community broadband networks

Freedom to Connect starts on Monday morning, March 4, at 9 AM EST and should not be missed. If you cannot make the live event in Silver Spring, Maryland, you can join from afar.

That's right, there will be a livestream and for a $25 fee, you can join the backchannel discussion.

This conference has some incredible presenters ... and also me - Christopher Mitchell - giving a keynote in the opening session. I'll also be joining the Democracy Now show at 8 AM EST to talk about community owned networks. They also have a livestream at their site.

If we want to protect the open Internet and expand access to fast, affordable, and reliable connections, we need to organize. There are few better ways to organize or get inspired than in-person events with great speakers and time to chat with others.

I will be at both Freedom to Connect and the National Conference for Media Reform and strongly encourage you to sign up with the early bird rates now available.

The first is Freedom to Connect (F2C) just outside Washington, DC, at the AFI Silver Theatre in Silver Spring, Maryland.

F2C: Freedom to Connect is designed to bring under-represented people and issues into the Washington, DC based federal policy discussion. F2C: Freedom to Connect revolves around three central topics.

The first is an open infrastructure owned or controlled by and responsive to the community it serves and whose resources it depends upon. The second is a publicly specified set of Internet protocols open to all who meet its specifications. The third is the use of the Internet to promote government of, by and for the people, and to counteract autocratic government power.

To learn who will address each topic, visit F2C. Below is a short video with some of the fun moments of this conference in 2012. (You can see the presentations and panels from 2012 here.)

Register by Jan 18 to get the early bird discount: $195. Don't forget, this event always has world-class music between sessions -- always a great experience.

One month after F2C, Free Press is holding the National Conference for Media Reform (NCMR) in Denver on April 5-7.

I spoke at the last NCMR and will be on at least one, possibly several panels in Denver to discuss community owned broadband networks and Internet policy. This event attracts great people and the conversations in the halls around presentations never fail to inspire me.

Want to delve into the most pressing issues facing technology and the future of the Internet? Then check out the National Conference for Media Reform in Denver on April 5–7, 2013. Our conference is a three-day whirlwind that brings together the nation's leading thinkers and innovators to discuss policies and politics and how technology is shaping the world. Early-bird registration rates are available through Jan. 30, 2013, so sign up today.

There are big questions facing us in 2013. Will innovation and creativity flourish online, or will corporations lock the Internet down? Will communities have access to the technologies they need to solve the problems they face? How can we take on big companies and corrupted policymakers — and win?

Join many great speakers, including Susan Crawford, in Denver for NCMR. Register now for the early bird rate of $170. That rate expires at the end of January.

The Economic Development Conference Series' first event, Community Fiber Networks, is scheduled for November 8 - 9, 2012, in Danville, Virginia. Dates and locations for later events will follow. The series is being produced by Broadband Communities Magazine. Danville is near the border with North Carolina.

Christopher Mitchell and a long list of industry experts will be presenting on a wide range of topics at the Institute for Advanced Learning and Research in Danville.

Leaders in all areas of the Advanced Broadband Network industry will be sharing their findings and expertise. Danville was chosen because it is a true success story. By using their fiber network as a catalyst for economic development, Danville transformed itself. For years it was a struggling textile town but is now a highly desirable destination for businesses and individuals seeking advanced telecommunications services.

Christopher will be talking on Thursday, November 8th, on "Winning Community Initiatives." Friday, November 9th, he will present as part of the panel on "Innovative Financing Methods." The full agenda for the conference is available to help you plan your schedule.

From the press release:

THIS IS THE FIRST conference of its kind in this country - an event devoted entirely to the relationship between a community's economic vitality and the presence of advanced broadband networks. Nations around the world have recognized this powerful linkage and responded to it - as have a growing number of communities in the United States.

Each event in this new conference series will be held in a city with an advanced broadband system.

Each event will have an impressive array of speakers whose mission will be to help attendees evaluate the options and opportunities and develop the optimal, affordable solution for their communities.

The first conference is in Danville, Virginia - the Comeback City that bounced back from devastation with a visionary broadband strategy that's creating jobs and attracting the businesses and industries of tomorrow.

Register here. Fee for the event $110. For more information contact BBC Mag at meredith@broadbandproperties.com.

Our own Christopher Mitchell will be speaking at two upcoming events on broadband and the future of the Internet.

First, Christopher will be at F2C: Freedom to Connect in Washington, D.C., on May 21-22nd. Christopher will be speaking on May 22nd on the "Fight for Community Broadband" Panel along with other notables from the Free Press, Harvard University, the Center for Media & Democracy, and the SouthEast Association of Telecommunications Officers and Advisors (SEATOA). The presentations will be at the AFI Silver Theatre and you can register here. If you can't attend in person, you can sign up for a webcast. From the F2C website:

F2C: Freedom to Connect is a conference devoted to preserving and celebrating the essential properties of the Internet. The Internet is a success today because it is stupid, abundant and simple. In other words, its neutrality, its openness to rapidly developing technologies and its layered architecture are the reasons it has succeeded where others (e.g., ISDN, Interactive TV) failed.

The Internet’s issues are under-represented in Washington DC policy circles. F2C: Freedom to Connect is designed to advocate for innovation, for creativity, for expression, for little-d democracy. The Freedom to Connect is about an Internet that supports human freedoms and personal security. These values, held by many of us whose consciousness has been shaped by the Internet, are not common on K Street or Capitol Hill or at the FCC.

Keynote speakers include Vint Cerf, Michael Copps, Susan Crawford, Cory Doctorow (via telecon), Benoît Felten, Lawrence Lessig, Rebecca MacKinnon, Eben Moglen, Mike Marcus and Aaron Swartz.

Register here!

After participating at F2C, Christopher will be heading over to Arlington, Virginia, to speak at "Creating Sustainable Broadband Solutions for Communities and Anchor Institutions" presented by the Schools, Health & Libraries Broadband Coalition (SHLB Coalition) and the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA). The conference will be May 23-24 at the Sheraton National Hotel in Arlington. Come the evening of the 22nd for a reception to meet the speakers and other attendees. The focus of the conference:

This national conference for anchor institutions, BTOP and BIP awardees, and anyone else (including non-awardees) will explore sustainability strategies for next-generation broadband networks and examine how community anchor institutions can benefit from and leverage these broadband investments to serve their communities.

The keynote speaker at "Creating Sustainable Broadband Solutions for Communities and Anchor Institutions" will be Lawrence E. Strickling, Administrator, National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), U.S. Department of Commerce. The conference will also include several notable pleanary speakers, including community broadband champion Joanne Hovis. The agenda also includes Break-Out sessions for more in-depth discussion. You can view the agenda, and register for the conference online.