why would we charge you for
broadband?"
[Mayor Woodside commenting on Fredericton's Frede-zone public access WiFi
network, www.fred-ezone.ca <http://www.fred-ezone.ca/> ]
I disagree that there is no interest, and I disagree that there are not
community groups wiling to interact. I think the major issue is more likely
that the groups are local, small and numerous. A quintessentially Canadian
behaviour is to engage governments under the assumption that they represent
communities. Having worked with some of these communities locally, there
seems to be a general experience that the governments are not very good at
engaging community groups even with their government programs, never mind
iCanada.
As an example: I first heard of i-Canada when it created a LinkedIn group. I
read the first postings, and then the web site. Interest was proclaimed and
questions asked by a number of people (presumably mostly Canadian members of
the LinkedIn community). iCanada did not respond to any inquiry at that
time. And, a cursory perusal of the the iCanada group today shows that there
continues to be no attempt at fostering discussion. The group simply serves
as a platform for disseminating iCanada announcements. So how is this
engaging the community?
My professional background includes working in the telecommunications and
data networking sectors. There's good reason to question CATAs motivations
regarding iCANADA - they are an industry organization driven by profit
opportunities for their members in select markets. The current flurry of
announcements regarding mHealth is a perfect example. I do not have an issue
with their motivations except when they attempt to disguise those
motivations behind a facade of community service.
Communities, governments and businesses working together is the ideal
scenario for pretty well any issue Canada faces moving forward. Governments
and businesses working together without communities is not an ideal
scenario.
I will begin to believe they are truly interested in communities when
representatives are included in iCanada discussions and events (take a look
at the January, 2013 announcement on http://icanada.nu/ - not one
representative of the community appears in the list of people gathered to
"create a plan to develop an equitable high-bandwidth regional community,
bringing ultra-high-speed service to homes and businesses throughout the
twin provinces." In an area where there are many communities and community
groups.
I wish you all the best in your endeavours to influence iCanada.
Regards,
Gary
I did not say there was no interest, Gary, I said there was a lack of
committed leadership.
My local Economic Development Committee might be interested to hear what I
have to say, but this does not imply that anyone is going to take any
initiative in this community.
That said, you make a valid point.
If we could get all the committed community leadership we have in Canada
supporting a single nationwide initiative, we would have a much better
balance between community and enterprise agendas.
This is i-CANADA's objective, and it's why I volunteer for them.
I hope you will all consider doing the same.
As for our expectations of senior governments...
Whether these expectations are warranted or not, they are failing us badly.
The System - OUR System - is broken, and outliving its usefulness.
Despite this, an attitude of Ain't-Broke-Don't-Fix-It still prevails.
We may be reluctant to accept reality, because it means the burden of
leadership now falls to us as individuals and communities.
I personally believe this is the essence of the challenge Canada faces at
this point in its history.
If we fail to respond, we fail ourselves and we especially fail our
children.
"The major advances in human civilization all but wreck the societies in
which they appear." [Alfred North Whitehead]
More than anything, this is a commentary on the history of institutional
change.
Historically, government institutions have always been the slowest to change
in the wake of a technological revolution.
The truth of the matter is that our senior governments need external
guidance to help them adapt to the new realities we are now facing.
They reflexively look inward, which is the worst possible thing to do.
There is always plenty of rhetoric and window dressing around 'engaging the
citizen' and 'listening', but even if they hear what we were saying, they
are still unable to respond.
The internal tensions in our senior governments today are unprecedented, and
paralyzing.
They cannot respond effectively without a wholesale change of leadership,
and this will not happen until WE make it happen.
I should mention that this will be the first technological revolution to
seriously disrupt our academic institutions as well as our government and
economic institutions.
If we end up giving this disruption a name, it might be something like The
Great Decentralization.
JvL
P.S.: In case anyone is wondering, I am not a political revolutionary.
I am a community sustainability consultant interested to help communities
(and governments) to capitalize on the changes we are now experiencing.
There is a tremendous amount of good that will come of all this.
THE INFORMATION CONTAINED IN THIS DOCUMENT IS PRIVATE AND CONFIDENTIAL.
On 2013.02.22, at 4:40 PM, James Van Leeuwen <jvl@ventus.ca> wrote:
Gary,
what will help Canada the most is to have our community/municipal sector and
our enterprise sector working in tandem to pull Canada in the direction it
needs to be going.
A priority objective for iCANADA is to get these two sectors working
together to mutual benefit and to broader societal benefit (they get it,
Marita).
The under-representation of the community/municipal sector in i-CANADA is
not a matter of preference on i-CANADA's part.
The condition reflects the availability and eagerness of leadership in the
enterprise sector, and the widespread lack of committed leadership in
Canada's community/municipal sector.
Most of our community leaders still either do not recognize the need to
lead, do not care to lead, or do not think they have permission to lead.
Wanting permission is a quintessentially Canadian trait, but no community in
Canada actually needs permission from anyone to meet its own broadband
needs.
