Ottawa's Open Internet Town Hall

SaveourNet.ca partnered with Telecommunities Canada, rabble.ca and The Tyee for Ottawa's Open Internet Town Hall, with support from NUPGE.

Speakers: Michael Geist - law professor at the University of Ottawa where he is Canada Research Chair in Internet and E-commerce Law; Charlie Angus - NDP MP, Heritage and Culture; Rocky Gaudrault - CEO, Teksavvy Solutions Inc.

Introduction by Steve Anderson - Co-founder, SaveOurNet.ca
Discussion Facilitator: Marita Moll - TeleCommunities Canada

Special guests:
Jacob Glick - Canada Policy Counsel, Google Canada, * Mike Gifford - founder of Open Concept Consulting Inc * Leslie Regan Shade - Communications Professor, Concordia University * Graham Cox - Canadian Federation of Students
David Fewer - Canadian Internet Policy and Public Interest Clinic (CIPPIC)

Ottawa's Open Internet Town Hall was designed to give local citizens the chance to shape Canada's broadband future. As Canada falls behind other OECD countries on Internet speed, cost, and openness, SaveourNet.ca will host a lively discussion guided by panelists representing web innovators, social change leaders, and public policy gurus.

We will gather citizen testimony that SaveOurNet.ca's Steve Anderson will use to guide his presentation to the CRTC at the July 6 "Traffic Management" hearing. We will also record the town hall meetings and present video testimonials to the CRTC and share them online. Information gathered at the town hall meeting will also help us develop the "Open Internet Declaration" which we will put before MPs and policy makers.

We want to engage the public in discussion on what the future of the Internet should look like by addressing the following questions:

* How can we ensure Internet services for everyone in Canada?
* How do we expand consumer choice and lower costs for Internet services?
* How can the Internet be a catalyst for economic growth, jobs, and prosperity?
* How do we preserve the Internet's level playing field so everyone can access the content, applications, and services of their choice?
* What roles should the federal government, local governments, private industry, and everyday citizens play to build a better Internet?
* What can and should citizens do right now?

For more information about the campaign, visit http://saveournet.ca/

Note that audience members did not have a mic, so audio quality varies in question period.