Keynote Speaker: Claude Forget Facilitator Dennis Lewycky opened the session by proposing a change in the agenda. Since specific recommendations were being developed more quickly than had been anticipated, Lewycky proposed to replace the group sessions planned for the afternoon with a plenary session to synthesize discussions. Participants approved this change. Asked where the final recommendations of the conference would go, Lewycky said the Steering Committee was considering this question and would ask the group for its input in the afternoon session. One participant volun- teered to submit the conference recommendations to a committee of the Coali- tion for Public Information, which is currently working on a "Future Knowl- edge" document, and also assured the group that they would be brought to the next meeting of the Information Highway Advisory Council (IHAC). Following the reports from the groups, Mitchell Beer introduced the Honourable Claude Forget, co-author with Charles Sirois of The Medium and the Muse: Culture, Telecommunications and the Information Highway. He and Sirois wrote their book, said Forget, out of concern about the growing convergence between carriage and content. Since the promise of the information highway was unlikely to be fulfilled "by tomorrow", he addressed his remarks to "the distant horizon", a scenario which will be driven by econ- omic feasibility more than by technological possibilities. "Technology by itself can't do much," said Forget; first and foremost, "it must offer some- thing valuable." Many technologies remain dormant for years, until social and economic conditions are ripe for their use. Automated teller machines in banks, for example, existed for a decade before widespread application. Simi- larly, fax machines have been available for many years, and CD-ROMs, which have been a reality since 1985, only became a mass market commodity in 1994. The changes in attitude required for social and economic acceptance of a new technology must arise of their own accord; they cannot be engineered. Time, concluded Forget, is a significant factor. Over the long term, however, it becomes obvious that information highway technology carries certain implica- tions for "the way we live, work and learn." First, said Forget, there will be astonishing increases in the available choices. This will dramatically reduce the cost of carriage of any kind of signal. Already, analogous developments in voice communications have led to reductions in long-distance telephone charges. At some point, distance will cease to be a significant economic barrier to any communications - data, video or voice. Increased choice means increasing fragmentation of the market for infor- mation, and its re-aggregation on a world scale according to narrowly-defined "affinity groups." Similar developments, for example, have already taken place in television. Years ago, said Forget, "we lived in a four- or five- channel universe." Then came cable technology, and a dramatic and continuing growth in the number of available channels. Fragmentation of the audience was an inevitable side effect. With four channels, a broadcaster or advertiser could hope to reach a quarter of the audience at any given time; with 100%, the proportion drops to 1%. Fragmentation is accompanied by re-aggregation according to narrow interests and concerns. In publishing, for example, the number of magazines has risen greatly, with most of them aimed at highly spe- cialized segments of the market. What is true for entertainment is also true for advanced communications, Forget said. Internet discussion groups and notice boards cater to narrowly- defined interests, but enjoy world-wide participation. These developments will profoundly affect non-profit organizations and community groups, said Forget. While each group will greatly increase its "outreach abilities" - being able to contact "the whole world" in its sphere of interest - it must also beware of becoming "redundant." People often join these groups primarily to share information. If they can do this easily at home, the community organization is no longer the sole source of the desired "psychological income". Indeed, said Forget, the whole sphere of community involvement and par- ticipation can be affected. Community groups - and through them, people in general - currently enjoy some impact on policy, and it is commonly assumed that the resources of the information highway will help strengthen that influ- ence. However, it could just as easily work the other way. People who shift their attention to the global sphere cannot hope to influence a "world govern- ment" which does not exist. Their efforts will be diffused and the focus of lobbying lost. Accordingly, if NGOs and community groups are to survive, they must find new channels for their energy. Most importantly, said Forget, they must find ways to add value to the information highway. In their book, Forget and Sirois develop the theme of the "intermedi- ary". These are "adders of value" who function in many spheres to make prod- ucts and services more acceptable to the final user. For example, manufac- tures typically move through intermediaries þ wholesalers and retailers þ before reaching the consumer. Value added includes the availability of guar- antees which are locally honoured, advice on purchases and service. Editors and publishing firms are intermediaries who sift out publications which they expect readers will like. Certainly, they make mistakes, said Forget: "that's why there's more than one editor." There is plenty of scope for such a function on the Internet, said For- get. One can spend hours utilizing the "carriage" function þ simply sending messages or exploring available materials. But when one is seeking specific content to meet specific goals, the process gets very inefficient and a "guid- ing hand" of some kind becomes essential. Currently, there are "mechanical" aids, analogous to roadmaps, available to individual users. But more is needed: a "travel guide" rather than a roadmap. Businesses have discovered that efficiency requires the technical advice of experienced staffers or con- sultants to prevent the waste of time and money. The intermediary role pres- ents an opportunity for NGOs and community groups to add value and to keep community participation viable. They will "sift and edit", making sense of the mountain of information. Clearly, consumers are ready to insist on the widest choice possible, said Forget. Cable TV, for example, now provides choice of a limited kind. The operators themselves select the channels that will be created and allow consumers to choose from a variety of "tiers". Earlier this year, consumers showed their dissatisfaction at having their choices pre-empted and won. But as their choices increase, advertising revenues will inevitably fall. Since government can hardly provide dozens of channels, pay-per-view may be the only way to compensate carriers. Consumers will then be faced with the problem of making their choices in an efficient way, and they will need more than a "roadmap": this is where the intermediary comes in, offering advice about the choice of infrastructure and content. At this point, cable operators will be faced with a choice of their own: whether to become intermediaries - retailers of some offerings - or carriers of everything. Considerable