This crippling condition does not exist in the U.S., which helps to explain
how community broadband has become such a robust and rapidly growing trend
down there.
For i-CANADA, the critical need is not to weaken enterprise involvement, but
to strengthen community involvement.
Our lack of community leadership is our single greatest obstacle in
advancing the digital agenda in Canada... not industry, and not government.
To make the best progress, this is the challenge we should be channelling
our available attention, time and energy into.
As an example of what i-CANADA is doing, co-founder Barry Gander will be
travelling out to Calgary next month to engage an audience of municipal and
corporate CIOs.
I will helping to coordinate and deliver the event, because this is my
'turf'.
i-CANADA needs all the help we can get right across Canada, especially
volunteer support at the community level.
Why waste time engaging federal government when they are so far out of their
depth and their priorities lie elsewhere.
Our telecom and broadcast industries also have different priorities, which
often conflict directly with the needs of communities.
Both industries want to own our business rather than earn it, because it's
the only way they know how to do business. It is their business DNA.
I have said this before...
If industry or government were actually capable of responding meaningfully
and effectively to the grand opportunities we are facing in the 21st
century, we would have had a digital strategy years ago.
The notion of Gbps residential Internet connectivity for $70/month simply
does not reconcile with their mental models of reality.
They cannot provide the leadership we need.
Virtually all of my consulting and volunteer activity today is directly
focused on addressing this community leadership challenge.
On the consulting front, I am about to commence work on a study that will
produce a comprehensive assessment of economic benefits associated with
community broadband deployment in rural and remote communities.
The purpose of the study is to rationalize the costs of deployment for key
potential stakeholders, including communities-at-large, local governments,
senior governments, academia and industries.
On the volunteer front, our local government here in Pincher Creek has an
Economic Development Committee to advise elected officials on where they
should be taking initiative.
I have just been accepted on to the Committee, and I will be presenting to
the Committee next week on the merits of community broadband.
I have been advocating for community broadband throughout southwest Alberta
for the last eight years, ever since the Alberta SuperNet went into
operation.
This will be the first time in eight years that I have been invited to give
a presentation on the relevance of broadband to community economic
development and community sustainability.
My sense is that a few of our younger community and business leaders are
finally beginning to accept that neither industry nor government has the
motive or the mandate to meet the longer-term broadband needs of our
community.
It might just be wishful thinking on my part, but my point is to illustrate
just how acute this lack of leadership is.
Considering that we have had the SuperNet for eight years, you would think
that by now all of rural Alberta would be a showcase for leadership in
community broadband and digital economic development.
We have only one serious initiative (Olds Fibre), and a tiny handful of less
ambitious initiatives.
This is the reality of Alberta... the place our current Prime Minister hails
from.
JvL
On 2013-02-22, at 11:56 AM, Gary W Kenward <garykenward@eastlink.ca> wrote:
There's a lot of ironic humour in your comment.
Thank you.
Gary
THE INFORMATION CONTAINED IN THIS DOCUMENT IS PRIVATE AND CONFIDENTIAL.
On 2013.02.22, at 1:58 PM, Marita Moll <mmoll@ca.inter.net> wrote:
Ken, I don't have the answer to this question. James has been working
really hard on getting i-Canada to understand the concept of community.
I'll pass this to him.
Marita
On 2/21/2013 11:42 PM, imaginit wrote:
Marita:
Please clarify for me: the strategy outlined in Michael's posting lines up
with iCanada's "Innovation Nation" objectives, which focusses on investment
incentives for internet businesses? An agenda that the current government
(that is, Prime Minister Stephen Harper) can easily align himself with?
I am all for promoting investment in high tech in Canada (although not a
fan of some of the stimuli, such as SR&ED tax credits, another component of
iCanada's 'platform"). However, based upon the information provided on
iCanada's web site and it's prolific LinkedIn postings, I find the
proposition that iCanada is working for the community to be
misrepresentative.
Do you know of activities by iCanada that are aimed at directly engaging
Canadian communities, particularly rural, aboriginal, elderly and other
communities in need?
Regards,
Gary
-----------------------------------------------
"The reasonable man adapts himself to the world;
the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself.
Therefore, all progress depends on the unreasonable man."
- George Bernard Shaw
THE INFORMATION CONTAINED IN THIS DOCUMENT IS PRIVATE AND CONFIDENTIAL.
On 2013.02.21, at 6:43 PM, Marita Moll<mmoll@ca.inter.net> wrote:
The elements of the govt's digital strategy listed in the letter -- see link
below -- are laughable. Maybe we should send the minister a letter with
some suggestions of what a real digital strategy might consist of. Actually
there are several articles in the collection "The Internet Tree" which would
suffice very well. One is by our very own Garth Graham, another by Michael
Geist.
Marita
On 2/19/2013 7:05 AM, michael gurstein wrote:
I don't know which is worse... Not having a digital strategy for Canada or
having the kind of digital strategy that we are likely to get from a Harper
Government :(.
