Special Edition Summit Newsletter - October 2008

Who should attend the Summit?
The Summit is expected to attract a large mix of technologists, researchers, academics, innovators and business and industry leaders as well as government and other public sector representatives. The event is a truly unique opportunity to meet and network with such a wide variety of people and leaders from various sectors, people who normally would not have the opportunity to meet or interact. Delegates are expected from across the country and across sectors, including researchers, scientists, CIOs and IT directors and managers, business and industry leaders and decision-makers from universities, colleges, research facilities, centres of excellence, teaching hospitals, and government and industry from across Canada and the U.S.

A boom with a view
The Ontario College of Art & Design (OCAD) and SHARCNET team up to explore the impact of advanced visualization technologies in science and design. It’s part of OCAD’s Digital Futures Initiative, a cross-disciplinary program that teaches the digital arts, linking knowledge in art and design to emerging digital forms and technologies. Chaired by Sara Diamond, President of OCAD, the panel includes Dr. Pierre Boulanger, Professor, Department of Computing Science, University of Alberta, Dr. Chaomei Chen, Associate Professor, Information Science & Technology, Drexel University, and Tom Erickson, Interaction Designer and Researcher, Social Computing Group, IBM’s Watson Labs. They will discuss how advanced visualization allows invisible data to be made visible through the creation of meaningful images. This method transforms the approach, implementation and outcomes of collaboration and research in such diverse fields as bioinformatics, human-computer interaction, geography, language visualization, environmental sciences, physics, as well as collaborative, interactive teaching and learning.

Researchers and CIOs – getting their act together
One of the challenges facing research today is its growing reliance on integrated information technology. Rick Bunt, Associate Vice President of Information and Communications Technology at the University of Saskatchewan, and president of the Canadian University Council of CIOs (CUCCIO) leads an important national discussion. To what extent are CIOs, VPs of research and PIs working together to ensure the institutions have the tools and resources researchers need? Although they attract research funding, do researchers have sufficient a voice and influence to contribute to the development of campus resources to access major cyberinfrastructure resources? Joining Rick are Mark Whitmore, Dean of the Faculty of Science at the University of Manitoba; Hugh Couchman, Scientific Director of SHARCNET and professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at McMaster University; and Peter Poole, Acting VP of Research at St. Francis Xavier University. They will discuss and engage delegates on the question of how institutional leadership can address the delivery of a campus IT infrastructure to support pure and applied research in universities and colleges across Canada.

Meet CANARIE’s new President and CEO
Delegates will have the opportunity to meet Guy Bujold, CANARIE’s new President and C.E.O. who joined Canada’s advanced network organization Oct. 1. Bujold and ORION President and CEO Phil Baker are giving opening remarks at the Summit. Bujold’s career accomplishments include many senior executive positions in the Government of Canada, among them serving as President of the Canadian Space Agency, Assistant Deputy Minister in several portfolios at Industry Canada, Senior Assistant Deputy Minister at Infrastructure Canada, and Deputy Commissioner of the Canadian Coast Guard. Guy holds a Masters Degree in Economics from York University in Toronto.

Booth-hopping and networking
Don’t miss this opportunity to join over 200 of your colleagues for two days of valuable networking opportunities while making new contacts as you explore the dozens of exhibitors from various sectors of the Canadian landscape. Attendees from the science, research, education, information technology and government sectors will gather to discuss and showcase new and innovative technologies that are transforming the way we conduct research, collaborate, teach and learn. See you there!

Greening the Summit
These days we are all conscious of climate change and the detrimental effects we have on the planet, so ORION and CANARIE are eager to do their part in reducing the carbon footprint of the Summit. In this spirit, organizers have undertaken several initiatives along with the Metro Toronto Convention Centre to make the conference as environmentally-friendly as possible. Click here to view the full list of initiatives.

Exhibitors showcase


3D holographic art by Michael Page, Ontario College of Art & Design

The latest in 3D holographic technology will be on display, as one of the many exhibitors at the Powering Innovation – a National Summit event at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre. The event will feature other showcases from sponsors, partners and new technology exhibitors. There is still time for additional exhibitors to confirm a showcase at the event. Consult the summit web site for details.

Win a Zune and autographed books
Door prizes will also include the latest must-have gadget, a Microsoft Zune 80GB Portable Media Player. Delegates will have the chance to win a number of prizes, including signed copies of Dr. John Kao’s bestseller, “Innovation Nation”, and Canadian writer Lawrence Hill’s award-winning novel, “The Book of Negroes”. Hill recently participated in an Interactive Author Sessions presented by ORION and CANARIE and the Advanced Broadband Enabled Learning (ABEL) program.