power to set prices and dictate popular taste once accrued quite naturally to owners of technological infrastructure such as TV stations or telephone systems, Forget said. Whether they were regulated or not, the infrastructure was shared by all users and its owner enjoyed a virtual monop- oly. But the information highway, in allowing users an unprecedented choice of infrastructure, is destroying the power which once belonged to the owners of technology. An open society, free of the vertical integration of carriage and con- tent, is now possible. But it won't open of its own accord, Forget warned. Public policy must discourage the hierarchical model, whose advocates are still powerful and struggling to remake the future in their own image. A vertical model produces lack of choice and uniformity of content such as that most evident in the film industry. Because the US film industry - which pro- duces content - controls the "carriage" or distribution function, 95% of Canadian movie receipts go toward US films. The free trade agreement exacer- bates this situation, maintaining restrictions and bias toward the US which is, ironically, "the opposite of free trade". While similar instances of vertical integration have been opposed in the US, existing anti-trust legisla- tion was weakened during the Reagan years. Canada has yet to deal with this issue. When it does, Forget predicted, "it could cause sparks to fly nation- ally and internationally." In conclusion, said Forget, the information highway will challenge not only "our ability to learn new tricks" but also the way in which institutions operate. NGOs can find a creative response, but only by changing the way people work within them. At the national level, Canadians must insist on a policy which promotes an open society. Only such a policy can safeguard the freedom to choose and prevent those who control the infrastructure from behav- ing as gatekeepers. Forget invited questions from the floor. Conveying the importance of the carrier-content distinction to industry representatives on IHAC has been "a struggle from the beginning", said one participant. She thanked Forget for expressing it "in economic terms that industry can understand." Another participant said he "rejected the model" propounded in the For- get-Sirois book. First, he said, encoding of signals into digital form is the real issue. Second, the conference was not "about broadcasting, but mediating and augmenting human relationships." Therefore, he said, the "value-adding" and "intermediary" concepts are "misplaced" in this context. Forget had pres- ented a "doomsday scenario"; but, said the participant, "ordinary people are already using the technology for the local and the particular," and gaining "power over choice in human relationships" as opposed to content. Responding, Forget said he saw no conflict with his own views. His main point, he said, was the move from local to global engendered by use of the technology. Next, a participant asked whether society's movement toward the situ- ation Forget had described could be measured in some way. Forget answered that the only "scorecard" could be to ensure that any action taken is directed at "opening up the society." To judge by news coverage of the recent direct- to-home (DTH) television controversy, the public may be in danger of missing the point completely, he added. People seem to see DTH as a way to "end the monopoly of cable companies" but fail to appreciate how their choice of equip- ment will dictate their choice of content. It "comes down to whether Firm A or Firm B will be first to market its product," said Forget, a competition which has little to do with fairness. To retain choice, consumers must be able to separate their decision on hardware from that on content or services. Otherwise, he said, it will be as if "we asked trucking companies to build their own roads." An audience member said she found the recommendation for intermediaries "disturbing" þ an attempt at "commodification of human relationships." For- get protested that he was "not suggesting interposing 'experts' between the information source and the user. I'm talking about someone like a retailer." If you want to buy skis, he said, you don't necessarily need an expert consul- tant; but you probably do want to go to a store "that knows its business", with staff capable of answering your questions so that "you don't waste your time and money." The choice between "a small friendly store" and a "megastore with no clerk around to help you" can often make the difference between a satisfactory purchase and none at all. Similarly, he said, the use of intermediaries does not involve "a choice between good and bad relation- ships, but between relationships and no relationships at all", should one be unable to make the right connections. One participant expressed concern that Canada would follow the pattern of the US, "where the ability to regulate is destroyed." Forget agreed, add- ing that "choice isn't anarchy; there is room for collective choice, public policy-making." Regulators, he said, must take care not be too rigid "in a world of choice," but there are possible models which might be followed. One such concept was used by American Airlines in the computerized reservation system it sold to travel agents. Before regulators put a stop to it, the software ensured that American Airlines flights topped every list appearing on agents' screens. Perhaps, said Forget, "access" or menuing software could turn this model on its head, showing Canadian choices first. American Air- lines reaped great profits from its system, he said, indicating that even a "suggestive" means of presenting information can have "bite." A participant noted that selective provision of links within World Wide Web home pages can be seen as fulfilling the intermediary role. It consti- tutes "self-selection", he commented, similar to that exercised by scholars who choose which works to reference in their books and articles. Discussion Group A Following introductions, facilitator Dennis Lewycky noted that a number of participants had left early. He then stated that the goal for the session was the formulation of "five task-oriented principles" and a series of recom- mendations for the NGO sector. Responding to a question, the facilitator added that although this gathering "doesn't have the authority to tell anyone to do anything", the government will take note of the group's resolutions "because we represent a lot of different voices". A panelist from a trade union said that a BC study had identified the need for "an advisory council to keep an eye on this area". Although business could be involved in such a council, it should also have strong representation from community, labour, women's, and other grassroots organizations. A delegate from an environmental group raised a concern about terminol- ogy. "I have a bad time when they talk about the Internet as an open society," she said. "I thought a society was made up of people, not machines." Another participant from New Brunswick argued that the machines are just tools which people use. "If everyone went away the machines wouldn't continue talking to each other," he said. Several participants picked up on the "advisory council" idea. A speaker from the Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada said that with