The government's response to digital strategy critics
<http://wordsbynowak.com/2013/02/15/digital-strateg/>
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lang=3DEN-US link=3Dblue vlink=3Dpurple><div class=3DWordSection1><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><span =
style=3D'font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497=
D'>Maybe Kristina and all rather than carrying this discussion forward =
in the abstract and focusing on participation in conferences and so on, =
it might be better to identify a specific area of possible common =
interest and start working on how a collaborative approach might be =
developed.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=3DMsoNormal><span =
style=3D'font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497=
D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=3DMsoNormal><span =
style=3D'font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497=
D'>The most recent information from Stats Can (from 2010) indicated that =
roughly 20% of the Canadian population were not accessing the Internet =
and of those roughly half indicated that it was because of financial or =
other reasons (training, availability, location etc.), not because of a =
lack of interest. The current Federal government has closed its =
only program responding to this need (CAP) and currently they (and I =
don't believe anyone else) have any initiatives underway to respond to =
this approximately 3.5 million Canadians who are currently denied the =
opportunities that the Internet provides because of financial and other =
presumably resolvable considerations.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><span =
style=3D'font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497=
D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=3DMsoNormal><span =
style=3D'font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497=
D'>Would iCanada be willing and able to collaborate with TC to develop a =
strategy for responding to these significant matters (and numbers) of =
Digital Exclusion?<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=3DMsoNormal><span =
style=3D'font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497=
D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=3DMsoNormal><span =
style=3D'font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497=
D'>Mike<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=3DMsoNormal><span =
style=3D'font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497=
D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><div><div =
style=3D'border:none;border-top:solid #B5C4DF 1.0pt;padding:3.0pt 0in =
0in 0in'><p class=3DMsoNormal><b><span =
style=3D'font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif";color:windowt=
ext'>From:</span></b><span =
style=3D'font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif";color:windowt=
ext'> advisors-admin@tc.ca [mailto:advisors-admin@tc.ca] <b>On Behalf Of =
</b>Marita Moll<br><b>Sent:</b> Saturday, February 23, 2013 9:36 =
PM<br><b>To:</b> Kristina Verner; TC Advisors<br><b>Subject:</b> Re: =
[Advisors] "digital strategy" =
canada?<o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=3DMsoNormal>Hi =
Kristina. Thanks for your points below. We want to stay =
positive and we want to keep discussions going. <br><br>Many of the =
people on this list would love to showcase what they are doing and share =
their ideas on how a digital strategy should evolve in Canada. In =
fact, TC and its community partners have been active participants in any =
digital economy consultations that have been accessible to them. =
But it costs $600 to go to your meeting not including transportation and =
accommodation costs. That kind of disposable money simply does not =
exist at the community level for people who are actively working on =
connecting communities. They are many, small and under resourced =
-- both with time and money. <br><br>I am guessing that not many of the =
participants at I-Canada events are funding their participation out of =
their own pockets. And, as far as I know, the funding pockets that =
support these sorts of things (research grants, industry outreach/pr =
budgets) are not usually accessible to community workers -- =
catch-22.<br><br>Some of this is documented in papers (all online) in =
the book about Canadian community networks that came out of the SSHRC =
funded Canadian Research Alliance for Community Innovation =
(CRACIN) <a =
href=3D"http://www.aupress.ca/index.php/books/120193">http://www.aupress.=
ca/index.php/books/120193</a>. <br><br>Marita Moll<br><br><br>On =
2/23/2013 2:38 PM, Kristina Verner wrote: <o:p></o:p></p><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>Hello Everyone, <o:p></o:p></p><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p class=3DMsoNormal>I =
have been quietly following along with the discussion, and, while James =
has articulated much of what I was going to say, I did want to share =
some additional information regarding i-CANADA, as there appears to be a =
continued misunderstanding of what i-CANADA is doing, who is involved, =
and how it may be able to help move the discussions forward for many =
intelligent community related matters in the Canadian context, including =
broadband services, digital inclusion, and also in terms of helping to =
craft a digital strategy moving =
forward.<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>As many of you may know, I am also actively involved =
with i-CANADA and have been since fairly close to its inception when I =
was in community-University research initiative down at the University =
of Windsor. The co-founders of i-CANADA reached out to me when =
Windsor-Essex was named in the Top 7 Intelligent Communities globally to =
see if there were transferrable lessons that they could share with other =
communities to help them overcome some of their digital economy =
challenges.<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>After the ICF awards cycle completed, I also worked =
with i-CANADA and served as host for the first national summit in =
Windsor, where we had representation from approximately 80 communities =
from across the country, and approximately 150 folks in attendance. =
The majority of the attendees were either municipal leaders or =
economic development staff. However, we had representation from the =
health, education (both K-12 and post secondary, arts, digital media, =
planning and design and, the ICT sector (both private sector and =
accelerator-type of groups in the form of not-for-profit regional RICs). =
The private sector representation was focused on some of the =
