BIO: Francis Lougheed: Since March 1999, Francis Loughheed has been Facilitator for Smart City Cornwall, a community-based, not-for-profit organization dedicated to promoting technology to enhance social, cultural and economic development in Cornwall, Ontario, Canada. Over the past 10 years, Mr. Loughheed has worked with a variety of communities providing innovative, grass roots-based solutions for local development issues. He is the author of a number of workshops and training programs focusing on managing in chaos. Mr. Loughheed is a noted speaker and facilitator and is President of Loughheed and Associates, one of Ontario's leading consulting firms in the area of community use of technology and telecommunications. Mr. Loughheed is married with two children.

BIO: Sylvie Albert-Doucet, B.A., M.B.A., EcD, H.R.P., the president/founder of Planned Approach, a management consulting firm based in Northern Ontario, has been involved in the development and implementation of telecommunications projects for over 10 years. The company, under Ms. Doucet's guidance, has been involved in the development of business plans and feasibility studies for the development of Smart Community/community broadband network initiatives in Ontario, New Brunswick, Quebec and British Columbia. Ms. Doucet is currently completing a Doctorate in Business Administration with a thesis on Smart Community Development.

Meeting the Needs of Audiences with Challenges - Neil Allen, Independent Living Centre

BIO: Neil Allen is a Facilitator at the Independent Living Centre in Kingston (ILCK). ILCK is a non-profit organization that promotes full participation of persons with disabilities in the community. He coordinates program delivery of the Self-Managed Attendant Services - Direct Funding Program. The Direct Funding Program allows persons with physical disabilities to hire and manage their own attendant services. Mr. Allen also provides support in the Information & Referral Program to people requesting information and support on barrier-free issues, including the accessibility of computer systems and workstations, as well as accessibility to the internet through the use of adaptive hardware and software technologies.