the govern- ment "disbanding a lot of advisory councils left and right" it will be necess- ary to make a strong case in order for a new one to be created. Another participant responded that federally-funded councils are not the only vehicle for raising concerns; coalitions, for example, are another option. A labour delegate added that "this will happen whether or not the government wants to get on board". The Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada delegate said that many existing federal councils are searching for alternative sources of funds, and that an information highway council might save money by having Internet meetings rather than physical conferences. Another participant recommended creating two bodies: one structured as an advisory board and the other as a grassroots-oriented coalition to "feed our ideas upward". The facilitator addressed concerns about the current fiscal climate by noting that "the federal government has the authority to bring different sec- tors together and it is sometimes doing this with very little funding." Several participants remarked that NGOs and community groups have major concerns which are invisible to the corporations dominating the discussion. One delegate referred to his recent conversation with a staff member at the Assembly of First Nations who is involved in technology issues. Based on this example, he estimated that there is probably one person in each NGO who fol- lows the information highway: these individuals could make up the core of any new community-based counterweight to corporate control. The facilitator asked whether a code of ethics is an appropriate vehicle for expressing NGO concerns. There was some agreement that it is. He added that the conference had produced a strong consensus around access and privacy issues, and that these could be spelled out in a code. However, a participant noted that the "astonishing" level of consensus didn't really matter because this was not a delegated conference. "Do we need to take this back to our organizations and come back together formally as a coalition?" he asked. A speaker from New Brunswick asked to what extent a national coalition would need to be representative of sectors and regions, and to what extent there would be overlap. For instance, would it be necessary for each region to have representation from an environmental group? The speaker from labour noted that the movement is now rising sponta- neously from the grassroots. He recalled receiving a fax just before leaving for this conference, informing him of a similar event on the West coast. Everywhere people are thinking about emerging information systems, he said. The participant from an environmental organization said that it would be essential to work at the municipal level in order to stimulate grassroots input. The facilitator responded that "a multi-dimensional approach" would probably be most effective. "We can't rely [exclusively] upon [either] com- munity groups or on the federal government," he said: it is best to involve them both. The representative from the Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada said that the "fragmentation of roles" and a decline in federal authority has forced the government to embrace a consultative model of decision-making. He cited an example: "There are forestry communities faced with being shut down. The communities' solution has been to lock up federal, provincial, and municipal politicians together in a room and say 'you're not leaving until you find a solution.'" A participant from BC added that forestry is a more contentious, divi- sive issue than communications, so it is possible that the model of consulta- tion will work better around information highway issues. He said that the community's role in a consultative process should be to "help us define the social side of this massive technological juggernaut coming at us". A discussion followed about the codes, regulations, and agencies that might be used to police the information highway. One participant said that all of the regulations that have been recently added to govern electronic communications have been "unilaterally" written by industry. On the matter of regulation, the facilitator said that women's and anti-poverty groups have used the Charter of Rights to address communications issues. However, a del- egate remarked that for "telecommunications privacy", one would need regula- tions that are more specific than the privacy provisions of the Charter. The discussion turned to government agencies when the facilitator asked if community groups should be monitoring the progress of the IHAC committee. He also said the group should consider that the CRTC's ability to deal with all the issues in its jurisdiction has been hobbled by budget cuts. A del- egate noted that a similar situation exists in the US, where deregulation has meant that government agencies spend more time settling corporate turf-wars, and less time on public interest issues. The facilitator asked the group to consider its policy stance on the cost of ensuring access to the information highway. A panelist from New Brunswick suggested that the regulatory agency could demand that public access terminals be provided as a condition of licensing, the same way that the CRTC requires that cable companies supply a community access television station. Another participant added that government's second lever over the tele- communications providers - in addition to regulation - is its own purchasing power. As the "biggest consumer of these new technologies", government has enormous leverage over the market, he said. "The corporations always say they are bound by the rules of a competi- tive marketplace," the speaker elaborated. "But isn't it a part of competing that they satisfy the demands of their largest customer? Let's use competi- tive purchasing power to enhance the social good." One participant raised environmental issues, noting that a multi-faceted council would be a good means of applying environmental criteria to informa- tion highway issues. Another delegate concurred that "the task of the council is that we sensitize each other to the importance of the issues. It's a syn- ergistic process." There was also broad support for the idea that the government should be encouraged to incorporate its action on communications issues into the func- tions of all its departments. The facilitator then began to review the points that had been made. When he stated that the first point was support for creating an "advisory council" that is national in scope, the group broke into a debate over the relative merits of a "council" which would have a friendly relationship with government, and a "coalition" which would fight for the grassroots position to be heard. Said one panelist: "The word advisory scares me, because you can advise and advise and nothing happens." The facilitator eventually resolved the issue by interpreting that the group was calling for two entities to be created: a national, cross-sectoral council; and a coalition that would lobby the government. He then summarized the five remaining points upon which the group had agreed: * Individuals should go back home and then reconvene as a formal entity. * The group should work at different levels, and should provide advice to the NGO community. * It is necessary to educate the public