"art of the possible" discussions to help illustrate to the =
attendees that broadband was simply a means to an end, but not the end =
itself. Various projects were highlighted from various sizes of =
communities - ranging from Golden BC to Waterfront Toronto (some of =
these presentations showcased projects that were municipally lead, with =
others driven significantly by the grassroots and cross-sectoral in =
nature). There were discussions across various sectors include arts and =
culture, health, sustainability, etc. While there were sponsors =
(as is the case at any conference), there was no exhibition space, and =
no real vehicle provided for private sector agendas to be pushed along. =
<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>The second national summit was held in Montreal in =
October. While there were more private sector attendees, they were =
sharing lessons learned on topics such as social business and business =
process transformation - they weren't priming the pump or peddling their =
wares in the least. Attendees were able to hear about the latest =
developments in the research and education networks (including how ORION =
is now working more closely with the municipal sector), and first =
responders. Crowd-funding as a creative solution to overcoming the =
financial barriers to innovation was also discussed. It is key to =
remember that a great deal of value at both of these events is the =
significant amount of knowledge exchange that occurs among the =
attendees. <o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p class=3DMsoNormal>I =
am getting ready to host the third national summit in Toronto since I =
have moved onto a new position. This event will be held in June. =
Topics will include how to create a sense of community (be that =
defined by geography or interest) in connected environments, how open =
data and analytics can support healthy communities, sustainable =
transportation systems, clean water, energy savings etc., social and =
digital inclusion, an update on the regional initiatives that have been =
developing (there have been strong developments particularly on the east =
coast and also through James' leadership in the west), and a glimpse =
into global best practices relating to intelligent community =
development.<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>Last year, I suggested that i-CANADA might be a =
valuable ally for TC to work with when CAP was being wound up. =
However, this type of discussion came up at that time, and to be =
honest, I found it a bit disheartening that people were judging i-CANADA =
not based on fact, but based on perception. I'm not sure if that's due =
to past experiences with CATA (which as an active part of i-CANADA I see =
as a sponsor of the activity - not the controlling body) or simply due =
to a lack of exposure to the i-CANADA programs. They have been =
doing a terrific job on the first key topic that they were focused on - =
the push to keep the discussion moving on broadband. They have recently =
met with the head of the CRTC to discuss potential ways to move the bar =
nationally and try to make the moonshot that was defined by the =
attendees at events such as the national summits and Canada 3.0 real. =
(Important note: i-CANADA's leadership is acutely aware of the fact that =
broadband is only a tool - it is not the solution to the challenges we =
face as a nation.)<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p class=3DMsoNormal>I =
really don't understand the perception that i-CANADA has been created to =
benefit the private sector in the least. Their focus has been in =
the creation of a solid base of community leaders to help keep the =
discussion moving forward. The i-CANADA Council of Governors =
includes 17 Mayors from across the Country, 2 Premiers, 3 University =
Presidents and academic leaders, 8 representatives from various ICT =
industry clusters, 4 other private sector CEOs (e.g. Peter Aceto - who =
has effectively embraced a social business strategy in his leadership of =
ING Direct), Presidents of 4 of the regional research and eduction =
networks, the director of a federal agency, and 2 private consultants =
(one of which is Bill St. Arnaud). This group will continue to =
expand so that a more representative tapestry of views can be woven into =
the messages and initiatives. These folks are collaborating on a number =
of responses to key issues and are preparing to announce some engagement =
type of initiatives that will further raise awareness of some of the =
issues that Canada is struggling to overcome from a Digital Economy =
perspective.<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>In addition to the Council of Governors, there is a =
Board of Advisors that is a larger group or more front line folks, such =
as myself - essentially Intelligent Community practitioners that are =
bringing opportunities and lessons learned to the =
table.<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>The LinkedIn group is not in the least a fair =
representation of the scope of i-CANADA's activities. Based on the =
comments coming from this group, I am concerned that the message is =
getting misconstrued as a result of the nature of the activity that =
tends to occur in that space. We may need to consider a more active =
moderation role to ensure this outlet does not convey a different set of =
values from what the i-CANADA mandate actually is. i-CANADA's key =
areas of focus are on fostering best practices among Canadian =
communities, knowledge transfer among those communities, and advocating =
on the gaps that exist to ensure that our nation remains competitive in =
the global broadband economy. Admittedly i-CANADA needs to have some =
sponsors to underwrite the events and programs as there are costs =
associated with these activities. <o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>If i-CANADA is not necessarily taking on an area of =
interest that this group has, it simply may be as a result of this group =
not being active contributors to the dialogue that is occurring. =
They have a genuinely open door and are more than happy to work =
with other groups that are doing great things to benefit Canadian =
communities (with a broad definition of the term "community"). =
I would suggest that a great course of action would be for this =
group to reach out to i-CANADA and explore how they may be able to =
assist TC in achieving its objectives - and vice versa. <b>Maybe a =
great first step would be to have a few folks attend the conference in =
June to gain an understanding and appreciation from first hand exposure =
