[Advisors] TC -- moving ahead in 2015

Fri Jan 23 14:48:11 PST 2015

Thanks for this update James ... On one hand I like what you are writing and advocate but on the other hand I am feeling very cautious with some parts of what you write ...

It is the greed of the telecom giants that continue to create the inequities with witness across the country ... Their so-called business case works great in urban environments but to provide these same services in rural and remote communities only happens when the public resources are made available to them by their government buddies. And they want ALL the dollars and everyone to be good little consumers of their monopoly service .... This is the capitalist model that creates wealth and work as long as the resources exist to support and subsidize it. Alberta continues to champion this one along with the rest of Canada and the U.S.

So ... Until that really is confronted and changed everything else you write about is a pipe dream IMHO ... The First Nations have always known this reality and have paid a heavy price in so many ways for this corrupt and greedy capitalist system. The earth and Canada is dealing with the destruction produced by this selfish and ignorant system.

Until people and groups like TC start creating the changes in government then I fear everything you write about will simply be another colonial effort to exploit and grab what few resources the First Nations are accessing to build their own communities ... If TC is going to do what you suggest then I hope everyone will work with the First Nations so the poorest and most underserved Canada are served using public dollars instead of the near urban centers like Olds ...

Brian Beaton
Researcher, First Nations Innovation project
Grad Student, Faculty of Education, Critical Studies, University of New Brunswick
Box 104, Fredericton, NB, E3B 4Y2