on these issues and to promote the public interest. * Government can do some things to ensure universal access, community access, and the serving of the public interest. * Government should integrate its information highway initiatives into the functioning of other departments. Following this summary, the participant from the Agriculture and Agri- Food Canada asked whether some of the focus could be placed on entities out- side of the corporate and governmental sectors, such as co-ops. He suggested that electronic co-operatives - functioning in the same way as the Wheat Pools or the Caisses Populaires - could become a big enough constituency to influ- ence policy. In the US, for instance, data co-ops (comprised of users who band together) now have substantial influence, and can act in the interest of their members without having to ask the government to speak for them. The Freenets in Canada are like a smaller version of these co-ops. A trade union panelist responded that: "I like co-ops, but I'm not sure that it's applicable here." He said that the massive substantial development costs, and the economies of scale involved in production, favour large corpor- ations with plenty of money rather than small co-ops. The participant from Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada returned to the success of the US co-ops. He added that the history of electronic networks is one of constantly increasing diversity. He explained that the Internet was originally a child of the state, the universities and the army, but that it has expanded to include private businesses. Could it not now expand to include co-ops? He referred to the case of the New Brunswick wood co-operat- ives þ which successfully challenged the Irving family's monopoly in wood þ as an example of what co-ops can do. As the discussion concluded, the facilitator added one more statement to the list the recommendations: "We should explore different models." Discussion Group B Facilitator Michael Deloughery asked if anyone would like to comment on Claude Forget's presentation. A participant suggested that Forget's vertical model paints a rosy picture, but he should have specifically addressed commun- ity organizations. Another participant suggested that Forget's model is not necessarily good or bad in its implications; it is just an economic model to be applied to individual segments of the market. The virtual community will be contained in a physical, localized, community. Another participant dis- agreed, saying that, while he lives in Chinatown, he does not feel actively involved in the local community. At the same time, as an Estonian, he feels part of the Estonian community even though it is scattered around the world. Another participant suggested that activities such as "surfing" and "lurking" on the Internet can be used to help focus a discussion. She uses information obtained through the Internet to help focus, enrich, magnify, and intensify one-on-one encounters in life outside the Internet. She concluded that she could not really relate to Forget's point of view. The facilitator asked for a response to Garth Graham's comment about the Internet leading to a loss of human contact, yet having a local element. A participant said that she saw the Internet as involving personal contact. Theorists have missed the point: the Internet is the same as community cablevision. Another participant said Internet information is used for com- munity purposes in a proactive manner. The facilitator said that he enjoys getting e-mail, using it, and sharing it with other people. Another partici- pant said that, unlike television, the Internet is an interactive medium. The suggestion was made that the global community is no less a community than a geographically localized community. She illustrated her point by say- ing that information on Zebra Mussels might not be found readily in Ottawa, but it could be found on the Internet. She agreed, however, that she might not find a babysitter on the Internet. But she concluded that the virtual community is also a real community. Another participant suggested that one of the benefits of the Net is that it compresses time. Everyone has too little time, and the Internet helps with this problem. A participant suggested that two qualities of the Internet are anonymity and intentionality. The Internet allows one to "lurk" and find information without revealing one's identity. It allows one to choose friends and con- tacts. It also acts as an intermediary and provides a venue for value-added services. Commenting on Internet community broadcasting, a participant explained that the 'Net has unrealized political potential for community organizations. California-based "Pen-net" is for homeless people who have access to public terminals. Its benefits include the fact that it gives them an identity (because they have an electronic address) and access to information. A participant noted the importance of context, and stated that he was "shooting from an individual perspective." He concluded that the existence of a virtual community does not mean that there is no face or no flesh. Another participant said that the benefits of the Internet will be limited to commun- ity organizations within a given physical area. At this point, the facilitator suggested that the group turn their attention to the question: "What can non-profit groups do to better enable access to the Internet?" Participants wrote phrases on index cards which were then posted on the wall to permit discussion. The cards were arranged into groups with common themes and then titled. The facilitator commented on the usefulness of this exercise. If time had allowed, he said, he would have liked to have spent more time on planning, going from a wish list of dreams to (possible and achievable) actions. There is a need to know and to have the "coefficient of adversity" (a reality check). In the subsequent discussion, it was noted that information has a price, that NGOs are able to make money on information that they have gathered, that it is easier to post (on an electronic bulletin board) than it is to print, and that people are afraid to be exposed (wishing to remain anonymous). A participant gave the example of a group that had succeeded in organizing an immigration service utilizing the Internet, and had secured $4 million in funding - with the stipulation that names be used. The organization rejected those terms, and funding was refused. One participant expressed concern that the process of having non-profit organizations enable access to the Internet is too "airy", and that community organizations face a real lack of resources. The facilitator stressed how difficult it is for people with diverse backgrounds to find common ground, and argued that the process is useful. It was stated that there is a need to lobby for better relations between the public and private sector organizations. The private sector is a poten- tial partner. The example used was that a private sector organization could share or sponsor a site location in partnership with a community group with a related interest (e.g. a sports store in partnership with a running associ- ation). The private sector organization would get the increased exposure and advertising. People who create the future do not think small, said a speaker. Con- versely, small is beautiful and