to the community champions and various subject matter experts that will =
be in attendance? </b><o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p class=3DMsoNormal>I =
have always seen the two groups as very complimentary to one another and =
had hoped last year that TC would have been open to working with =
i-CANADA with a particular interest in amplifying the digital inclusion =
concerns.<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>If anyone is interested in attending the conference, =
preliminary information can be found at: <a =
href=3D"http://icanada.nu/events/">http://icanada.nu/events/</a> . =
I would also welcome any direct questions if you have a specific =
area of interest.<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>Have a great weekend =
everyone!<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>Kristina<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>On 2013-02-22, at 10:20 PM, imaginit <<a =
href=3D"mailto:imaginit@eastlink.ca">imaginit@eastlink.ca</a>> =
wrote:<o:p></o:p></p></div><p class=3DMsoNormal =
style=3D'margin-bottom:12.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></p><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>James: <o:p></o:p></p><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal> I am optimistic that with yourself and =
Marita involved there will be two forces within iCanada to help steer =
them towards more real community =
involvement.<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal> I only hope that the emphasis is place =
upon involve the community itself, rather then trying to fix the issues =
with government representation of those communities. I cannot get =
excited with the announcement of a Mayor or government CTO joining =
iCanada. Necessary? Yes. Sufficient? =
Hardly. <o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal> I question how anyone can bring the =
governments up to speed with the needs of the community without =
understanding those needs. And I don't believe any of us really =
understand all the communities in the municipality we live in, never =
mind across Canada.<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal> A difficult task? Certainly. Indeed, some =
would propose it is impossible - a rationalization often used to justify =
autocratic governance.<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>Good Luck.<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>Gary<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><div><div><div><div><div>=
<div><div><div><div><div><p class=3DMsoNormal><span =
style=3D'font-size:7.5pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:#511989'>=
<br>-----------------------------------------------<br></span><span =
style=3D'font-size:7.5pt;font-family:"Comic Sans =
MS";color:#511989'>More people are killed every year by pigs than =
by sharks, which shows you how good we are at evaluating =
risk.</span><span =
style=3D'font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'><o:p></o:p></=
span></p></div><div><p class=3DMsoNormal><span =
style=3D'font-size:7.5pt;font-family:"Comic Sans =
MS";color:#511989'> - Bruce Schneier, Beyond Fear</span><span =
style=3D'font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'><o:p></o:p></=
span></p></div><div><p class=3DMsoNormal><span =
style=3D'font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'><o:p> </=
o:p></span></p></div><div><p class=3DMsoNormal><b><span =
style=3D'font-size:7.5pt;font-family:"Trebuchet =
MS","sans-serif";color:#9C1800'>THE INFORMATION CONTAINED IN THIS =
DOCUMENT IS PRIVATE AND CONFIDENTIAL</span></b><b><span =
style=3D'font-size:7.5pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:#9C1800'>=
.</span></b><o:p></o:p></p></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></di=
v></div></div><p class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>On 2013.02.22, at 7:22 PM, James Van Leeuwen <<a =
href=3D"mailto:jvl@ventus.ca">jvl@ventus.ca</a>> =
wrote:<o:p></o:p></p></div><p class=3DMsoNormal =
style=3D'margin-bottom:12.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></p><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><div><div><p class=3DMsoNormal>On =
2013-02-22, at 3:04 PM, Gary W Kenward <<a =
href=3D"mailto:garykenward@eastlink.ca">garykenward@eastlink.ca</a>> =
wrote:<o:p></o:p></p></div><p class=3DMsoNormal =
style=3D'margin-bottom:12.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></p><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><span style=3D'color:#0061FF'>James:</span> =
<o:p></o:p></p><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><span style=3D'color:#0061FF'> Thank you for =
your perspective. I find it interesting that you say iCANADA wants to =
get the two sectors working together. CATA started the iCanada =
initiative, and as far as I have been able to determine, have not tried =
to reach out to any =
community. </span><o:p></o:p></p></div></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>As just one member of i-CANADA's Advisory Council, I =
have personally reached out to at least twenty communities large and =
small here in western Canada over the last two =
years.<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>Elected officials from some of these communities now =
serve on the Governance Council of i-CANADA, and CIOs and IT Managers =
from some of these communities have joined the Advisory =
Council. <o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p class=3DMsoNormal>I =
have done the same with western Canada's major Research & Education =
networks, which are now also represented on i-CANADA's Governance =
Board. <o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>The Premier of New Brunswick is Chairman of the =
Governance Council, and Mayor Brad Woodside of Fredericton also =
serves on the Governance Council. <o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><b><i><span style=3D'font-size:10.0pt'>"We don't =
charge you to walk on our sidewalks. Why would we charge you for =
broadband?”</span></i></b><o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><span style=3D'font-size:10.0pt'>[Mayor Woodside =
commenting on Fredericton’s <i>Frede-zone </i>public access =
WiFi network, </span><span style=3D'font-size:10.0pt;color:#0433FF'><a =
href=3D"http://www.fred-ezone.ca/">www.fred-ezone.ca</a>]</span><o:p></o:=
p></p></div></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><p class=3DMsoNormal =
style=3D'margin-bottom:12.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></p><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><span style=3D'color:#0061FF'> I disagree that =
