Transparency for the 21st Century Conference (March 21-23, 2017)

February 17, 2017

Registration is open for the Transparency for the 21st Century Conference being hosted by Office of the Information Commissioner of Canada with the support of the Department of Justice Canada, Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat, Library and Archives Canada, and the Canadian Commission for UNESCO. The Conference is being organized in collaboration with the Canadian Committee for World Press Freedom, the Library of Parliament, and Carleton University’s School of Journalism and Communication.

From March 21-23, 2017, over 200 Canadian and international experts and advocates in the fields of access to information, open government, and government transparency, will gather in Ottawa at the Library and Archives Canada building.

The Focus

Freedom of information provides a solid foundation for healthy democracies and transparent governments around the world. National and economic security, human rights, indigenous rights, media and personal freedoms, and government accountability are all strengthened when information flows freely between governments and their citizens.

Around the world, democratic governments are testing initiatives that open up their governments even further. There is a growing expectation that governments should be more transparent and keep pace with the rapid technological changes that make business and personal communication so immediate. Citizens are demanding enhanced levels of engagement and open door policies that mirror their ready access to knowledge, business intelligence and social networks.

Participants

Access to information and open government experts and advocates, members of the media, democracy organizations, historians, librarians, archivists, youth, government and parliamentary officials, and national security experts will find valuable content and information exchange at the Conference.