easier to achieve. In "visioning" it, the definition or range of vision should include practical measurements. There is a need to keep to practical and achievable levels in the "visioning". There is a need to monitor process and progress carefully. Monitoring, evaluating, and establishing measurable objectives are necessary. A list server needs to be set up on the Internet to help with the organ- ization and dissemination of information, a speaker commented. The group came up with five categories: * Work Together: This could involve coalition work (to look for opportun- ities, devise media strategy, study, ponder, and discuss); finding out what other community organizations are doing; and establishing an elec- tronic commons for NGOs (via list server). * Use It: This includes training issues, such as "each one teach one" (to help with access), the investment of resources, time, and dollars into training, and the need to learn about tools. * Keep It Simple and Direct: * Do it yourself (don't rely on others); * Don't predict the future - create it (Bill Gates' axiom); * Act/advocate for communities without access. * Share It: This includes co-operation issues: * Co-operate with freenets (don't reinvent the wheel); * Be open, share the information process, create awareness; * Create an electronic commons for NGOs (second category); * Find out what other community groups are doing (second category); * Create a database of resources, people, and materials for teaching people about tools. * Vision It: This includes balancing the need for a broad vision with the need to take action and to be realistic. Concepts include: * Community promotion; * "Don't predict the future - create it"; * "Make your vision measurable" (quantitative and qualitative) * "Be prepared to do things differently". Discussion Group C [Writer's Note: There was a portion of the day's proceedings during which the discussion group split into two smaller groups. This report is not wholly inclusive of the proceedings from those smaller groups.] Facilitator Zoe Cermak explained that the objective set out for the group's deliberation was two-fold: to formulate recommendations for policy makers, and to plan action to be taken by conference participants. A participant began by emphasizing the call made, during Day Two of the conference, for the restructuring of the CRTC to reflect grassroots involve- ment. This reorganization of the CRTC would change the process of participa- tion and allow for a "bottom-up process" of community influence. A lively exchange developed when one group member recommended that pol- icy makers be asked to broaden the scope of their thinking. The group con- sidered how the policy discussion could evolve from one about quality and content to a more expansive, inspiring philosophical exploration. This dif- ferent approach to the discussion does not require money and has the power to shape a more wholesome future for Canadians. Instead of limiting the debate to issues of access, Canada can begin mapping out effective methods to facili- tate itself as a national community. This idea was challenged when a participant said the process currently needs action, not more theoretical discussion. The matter of convergence was also taken up by group members as a topic of interest. The Internet was described as a network of telephone lines. Many telephone companies are gearing up to replace out-of-date copper wires with more functional fibre-optics. Information can also be sent through cable systems, and cable companies are trying to secure their share of profits from the information market. The public interest is seen to be in jeopardy in the forthcoming standoff between telephone and cable companies as they vie for market profits. Technological systems will have been paid from the public pocket through taxes or user fees, and not from corporate pockets. One participant suggested that policy makers be asked to encourage part- nership, rather than competition, between corporations developing information- carrier technologies. Another participant pointed out that there is the third option of wire- less communication, which might exceed fibre-optics and cable capability. She pointed out that competition and the presence of a variety of infrastructures allow for greater consumer choice. Policy makers must manage and regulate the infrastructures, but the question of what goes on the information highway requires much more community input. Some group members stated that they wanted to see the issues of carrier and content kept separate. The group did not reach any final agreement on what recommendations to put forward. One participant remarked that it was "hard for us to come to closure". One main idea which emerged was to form a steering committee to take the identified issues to the next logical step. The steering committee would ensure the formation of a national coalition of concerned people to further the discussion and make sure the concerns and interests of the confer- ence participants are addressed. One woman commented on the need for people who are not in groups to be included as well. A national coalition, represen- tative of all of Canada, would be influential enough to lobby for community interests at this critical time, while the information highway is being brought into formation. A group member asked if this national coalition would be duplicating an already existing group. A number of participants suggested that the national coalition committee stay strongly focused on the human rather than the mechanical element. Empha- sis on social communication would direct the discussion away from the sole consideration of technology and machinery toward a more holistic discussion of the effect of the information highway on people's daily lives. One group member pointed out, however, that the national coalition committee, in order to be effective, would have to relate to bureaucrats, who use bureaucratic terminology. The creation of a social vision encompassing the information highway was another key theme. One person stated that it was up to the conference par- ticipants to envision what the information highway should and will be like. To begin with, a comprehensive statement of purpose from a social perspective must be put into place. The attitude should be one of respect for social values. The statement would therefore be proactive rather than reactive, and help answer the questions "What should the social future look like?", and "How can the information highway help us get there?". Concerns about the potential negative consequences of the information highway were expressed, and participants discussed the possibility of a society passively centred around computer screens. The question "What are the dangerous effects, and how can we protect ourselves against them?", was posed. Concern was also expressed over the nature of women's involvement with the information highway. Education was recognized as an important tool to facili- tate women's inclusion in the overall information explosion. The group agreed on the following three recommendations for action: * Interested conference participants will volunteer to form a steering committee to ensure the creation of a grassroots national coalition. * The national coalition will develop a vision and a mission statement to create and promote a human and social perspective