there is no interest, and I disagree that there are not community groups =
wiling to interact. I think the major issue is more likely that the =
groups are local, small and numerous. A quintessentially Canadian =
behaviour is to engage governments under the assumption that they =
represent communities. Having worked with some of these communities =
locally, there seems to be a general experience that the governments are =
not very good at engaging community groups even with their government =
programs, never mind =
iCanada.</span><o:p></o:p></p></div><div><blockquote =
style=3D'margin-top:5.0pt;margin-bottom:5.0pt'><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><span =
style=3D'color:#424242'> </span><o:p></o:p></p></div></blockquote><b=
lockquote style=3D'margin-top:5.0pt;margin-bottom:5.0pt'><div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><span style=3D'color:#0061FF'>As an example: I first =
heard of i-Canada when it created a LinkedIn group. I read the first =
postings, and then the web site. Interest was proclaimed and questions =
asked by a number of people (presumably mostly Canadian members of =
the LinkedIn community). iCanada did not respond to any inquiry at that =
time. And, a cursory perusal of the the iCanada group today shows that =
there continues to be no attempt at fostering discussion. The group =
simply serves as a platform for disseminating iCanada announcements. So =
how is this engaging the community?</span><o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><span style=3D'color:#0061FF'> My professional =
background includes working in the telecommunications and data =
networking sectors. There's good reason to question CATAs motivations =
regarding iCANADA - they are an industry organization driven by profit =
opportunities for their members in select markets. The current flurry of =
announcements regarding mHealth is a perfect example. I do not have an =
issue with their motivations except when they attempt to disguise those =
motivations behind a facade of community =
service.</span><o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><span style=3D'color:#0061FF'> Communities, =
governments and businesses working together is the ideal scenario for =
pretty well any issue Canada faces moving forward. Governments and =
businesses working together without communities is not an ideal =
scenario.</span><o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><span style=3D'color:#0061FF'> I will begin to =
believe they are truly interested in communities when representatives =
are included in iCanada discussions and events (take a look at the =
January, 2013 announcement on <a =
href=3D"http://icanada.nu/">http://icanada.nu/</a> - not one =
representative of the community appears in the list of people gathered =
to "<span style=3D'background:white'>create a plan to develop an =
equitable high-bandwidth regional community, bringing ultra-high-speed =
service to homes and businesses throughout the twin provinces." In =
an area where there are many communities and community =
groups.</span></span><o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><span style=3D'color:#0061FF'> I wish you =
all the best in your endeavours to influence =
iCanada.</span><o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><span =
style=3D'color:#0061FF'>Regards,</span><o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><span =
style=3D'color:#0061FF'>Gary</span><o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div></div></blockquote></div><di=
v><p class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>I did not say there was no interest, Gary, I said =
there was a lack of committed leadership.<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>My local Economic Development Committee might be =
interested to hear what I have to say, but this does not imply that =
anyone is going to take any initiative in this =
community. <o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>That said, you make a valid =
point. <o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>If we could get <b><i>all</i></b> the =
committed community leadership we have in Canada supporting a single =
nationwide initiative, we would have a much better balance between =
community and enterprise agendas.<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>This is i-CANADA's objective, and it's why I volunteer =
for them.<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p class=3DMsoNormal>I =
hope you will all consider doing the same.<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>As for our expectations of senior =
governments...<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>Whether these expectations are warranted or not, they =
are failing us badly.<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>The System - OUR System - is broken, and outliving its =
usefulness. <o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>Despite this, an attitude of Ain't-Broke-Don't-Fix-It =
still prevails.<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>We may be reluctant to accept reality, because it =
means the burden of leadership now falls to us as individuals and =
communities.<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p class=3DMsoNormal>I =
personally believe this is the essence of the challenge Canada faces at =
this point in its history.<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>If we fail to respond, we fail ourselves and we =
especially fail our children.<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><b><i>"The major advances in human civilization =
all but wreck the societies in which they appear." </i></b>[Alfred =
North Whitehead]<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>More than anything, this is a commentary on the =
history of institutional change.<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>Historically, government institutions have always been =
the slowest to change in the wake of a technological =
revolution. <o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>The truth of the matter is that our senior governments =
need <b><u>external</u></b> guidance to help them adapt to the new =
realities we are now facing. <o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>They reflexively look inward, which is the worst =
possible thing to do.<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>There is always plenty of rhetoric and window dressing =
around 'engaging the citizen' and 'listening', but even if they hear =
what we were saying, they are still unable to =
respond.<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>The internal tensions in our senior governments today =