> On Jan 23, 2015, at 5:57 PM, James Van Leeuwen <jvl at ventus.ca> wrote:
> 
> Kristina Verner brought me up to speed this afternoon on the relationship between iCANADA and the Intelligent Community Forum (ICF). 
> 
> My perceptions were inaccurate... there is no working relationship between the two. 
> 
> There is uncertainty around where iCANADA is headed, and I will do a bit more homework on this... technically, I think I'm still on their Advisory Board. 
> 
> 
> Kristina is now helping to establish a Canadian chapter of the ICF, which will have a strong emphasis on smaller communities.
> 
> She tells me that ICF has recognized that digital inclusion and rural broadband development are principally an issue of leadership and community development. 
> 
> These are the areas where public policy and investment could have the greatest impact, and I see strong alignment with the interests and advocacy of TC. 
> 
> I trust that Kristina will keep us in the loop as the Canadian version of ICF takes shape.
> 
> 
> I will bring 'ICF Canada' to the attention of the people I referred to in my previous email, who have begun crafting a framework for a nationwide initiative to focus on the same topics. 
> 
> The last thing we need are competing initiatives, unless it takes the form of friendly but serious competition between regional initiatives. 
> 
> Canada's traditional east-west rivalry could be a healthy one, if the purpose and spirit of competition were healthy.
> 
> By this I mean competition for the expressed purpose of improving competence on the part of all competitors... which is the original meaning of the Latin word 'competere' (to come together to strive, make better). 
> 
> 
> This is all good news, with the possible exception of iCANADA's future... I will keep you all in the loop as I learn. 
> 
> 
> For now, I have only one concern about a Canadian version of ICF, which is the ICF brand itself. 
> 
> It is neither an aspiration nor a statement of intention. 
> 
> It may be of no consequence whether a community is intelligent or not if the community has not defined and embraced a meaningful purpose for itself.
> 
> This, I believe, is the essence of the challenge we face across Canada at this point in our history... defining a clear and meaningful sense of purpose for ourselves that is relevant to the future rather than the past. 
> 
> The aspirations that make the most sense to me are to produce more intelligent people, and to become the world's best stewards of natural, social and financial capital.
> 
> This is the example - the leadership - that the world needs for the future, and Canada is uniquely positioned to provide it. 
> 
> Technology and intelligence are merely means to this end... they are not the end in themselves.
> 
> I also firmly believe that the key determinant of our success will be our effectiveness in engaging and collaborating honourably and effectively with our First Nations, and learning from the leadership that they are already providing (KNet, FNTC, and related initiatives coast-to-coast). 
> 
> The people on this forum already bring a wealth of experience in this regard, and I see this as another key area where TC can add value. 
> 
> JvL
> 
> 
> 
> 
>> On Jan 22, 2015, at 11:04 AM, Marita Moll <mmoll at ca.inter.net> wrote:
>> 
>> Well, when the CAP organization came along looking for an umbrella under which to promote its common interests, TC was a natural home for such activity.  I think promoting community broadband has always been part of our mandate as a space for people concerned about the uses of ICTs for community development in Canada.  Sounds like a pretty natural fit.  Let the discussions begin.
>> 
>> Marita
>> 
>>> On 1/22/2015 12:28 AM, James Van Leeuwen wrote:
>>> I've spent most of the last year at the working face of Canada's nascent community broadband 'movement'.
>>> 
>>> Interest is growing rapidly, and there is now a sufficiently strong footprint of initiative across Canada to get the attention of senior government and the regulator.
>>> 
>>> Regional initiatives are making the biggest waves, especially the SWIFT network initiative in southwestern Ontario:
>>> 
>>> 
>>> That said, there is still a serious lack of advocacy for community broadband in Canada, compared to the United States:
>>> 
>>> www.bbcmag.com
>>> www.ftthcouncil.org
>>> www.muninetworks.org 
>>> www.ruraltelecon.org
>>> www.ntca.org
>>> www.ilsr.org
>>> 
>>> An American firm, Magellan Advisers, just won the bid to conduct a broadband feasibility study for Strathcona County, a rural local government here in Alberta in immediate proximity to Edmonton.
>>> 
>>> Several Canadian firms responded to the RFP, including a colleague I've been partnering with on a regional broadband strategy for the Alberta SouthWest Regional Economic Development Alliance. 
>>> 
>>> My colleague previously developed the business case, business model and business plan for the FTTH deployment in Olds, and now sits on the governance board of Olds Fibre Ltd. (a.k.a. O-Net, www.o-net.ca). 
>>> 
>>> He was unquestionably the most qualified bidder for the specified scope of work, and also had the advantage of actually living in Strathcona County - he was highly accessible. 
>>> 
>>> We think he was overlooked because the U.S. has a much stronger footprint in community broadband, and Magellan is the heaviest hitter in the U.S. service sector for community broadband. 
>>> 
>>> Magellan doesn't know a damned thing about Canada, but nobody ever got fired for hiring a strong brand name.
>>> 
>>> I expect this will be costly for Strathcona County, and I don't mean higher mobilization costs.
>>> 
>>> 
>>> If Canadian firms are to compete effectively in the emerging community/municipal broadband market, they will need advocacy as well. 
>>> 
>>> There is a pressing need for an agency to provide exposure, advocacy and guidance for community broadband in Canada, for the benefit of smaller communities first and foremost, but also for the growing service sector that communities and regional collaborations will require in order to establish and advance initiatives most effectively. 
>>> 
>>> I had hoped that iCANADA would evolve into this agency, but the lure of branding and consulting dollars seems to have pulled the initiative strongly towards the supply side of Canada's tech and telecom industries (incumbents).
>>> 
>>> iCANADA now appears to be a Canadian extension of the Intelligent Community Forum, which is based in New York City (www.intelligentcommunity.org).
>>> 
>>> The ICF is naturally biased towards the interests of larger urban centers, which are already far better served with broadband and also with advocacy (votes), thank you very much. 
>>> 
>>> For smaller communities across North America, the Intelligent Community brand is generally a marketing liability.
>>> 
>>> 
>>> Efforts are now underway to frame an initiative that would effectively advance the interests of Canadian communities large AND small. 
>>> 
>>> I'm presently on the outside looking in, but I will jump at the opportunity to get involved as the initiative unfolds.
>>> 
>>> As a policy shop with a Canadian focus, TC could bring relevant and immediate capacity to this proposed agency. 
>>> 
>>> You can see where I'm headed with this, but I'm already getting ahead of myself.
>>> 
>>> For now, the only opportunity may be for TC to become involved in the framing discussion. 
>>> 
>>> If the TC Board and membership are amenable, I would like to explore this possibility and report back.
>>> 
>>> JvL
>>> 
>>> 
>>> 
>>> 
>>>> On Jan 21, 2015, at 3:52 PM, Peter Frampton <pframpton at lefca.org> wrote:
>>>> 
>>>> I think your suggestions are good ones.
>>>> Wondering also if we could see if the members might be traveling to a conference or whatever - to arrange a face to face.
>>>> The National Social Enterprise Conference will be held in London Ontario in April.
>>>> Is anyone planning to attend
>>>> could we piggy back something
>>>> 
>>>> if so - I can reach out to friends/partners there and find some free space
>>>> 
>>>> 
>>>> 
>>>> Peter Frampton
>>>> Executive Director
>>>> The Learning Enrichment Foundation
>>>> 116 Industry St
>>>> Toronto, Ontario
>>>> M6M 4L8
>>>> P: 416-769-0830
>>>> F: 416-769-9912
>>>> E: pframpton at lefca.org
>>>> www.lefca.org
>>>> 
>>>> 
>>>> 
>>>> 
>>>>> On 2015-01-20, at 8:16 PM, Marita Moll <mmoll at ca.inter.net> wrote:
>>>>> 
>>>>> 
>>>>> Hello advisors.  As we are still in January, I don't think it is too late to wish all of you the best for 2015.  It may be cold and still pretty dark outside most of our windows, but at least we are moving toward those precious long warm summer days we are all waiting for.  The TC list has been very quiet for the last couple of months.  I think we all took some time to recover from the sadness of losing Gareth last year.  But, it is time now to think about how to move forward with TC.
>>>>> 
>>>>> In the final months of 2014 and with the help of John Wilkinson, a Toronto lawyer who came to our assistance thanks to miracle worker Peter Frampton, TC is once again on solid ground with respect to NGO status.
>>>>> 
>>>>> TC is still the only organization of its kind in Canada, with a 20 year history of connections into community networking sites around the country, with the potential to reach some of that elusive grassroots constituency that politicians, pollsters and lobbyists crave for.  We have had success in the past, sharing strategies to keep CAP going for longer than it would have otherwise and contributing to research and policy on digital strategies.  We are still very involved in national (CIRA, ISOC) and international organizations  (ICANN, NARALO).  Needs and priorities have changed and strategies need to change as well.  But there is still a lot of value in this organization if we figure out how to use it.
>>>>> 
>>>>> A current urgent need is find a way to begin holding regular meetings again.  The teleconferencing service that we were using is no longer available to us.  In the past we used a service called Freeconferencecall.com (https://www.freeconferencecall.com).  It worked pretty well but did entail long distance charges for those calling in, which generally does not amount to a lot these days, but could still be a deterrent for some.  I am looking for suggestions re: other options.
>>>>> 
>>>>> Once we resolve the communication issue, we need to set up a meeting to address some issues relating to the executive, review our mandate and set some goals and objectives for 2015.
>>>>> 
>>>>> Looking forward to hearing from you.
>>>>> 
>>>>> Marita
>>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>>> Advisors mailing list
>>>>> Advisors at tc.ca
>>>>> http://victoria.tc.ca/mailman/listinfo/advisors
>>>> 
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> 
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