FWD50 CFP

Thanks so much for your interest in speaking at FWD50! The Call for Proposals for our annual FWD50 2023 fall conference is officially open—Please read everything below carefully before submitting your proposal. Following the closing of the CFP, our incredible Advisory Board will review the submissions to help us select what talks get to take the stage. We will notify all selected and rejected applicants in September. 

Propose a talk

Before you propose a talk, please read this carefully:

FWD50 isn't a typical conference.

• We expect your talk to be nonpartisan, and not a sales pitch.
• We work closely with you to ensure that your content is useful and well-prepared, and that you’re practiced and easy to understand. (Seriously, we've spent countless hours training speakers and iterating on content.)

You can suggest yourself, or someone else, to deliver a talk. We’re specifically looking for Executive / leadership content, workshops, skills sessions (you teach a skill in 60 minutes, online), deep-dive sessions, and Ask Me Anything (AMA) experts for candid conversations about digital transformation. For topical inspiration, read the results of our annual government survey.

We also run Book Clubs with renouned authors, and year round FWD50 Extras online workshop content, so if you're interested in those instead, be sure to reference that in your application.

 

Thanks for considering helping us to put on FWD50. We don’t receive any government grants, so we depend entirely on ticket sales and sponsorship. This lets us remain independent and transparent—but it also means we need the support of like-minded organizations from the private sector who know that a rising digital tide lifts all boats, and recognize the need for great conversations around digital policy in the modern era.

One other note: FWD50 is a content-focused event. There’s no “expo hall” at the event; some sponsorships include a speaking or interview opportunity within the lineup, so we work closely with sponsors to ensure that the content is valuable and fits within the goals and topics of the conference.

FWD50 is a “big tent” event—we want many voices involved. We believe strongly in the idea of “more wood behind fewer arrows,” rather than splintering the digital government conversation.

Each year, we bring together like-minded organizations from Canada and around the world. We’ve worked with organizations including DPI, Policy Ignite, Code for Canada, and others to include them in the lineup, giving them a voice, and access to our faculty. Let us know about you and how you’d like to coordinate with us.

We do not offer bulk ticket pricing for the conference. However, government departments may purchase a department-wide pass that allows everyone in your department to attend virtually, and includes ten in-person passes.

Please answer the questions below and we’ll be in touch as soon as possible. If you would like us to reach you by phone, please provide your number in the field above.

Thanks for offering to help out! Volunteering is a great way to attend the event and work side-by-side with our international faculty.

In keeping with our accessibility goals, we prefer volunteers who otherwise wouldn’t be able to attend: Students, academics, and so on.

If you’re a volunteer, we expect you to dedicate at least eight (8) hours of your time onsite.

Thanks for offering to help get the word out about FWD50. There are many ways you can make sure as many people as possible know about the event.

We’re thrilled at the number of media organizations that want to cover the conference. We offer free access to accredited members of the press, provided that you cover the conference in an approved publication, online or off, within five (5) days of the event taking place.

We take your coverage plans into account when granting media passes. Social media, photo compilations, and articles not related to digital government are not considered press coverage. We generally grant one media pass per news outlet.