on the future of elec- tronically-mediated communication. * The coalition will take the ideas and output from this conference and move it forward in an appropriate and timely manner. The group did not reach consensus on what recommendations could be made to policy makers given that the discussion was still in its formative stage. However, the group identified six important themes/mechanisms: * The need to create a comprehensive vision from a social perspective: What should the social future be? How can the information highway help society get there? * The need to create a national coalition as a mechanism for policy input; * The need to discuss competition versus collaboration; * The will to think differently; * An emphasis on people rather than technologies. Discussion Group D [Writer's Note: There was a portion of the day's proceedings during which the discussion group split into two smaller groups. This report is not wholly inclusive of the proceedings from those smaller groups.] Facilitator Kenneth Fisher proposed that the group take a few minutes to agree upon an objective for this last discussion session. He noted that some participants had expressed interest in planning a follow-up to the conference. The agenda, he explained, suggested looking at policies and guidelines. "But we already have policies," responded one delegate. While participants agreed that they wanted to "put some wheels under things," one delegate noted: "We should not preclude policy recommendations as one spoke of the wheel." Elizabeth Hoffman, Chair of the Steering Committee for the Coalition for Public Information, joined the group for the discussion session. She suggested that an executive summary of the conference proceedings be created and posted on the Internet. The proceedings would be used as a handout for the meetings coming up in Toronto, she explained, adding that it would be very useful to get a summary out to industry members. "They'll see that there is a force out here and that they must develop partnerships." Another participant suggested posting a list of conference participants and their e-mail addresses. A delegate asked Hoffman what she needed from the group for her meetings with IHAC. "Take the recommendations arising from this conference and develop a positive action plan," she responded. For example, she said, there is a fund available within Industry Canada; this group could advise IHAC on where to direct the money and for what purposes. Another participant said, while providing the text to IHAC is useful, he would also like Hoffman to address the meeting on the group's behalf. The discussion turned to IHAC and its ability to represent all those at the conference. Some participants questioned where IHAC's main interest lay. Hoffman explained that IHAC was in its last two months of meetings and dealing with some very heavy issues. "Access is a soft issue to them," she said. The issues being discussed here would be best tabled at the meeting of the Working Group on Access. Since the CAP funds and IHAC are two separate issues, one participant said, the group should examine them separately. Both short-term concerns (access to funds) and long-term plans (post-conference action) were identified as themes for discussion. A delegate referred to the technical alliances formed among government, universities, and industry for the development of the information highway, suggesting that public groups could gain access to funds by becoming involved in technology development. Hoffman cautioned the group about creating too many coalitions. She further suggested that several group members attend the Toronto meetings to represent the interests expressed at the conference. Other group members pointed out that the Coalition for Public Information (CPI) is not necessarily representative of everyone. The group decided to break into two sub-groups to discuss the creation of an umbrella organization to carry out post-conference actions and short- term strategies to lobby IHAC. Creation of an Umbrella Organization A participant asked Hoffman whether she saw room within CPI for a shift in the balance of constituencies and self-definition to accommodate the groups at the conference. The perception that CPI does not represent everyone because of its connection to the Library Association is erroneous, she responded. The Coalition was conceived to represent the "ordinary person"; the libraries offered the use of office space, facilities, and staff. She told the group she would not hesitate to approach CPI to make suggestions on shifts, meetings, and other matters. She again stressed her preference to deal with a single organization, rather than several groups. "Funds are a problem," she explained: "increased numbers would bring in more funds." She added that there may come a time in the future when CPI might divest from the libraries (although there are some CPI members who would not be in favour of such a move). The group agreed on the following recommendations: * Create and post the list of conference participants and E-mail addresses (to be linked to the CPI list); * Co-ordinate with the Steering Committee; * Post IHAC's location; * Clarify goals in preparation for the Toronto meetings; * Identify industry groups for monitoring purposes; * Push national access (letter campaign). Short-term Strategies to Influence IHAC The group agreed that the key issues are cultural sovereignty and wide, affordable access. One participant noted that northern rural areas were under-represented at the conference. Persons with disabilities were also under-represented. A student originally from the Yukon pointed out that in general, the attitude toward the Internet in the north is very underdeveloped. The facilities are there - they are just not being used. IHAC must be made to understand the importance of universal access, stressed one participant. The message to IHAC must be made marketable. A delegate noted that there is a public coalition in the United States which views affordable access as a key issue. The group agreed on the following recommendations: * Push the message using the guiding principles of IHAC; * Communicate the fact that a wide array of groups was represented at the conference; * Make universal access a high priority; * Create public access points (libraries, post offices, etc.); * Ensure that the message sent to IHAC is "marketable". Discussion Group E The group began by re-examining the recommendations it had made the previous day. There was considerable difference of opinion on the issue of tax incentives for corporate support of community FreeNets. Some participants spoke of access in terms of a "national objective". "My dream," said one group member, "is that FreeNet will become part of the library system and be supported by tax dollars just as books are." Others said government had no business giving "handouts" or funding community networks at all. Others asked why profitable companies should require a "carrot" to assist community initiatives. Several group members recommended the use of a "stick" instead, by requiring corporations to set aside a certain proportion of their profits for providing community access. Since no consensus could be reached, the group decided to withdraw its recommendation for tax incentives. The discussion led into the issue of mandatory school instruction. Since "everything we teach today will soon be obsolete", participants agreed that the main objective was to empower students by giving them the tools to think critically and adapt to new technology. Finally, a new recommendation was added to the previous day's list: * An ongoing permanent forum with equitable representation of all stakeholders, to apply critical thinking to the ongoing process now called the Information Highway. It was agreed that IHAC, as currently constituted, was an ineffective instrument. "We don't need eight guys from the cable companies," said one participant: "One will do." Others recommended representation from youth, including "teenage hackers". Participants also stressed that "Information Highway" is a term which imperfectly reflects the broad reality. Next, the group turned its attention to recommendations for community groups. In a brainstorming session, participants recommended that groups: * Get connected - get online. * Form partnerships with other non-profit groups in their communities. * Work with local libraries, which were among the first organizations to get involved with local Freenets and whose interest is still growing. Some participants, concerned about libraries' restricted hours, suggested the focus shift to setting up terminals in "24-hour places" such as hospitals or drugstores. Others noted that libraries are "feel- ing the pinch" in terms of funding; "we can't say we want universal access but we don't want to pay for it", said one participant. * Keep up-to-date information on the organization posted online. * Participate in discussions of information highway development, such as those conducted before CRTC. * Get informed on the Internet and what it offers. This will require "finding aids" of a different sort than are now used in libraries. The first step, said participants, must be to determine the needs of one's own organization and community; the next is to accept responsibility for finding ways to meet those needs. * Lobby for universal access to the information highway, as currently being offered by the New Brunswick and Saskatchewan telephone systems. There was some discussion on whether it was best to lobby provincial governments or individual telephone companies. * Explore and discuss the overall objectives of the information highway, including access and funding issues. * Get involved in training initiatives to empower their own communities. * Explore creative ways to generate funding. Following discussion, participants reduced this list to five recommenda- tions for community groups: * Organizations must first identify their needs. * Be proactive in "getting connected" and learning how the information highway can best meet the needs identified. * Creative partnerships are essential for providing access, developing sustainability and generating funding. * Groups must become involved in development discussions. * Groups should make training initiatives a priority. Next, the group focussed on immediate and short-term results which they felt should follow directly from this conference. These included: * Distribution of participant list to all registrants. * Establishment of an ongoing forum. Suggestions included starting a Usenet newsgroup for conference participants, and making the conference an annual event. * Distribution of conference proceedings, or at least a summary of recom- mendations and actions, to a broader audience than can be reached through posting on local Freenets. * Approaching the media for coverage of conference results. Participants commented that media contact should have been made earlier and more assertively than it was. * Distribution of proceedings in hard copy as well as electronic form. * Advertising the availability of proceedings through electronic networks and newsletters. * Ensure distribution of proceedings to key agencies such as IHAC, the Coalition for Public Information, librarians' associations, Members of Parliament and provincial legislatures, and to departments of culture, recreation and education. * A final report to participants in both electronic and print form from conference organizers, detailing post-conference initiatives and the response to them. Finally, participants listed post-conference steps they intended to take themselves, including reporting back to their own organizations, writing articles on the conference in organizational newsletters and on local BBSs and sharing conference proceedings within their groups. Plenary: Synthesis and Summary Conclusions After the five sub-groups presented their recommendations, moderator Dennis Lewycky remarked that "obviously, there is a great deal of commonality running through these groups". Lewycky first turned his attention to the recommendations for govern- ment. He identified the three basic points common to all or most of the groups' presentations: * The need for an advisory council or access action board which would lobby government; * The recognition that governments have the power to ensure public access (or, in the words of one group, to "free the space"); * The recognition of the importance of promoting community use and alter- native networks. Turning to the set of recommendations for the NGO community, Lewycky remarked that "clearly there is a lot of support for a coalition or a body to advocate for community interests". While there appeared to be unanimity around the issue of a lobbying body, there were also a number of points that raised by at least two of the five groups: * The importance of taking information from these proceedings back to the constituencies and the coming back together form an organization; * The need to think critically and share information; * The importance of establishing an electronic commons; * The value of sharing resources and communications facilities, so as to strengthen action and collaboration; * The need to go forth from an abstract set of principles and create an action plan. When Lewycky asked if any of those points required additional commen- tary, a participant asked if it would be necessary to say something about money. Lewycky responded that the group could make a statement on the government's responsibility to provide resources. The participant said she thought that industry should be make to share that responsibility with govern- ment. Another delegate said the list should be broadened to include individ- uals who use the system. Lewycky asked whether the group thought a steering committee should be struck to guide the coalition, and if the steering committee's mandate should involve carrying forward the principles established at this meeting. A participant answered with a reference to an idea presented by one of the sub-groups. That group had suggested that the people at this conference þ rather than creating a new group - should merge with CPI, which is already up and running but which has expressed a willingness to adapt to embrace the agenda that has come out of this conference. The participant suggested that a group be chosen to explore this option further. "We are headed down the same road as the CPI," she said. "There isn't much money, so it doesn't make sense to have various coalitions compet- ing for the same funds." She said this gathering should delegate a group to attend the next CPI meetings "to figure out whether we join them or we do something else." A speaker from the