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Date: Monday, October 26th, 2026
Time: 9:00 AM (Registration Opens) | 10:00 AM – 5:00 PM (Conference) | 5:00 PM – 6:30 PM (Reception and Dinner)
Location: Ottawa
About the Conference

Bill C-34, the Safe Social Media Act, is now at second reading in the House of Commons. It is one of the most significant pieces of digital policy Canada has considered in years, with major implications for online safety, privacy, free expression and how Canadians of all ages use the internet.

This one-day conference will facilitate a substantive public conversation about the bill. It will bring together diverse perspectives to critically analyze Bill C-34 and propose thoughtful amendments to make it more effective at addressing online harms, while preserving digital rights.

Expert-led panel discussions will examine how online harms have evolved since 2024 and whether the bill’s framework adequately protects users.

Building on the 2024 Digital Justice Summit

This is the second national conference on online harms convened by NCCM and OpenMedia. On September 23, 2024, the two organizations co-hosted the Digital Justice Summit at the National Arts Centre, a full-day conversation on the Online Harms Act (Bill C-63) and the underlying issues it set out to address.

The 2024 Summit brought together lawmakers, academics, journalists and civil society organizations from across the spectrum. Speakers included Justice Minister Arif Virani, Green Party Leader Elizabeth May, Conservative Senator Salma Ataullahjan, Emily Laidlaw (Canada Research Chair in Cybersecurity Law, University of Calgary), Barbara Perry (Director, Centre on Hate, Bias and Extremism) and Mercedes Stephenson (Ottawa Bureau Chief, Global News).

Bill C-63 died when Parliament was prorogued. Its successor, Bill C-34, is expected to go considerably further, and this year’s conference picks up where the 2024 conversation left off.