Forward Thinking Speaker Series
The Forward Thinking Speaker Series reflects EPL’s rich history of taking risks, trying new things and redefining the modern library. EPL invites thought-leaders from a variety of industries to share their insights, ideas, experiences and viewpoints. Its purpose is to help build better organizations, neighborhoods and communities.
Featured Speakers
Elbows Up: How Canada Can Disenshittify Its Tech, Reclaim Its Sovereignty, and Launch a New Tech Sector Into a Stable Orbit with Cory Doctorow
Monday, September 28 - 7 p.m. , Horowitz Theatre
Tickets available August 17 for $15 each
13 years ago, the US trade rep bullied us into passing IP laws that ban our tech companies from reverse-engineering, modifying, improving and disenshittifying the tech products they sell to us. America told us that unless we passed these laws, they'd slap us with tariffs.Â
Welp, here we are: 13 years on, our tech sector is becalmed, RIM and Nortel are distant dreams, US tech giants spy on us with every hour that God sends, they rip off ever app maker, performer, seller and news outlet that relies on an app to the tune of 30 cents out of every dollar, they won't show us the news (not even during wildfires!)...*and* we've got tariffs.Â
Canada, we can do better than retaliatory tariffs. Changing the law means changing the way our technologists relate to US Big Tech. It means raiding the margins of history's greatest rent seekers, creating a vast consumer surplus and a durable source of industrial advantage for Canada. It beats the heck of out voluntarily deciding to pay *more* for the things we buy from America (which is a pretty weird way of punishing Americans).
This event will be moderated by Karen Unland.
About Cory DoctorowÂ
Cory Doctorow (craphound.com) is a science fiction author, activist and journalist. He is the author of dozens of books, most recently Enshittification (nonfiction); and the novels Picks and Shovels and The Bezzle (followups to Red Team Blues). Other notable books include the solarpunk novels Walkaway and The Lost Cause; the tech policy books The Internet Con and Chokepoint Capitalism; and the internationally bestselling Little Brother series; and the picture book Poesy the Monster Slayer. In 2020, he was inducted into the Canadian Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame.Â
About Karen Unland
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Karen Unland is the editor-in-chief of Taproot Edmonton, which delivers reliable intelligence about the Edmonton region. Taproot's 2025 municipal election coverage won the Dr. Eric Jackman Award for Excellence in Journalism from the Canadian Journalism Foundation, and the organization that Karen started with Mack Male in 2016 continues to inform, connect, and empower people by paying attention to the place where we live. Learn more at taprootedmonton.ca.
Event Partners
This Year's Speakers
A Conversation with Chantal Hébert
Civil Discourse in Action with Randy Boyagoda
An Evening with Louise Penny and Mellissa Fung
Past Speakers
2024 Forward Thinking Speaker Series Recap
2023 Forward Thinking Speaker Series Recap
2022 Forward Thinking Speaker Series Recap
2021 Forward Thinking Speaker Series Recap
2024 Forward Thinking Speaker Series Recap
2023 Forward Thinking Speaker Series Recap
2022 Forward Thinking Speaker Series Recap
2021 Forward Thinking Speaker Series Recap
Frequently Asked Questions
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We have tested a variety of ticketing models at our events, including giving all tickets away for free. Unfortunately, this is not the best practice for us or our customers due to high no-show rates. We often had hundreds of customers missing out on tickets only to have a significant number of no-shows at the event. We have learned that a small cost holds our customers accountable to use their ticket while still making it a very affordable event.
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You can transfer your ticket to a friend or family member if you can't attend an event. EPL does not offer refunds for tickets purchased to Forward Thinking Speaker Series events.Â
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In an effort to create a barrier-free experience, if you have a disability or impairment that will impact your participation in our event please email us at events@epl.ca at least one week ahead of time to allow us to find solutions to best support you.
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The General Admission season pass is $125 and gives you a tickets to all four Forward Thinking Speaker Series events in 2026.
Due to overwhelming demand, the season pass is now sold out. Tickets for individual events will still be available throughout the year.Â
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In order to ensure the best experience for all customers, we do not allow latecomers into Speaker Series events after 7:10 p.m. Please be in your seats before this time.