are unprecedented, and paralyzing. <o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>They cannot respond effectively without a wholesale =
change of leadership, and this will not happen until WE make it =
happen. <o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p class=3DMsoNormal>I =
should mention that this will be the first technological revolution to =
seriously disrupt our academic institutions as well as our government =
and economic institutions. <o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>If we end up giving this disruption a name, it might =
be something like <b><i>The Great =
Decentralization</i></b>.<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>JvL<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>P.S.: In case anyone is wondering, I am not a =
political revolutionary. <o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p class=3DMsoNormal>I =
am a community sustainability consultant interested to help communities =
(and governments) to capitalize on the changes we are now =
experiencing. <o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>There is a tremendous amount of good that will come of =
all this. <o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><p class=3DMsoNormal =
style=3D'margin-bottom:12.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></p><div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><span =
style=3D'color:#424242'> </span><o:p></o:p></p></div><div><div><div>=
<p class=3DMsoNormal><span =
style=3D'font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'><o:p> </=
o:p></span></p></div><div><p class=3DMsoNormal><b><i><span =
style=3D'font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Trebuchet =
MS","sans-serif";color:#9C1800'>THE INFORMATION CONTAINED IN THIS =
DOCUMENT IS PRIVATE AND CONFIDENTIAL.</span></i></b><span =
style=3D'font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'><o:p></o:p></=
span></p></div></div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><div><div><p class=3DMsoNormal>On =
2013.02.22, at 4:40 PM, James Van Leeuwen <<a =
href=3D"mailto:jvl@ventus.ca">jvl@ventus.ca</a>> =
wrote:<o:p></o:p></p></div><p class=3DMsoNormal =
style=3D'margin-bottom:12.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></p><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>Gary, <o:p></o:p></p><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>what will help Canada the most is to have our =
community/municipal sector and our enterprise sector working in tandem =
to pull Canada in the direction it needs to be =
going.<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p class=3DMsoNormal>A =
priority objective for iCANADA is to get these two sectors working =
together to mutual benefit and to broader societal benefit (they get it, =
Marita).<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>The under-representation of the community/municipal =
sector in i-CANADA is not a matter of preference on i-CANADA's =
part. <o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>The condition reflects the availability and =
eagerness of leadership in the enterprise sector, and the =
widespread lack of committed leadership in Canada's community/municipal =
sector. <o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>Most of our community leaders still either do not =
recognize the need to lead, do not care to lead, or do not think they =
have permission to lead.<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>Wanting permission is a quintessentially Canadian =
trait, but no community in Canada actually needs permission from anyone =
to meet its own broadband needs. <o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>This crippling condition does not exist in the U.S., =
which helps to explain how community broadband has become such a robust =
and rapidly growing trend down there.<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>For i-CANADA, the critical need is not to weaken =
enterprise involvement, but to strengthen community =
involvement.<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>Our lack of community leadership is our single =
greatest obstacle in advancing the digital agenda in Canada... not =
industry, and not government. <o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>To make the best progress, this is the challenge we =
should be channelling our available attention, time and energy =
into.<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>As an example of what i-CANADA is doing, co-founder =
Barry Gander will be travelling out to Calgary next month to engage an =
audience of municipal and corporate =
CIOs. <o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p class=3DMsoNormal>I =
will helping to coordinate and deliver the event, because this is my =
'turf'.<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>i-CANADA needs all the help we can get right across =
Canada, especially volunteer support at the community =
level.<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>Why waste time engaging federal government when they =
are so far out of their depth and their priorities lie =
elsewhere.<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>Our telecom and broadcast industries also have =
different priorities, which often conflict directly with the needs of =
communities.<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>Both industries want to <i>own</i> our business rather =
than <i>earn</i> it, because it's the only way they know how to do =
business. It is their business DNA.<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p class=3DMsoNormal>I =
have said this before...<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>If industry or government were actually capable of =
responding meaningfully and effectively to the grand opportunities we =
are facing in the 21st century, we would have had a digital strategy =
<b><i>years</i></b> ago. <o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>The notion of Gbps residential Internet connectivity =
for $70/month simply does not reconcile with their mental models of =
reality. <o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>They cannot provide the leadership we =
need. <o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>Virtually all of my consulting and volunteer activity =
today is directly focused on addressing this community leadership =
challenge.<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>On the consulting front, I am about to commence work =
on a study that will produce a comprehensive assessment of economic =