floor challenged the notion that a formal structure is needed to continue the work. He cited Robert Nichols, who in 1921 wrote about "the oligarchic tendencies of organizations" and their "tendency towards centralization." The participant warned that administrators and officials tend to seize power; he said it was not imperative to secure funding. "I'm an activist and I don't need funding or a coalition to be able to oppose bad policy," he said. "I'm strong enough in my own convictions." He warned the group that they shouldn't "de-emphasize the multi-level and decentralized movement. To ignore the characteristics of the technology and the dramatic changes it is bringing about, is a mistake that shouldn't be made." The participant who had endorsed the idea of joining the CPI responded that she had not meant that individual groups should cease activity; only that they need a structure to better keep in touch. "Our experience of the very loose structures is that they stagnate if there's nobody to keep the vibration flowing," she said. "We should have a small organization to keep us going. I don't think the electronic tools are enough." Another speaker spoke in favour of decentralization. "I've sat in meet- ings with government and industry and what they give you are doomsday scen- arios," he said. "They sense their loss of power and they are grieving that loss." By contrast, he remarked, the people in this room have not promoted doomsday scenarios but rather embraced the erosion of central authority. "In this action plan," he continued, "there is no sense of 'slow down', only a sense that 'we can apply this'." He concluded that he would prefer to see the creation of a "forum" rather than a "coalition," because "a coalition organizes and a forum does not." This prompted another participant to respond that "our task is to organ- ize. Look at the Business Council on National Issues and how this small group has turned the world on its ear. When the industry is there and government is there, we can't be anything but organized. Our priority should be to organ- ize." Mitchell Beer, president of Infolink Consultants, said that the process of bringing this conference together provides a lesson on what structures are now needed. "When we approached some government agencies for funds, they didn't believe that the people in this constituency have needs," he said. "If you're going to show them otherwise, you need a structure and a mandate that gives you the tools to do so." A participant from government said that in order to influence govern- ment, coalitions must demonstrate that they have a sizeable constituency and must be able to communicate in both official languages. "It's also a problem that so many people here are white," he added. Another delegate spoke of a bias in favour of the techno-connected. "Many people don't have the tools or the money to have e-mail," she said. Information must be available through more than just electronic means. An organizer responded that information on the conference will be available in hard copy. Lewycky called for a group of volunteers who would "be at the ready to move ahead with some things that aren't yet clearly defined." He remarked that some logistics have yet to be worked out, but said "if there's a CPI meeting happening then this discussion may wind up happening there." Lewycky also pointed to the need to get some funding in place. "I don't want to raise hopes that the steering committee could work if we don't have the resources for it," said Lewycky. When the topic of sending several delegates to CPI meetings in Toronto and Ottawa was raised, one participant complained of a "central Canadian bias" and pointed out that the gatherings would be inaccessible to many members. Another speaker picked up on this point by proposing that there be a confer- ence in BC, and that the Toronto and Ottawa meetings have an audio component to allow input from outside Ontario. Lewycky then outlined two other tasks which must be completed soon. The recommendations of this conference must be sent to IHAC, and a letter must be sent to IHAC chair David Johnson. The recommendations for the NGOs can be considered and circulated further by the NGOs according to their own time frame, he added. A member of the steering committee returned to the debate over the merits of a structured organization versus those of a decentralized body. "I really believe in the autonomy of the individual in the knowledge society," he stated. "I believe in this process and I really do care that Canadians have hands-on community control of the technology; and I believe that it can hap- pen." This elicited a response from another speaker, who recalled a previous attempt to do community consulting. "We tried to develop a mandate and it failed," he said, "because there was no focal point to the organization þ nobody who would inherit the responsibility of ensuring that the groups' needs are met." Another participant continued the debate with a reference to Marshall McLuhan's use of the Gestalt figure-ground model as it relates to technology and society. McLuhan said that in the electronic environment, the figure becomes more aware of its relationship to other figures on the landscape and less self-interested. Rather than the focal point being the figures that grow high above the ground, activity takes place along the ground. Thus, Western culture has taken on Eastern traits and become less hierarchical. The speaker said that this pattern should be interpreted as an opportun- ity. "A movement that goes towards ground level and emphasizes the ground enhances the chance for growth," he said. "If you spread things out on the ground [the movement] grows faster." Wrapping up the session, Lewycky remarked on one participant's comment that he felt like he was talking into the wilderness. "I'm going to interpret that as a compliment," he said, "keeping in mind Faith Popcorn's observation that the wilderness is safer than our metropolitan centres." Mitchell Beer thanked steering committee members Andrew Chisholm, Garth Graham, Ivan Hale, Marita Moll, Andrew Reddick, Susan Scruton, and Dave Sutherland, and chair John Thurston. He also thanked TW Consultants, who helped organize the conference. "We were delighted with their tremendous effort," he said. Beer also extended thanks to the facilitators of the Community Consul- tant Group who "volunteered their time to keep things on track," and to the National Capital FreeNet, which provided volunteer instructors for the tutorials. He thanked Erinne White and the InfoLink writing and editing team for the conference reports. Finally, Beer thanked everyone who attended the conference and remarked that the event's diversity helped make it a success. Commenting on the rare "depth and diversity" of the gathering, he illustrated the point with a refer- ence to two bumper stickers he had seen in the parking lot. One read: "Try the solar solution to nuclear pollution", while the other read: "The Goddess is about and magic is afoot." He remarked that this was the first time in 15 years that he had seen safe energy advocacy and feminist perspectives at the same conference. Beer encouraged participants to return for next year's conference, and to attend the conference on women and emerging technologies planned for Febru- ary, 1996. The final session was then adjourned.