Mr. Bill Drost, Chief Information Officer for the Province of Prince Edward Island will present their experience the impacts of information technology on society and the economy. He will examine four or five case studies where technology has been used by government to improve the economy and the quality of life of its citizens. The use of information technology to deliver better services to citizens and business can be a valuable economic and social development tool. Despite its small size (or because of its small size), Prince Edward Island has been a Canadian and world leader in a number of these areas. Canada was the first country in the world to connect all public schools and libraries to the internet and Prince Edward Island was the first province in Canada to achieve this important milestone. In the Heath Care sector, Mr. Drost will profile the important and interesting work done with tele-hospice. With the assistance of technology, terminally ill patients can now spend their last days in their homes with family instead of in a hospital. Tourism is the second most important sector of Prince Edward Island's economy. The government website, www.gov.pe.ca, is widely regarded as one of the best tourism websites in the world. Through the government website and other technology tools, visitors are able to plan their vacations far in advance. Tele-democracy is the uncharted area of government and citizen interaction. Participation in the democratic process is a passion and obligation for Prince Edward citizens. Voter participation is always over 80 percent and the highest in Canada. Prince Edward Island has implemented live streaming broadcasts of legislative proceedings and other means of citizen interaction with its politicians using technology. Economic activity in government and the private sector has given growth to healthy industry creating high paying jobs in the information technology sector. Mr. Drost will discuss the growth of the IT industry and the formation of the Information Technology Association of Prince Edward Island (ITAP).

Infrastructure Accessibility - The Prince Edward Island Experience Prince Edward Island is the smallest of the 10 Canadian provinces and is located in the waters of the Atlantic Ocean off the east coast of the country. Traditional industries include farming, fishing, shell fish aquiculture and tourism. The economy of the Island has been growing at a healthy pace over the past number of years with the help of new industries like bio-technology, aerospace and information technology. Transforming a society from selling from the land and sea to selling our technology and our services has been no easy task. One component of the transformation has been the provision of low cost public internet access. In 1998, the Federal and Provincial Government formed a partnership called the "Community Access Program" (CAP Sites) to bring affordable public internet access to citizens. Today, no Island resident lives more than 9 minutes from a public internet access site. CAP Sites are usually located in public buildings such as schools, libraries and post offices. Some sites have evolved to provide services to the community such as internet training for seniors, web site development and business incubation centres. With improvements in the economy, greater computer literacy and lower cost technology; more than 50 percent of Islanders now have internet access in their home. This presentation will highlight the successes and challenges of introducing internet technology to rural communities