This week at Civic Tech Toronto

TfD meets every Tuesday at Civic Tech Toronto. The most recent featured presentation was by Climate Fast CA. They have a website that reviews the voting history of Toronto-based councillors, measuring their attendance and voting history on climate-specific proposals. This closely aligns with the TfD vision of grassroots action, check out their platform to get involved.

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People's Consultation on AI — March 9th

Our main focus for this edition is the upcoming People's Consultation on AI. This event can be attended in-person and online, and is designed to let regular people have a say in Canada's federal AI policy. This is in collaboration with the Tech Workers Coalition Canada, and you are invited to participate and ask questions. We are looking for volunteers to assist with the event, so get in touch on our Slack channel if interested. Register here. More info about speakers & the event.

TfD steward Khasir Hean spoke about the upcoming People's Consultation on AI on the most recent episode of Is This The New Internet podcast with Marv. This is a Canadian podcast that explores how tech and human life intermingle. The hour-long chat covered a range of topics, including:

• Civic Tech Toronto
• The Technologists For Democracy vision, philosophies of radical openness & teamwork
• A nuanced approach to understanding the benefits & risks of AI
• The close links between privacy & a healthy democracy
• Best practices for navigating an internet landscape designed around convenience and captured attention

The episode drops Thursday morning. Subscribe on your preferred podcast platform.

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Magna report follow-up at City Hall

We attended a virtual meeting at Town Hall to follow up on our victory in the Magna campaign. Councillor Diane Saxe introduced a motion to investigate the legal aspects raised in our campaign. We are optimistic this will lead to clear regulation. We will share the recording of this pitch to City Hall when it is available on YouTube.

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Bill C-4

Bill C-4 quietly exempts federal political parties from provincial and territorial privacy laws and regulations. It passed in the house of commons, but faces headwind in the senate for its privacy concerns. Our statement regarding this bill.

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Join TfD on Mastodon

We are on the Fediverse, a decentralized alternative to social media platforms like Twitter. TfD chooses to use platforms outside the reach of Big Tech. Give us a follow here and learn more about the Fediverse here.

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Technologists for Democracy are Canadians who work with technology towards better democracy for all. Learn more at techfordemocracy.ca.