benefits associated with community broadband deployment in rural and =
remote communities.<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>The purpose of the study is to rationalize the costs =
of deployment for key potential stakeholders, including =
communities-at-large, local governments, senior governments, academia =
and industries.<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>On the volunteer front, our local government here in =
Pincher Creek has an Economic Development Committee to advise elected =
officials on where they should be taking =
initiative. <o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p class=3DMsoNormal>I =
have just been accepted on to the Committee, and I will be presenting to =
the Committee next week on the merits of community =
broadband. <o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p class=3DMsoNormal>I =
have been advocating for community broadband throughout southwest =
Alberta for the last eight years, ever since the Alberta SuperNet went =
into operation. <o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>This will be the first time in eight years that I have =
been <b>invited</b> to give a presentation on the relevance of broadband =
to community economic development and community =
sustainability. <o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>My sense is that a few of our younger community and =
business leaders are finally beginning to accept that neither industry =
nor government has the motive or the mandate to meet the longer-term =
broadband needs of our community. <o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>It might just be wishful thinking on my part, but my =
point is to illustrate just how acute this lack of leadership =
is.<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>Considering that we have had the SuperNet for eight =
years, you would think that by now all of rural Alberta would be a =
showcase for leadership in community broadband and digital economic =
development. <o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>We have only one serious initiative (Olds Fibre), and =
a tiny handful of less ambitious =
initiatives. <o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>This is the reality of Alberta... the place our =
current Prime Minister hails from. <o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>JvL<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><div><div><p class=3DMsoNormal>On =
2013-02-22, at 11:56 AM, Gary W Kenward <<a =
href=3D"mailto:garykenward@eastlink.ca">garykenward@eastlink.ca</a>> =
wrote:<o:p></o:p></p></div><p class=3DMsoNormal =
style=3D'margin-bottom:12.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=3DMsoNormal =
style=3D'margin-bottom:12.0pt'>There's a lot of ironic humour in your =
comment.<br><br>Thank you.<br>Gary<br><br><br><br>THE INFORMATION =
CONTAINED IN THIS DOCUMENT IS PRIVATE AND CONFIDENTIAL.<br><br>On =
2013.02.22, at 1:58 PM, Marita Moll <<a =
href=3D"mailto:mmoll@ca.inter.net">mmoll@ca.inter.net</a>> =
wrote:<br><br><o:p></o:p></p><p class=3DMsoNormal =
style=3D'margin-bottom:12.0pt'>Ken, I don't have the answer to this =
question. James has been working really hard on getting i-Canada =
to understand the concept of community.<br><br>I'll pass this to =
him.<br><br>Marita<br><br>On 2/21/2013 11:42 PM, imaginit =
wrote:<o:p></o:p></p><p class=3DMsoNormal =
style=3D'margin-bottom:12.0pt'>Marita:<br><br> Please clarify for =
me: the strategy outlined in Michael's posting lines up with iCanada's =
"Innovation Nation" objectives, which focusses on investment =
incentives for internet businesses? An agenda that the current =
government (that is, Prime Minister Stephen Harper) can easily align =
himself with?<br><br> I am all for promoting investment in high =
tech in Canada (although not a fan of some of the stimuli, such as =
SR&ED tax credits, another component of iCanada's 'platform"). =
However, based upon the information provided on iCanada's web site and =
it's prolific LinkedIn postings, I find the proposition that =
iCanada is working for the community to be =
misrepresentative.<br><br> Do you know of activities by iCanada =
that are aimed at directly engaging Canadian communities, particularly =
rural, aboriginal, elderly and other communities in =
need?<br><br>Regards,<br>Gary<br><br>------------------------------------=
-----------<br>"The reasonable man adapts himself to the =
world;<br>the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to =
himself.<br>Therefore, all progress depends on the unreasonable =
man."<br> - George Bernard Shaw<br><br>THE =
INFORMATION CONTAINED IN THIS DOCUMENT IS PRIVATE AND =
CONFIDENTIAL.<br><br>On 2013.02.21, at 6:43 PM, Marita Moll<<a =
href=3D"mailto:mmoll@ca.inter.net">mmoll@ca.inter.net</a>> =
wrote:<br><br><br><o:p></o:p></p><p class=3DMsoNormal =
style=3D'margin-bottom:12.0pt'>The elements of the govt's digital =
strategy listed in the letter -- see link below -- are laughable. =
Maybe we should send the minister a letter with some suggestions =
of what a real digital strategy might consist of. Actually there =
are several articles in the collection "The Internet Tree" =
which would suffice very well. One is by our very own Garth =
Graham, another by Michael Geist.<br><br>Marita<br><br>On 2/19/2013 7:05 =
AM, michael gurstein wrote:<br><br><o:p></o:p></p><p class=3DMsoNormal =
style=3D'margin-bottom:12.0pt'>I don't know which is worse... Not having =
a digital strategy for Canada or<br>having the kind of digital strategy =
that we are likely to get from a Harper<br>Government :(.<br><br>The =
government's response to digital strategy critics<br><<a =
href=3D"http://wordsbynowak.com/2013/02/15/digital-strateg/">http://words=
bynowak.com/2013/02/15/digital-strateg/</a>><br><br>__________________=
_____________________________<br>Advisors mailing list<br><a =
href=3D"mailto:Advisors@tc.ca">Advisors@tc.ca</a><br><a =
href=3D"http://victoria.tc.ca/mailman/listinfo/advisors">http://victoria.=
tc.ca/mailman/listinfo/advisors</a><o:p></o:p></p><p class=3DMsoNormal =
style=3D'margin-bottom:12.0pt'>__________________________________________=
_____<br>Advisors mailing list<br><a =
href=3D"mailto:Advisors@tc.ca">Advisors@tc.ca</a><br><a =
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tc.ca/mailman/listinfo/advisors</a><o:p></o:p></p><p =
class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p =
class=3DMsoNormal>_______________________________________________<br>Advi=
sors mailing list<br><a =
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tc.ca/mailman/listinfo/advisors</a><o:p></o:p></p><p =
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