Some of the top bloggers and social-media practitioners in Vancouver and Canada will be speaking at Northern Voice on June 14 and 15 at the H.R. MacMillan Space Centre and Museum of Vancouver. Canada’s first, and still largest, grassroots social-media conference is in its ninth year of helping local bloggers connect and learn from each other. Northern Voice has helped build a thriving community of social-media practitioners in British Columbia. This year’s speakers include Dave Olsen, a co-founder of Hootsuite, and pioneering podcasters Mark Blevis and Bob Goyetche. Some 20 other sessions and a Friday-night party round out the weekend. For more information and advance tickets, visit www.northernvoice.com.

1. 1
MEDIA ADVISORY FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE May 31, 2013
NORTHERN VOICE CONTACT:
Duncan McHugh, president
Email: duncanmm@gmail.com
Phone: 604-376-1139
Twitter: @duncanmm
Northern Voice already creating #engagedcity
Blogger’s conference trains people to build community online and reduce feelings
of isolation being studied by mayor’s task force
Vancouver can already boast a head-start in building community and reducing
isolation—its many bloggers—say the organizers of Vancouver-based Northern Voice,
the country’s first, and still largest, grassroots blogging and social-media conference.
They congratulate Mayor Gregor Robertson for his Engaged City Task Force, whose first
report outlined the importance of reducing the feelings of isolation that recent studies
identified as a problem in Vancouver.
Local bloggers like Miss 604 and Vancouver Is Awesome are already helping people
connect and find community, says Duncan McHugh, president of Northern Voice, which is holding
its annual conference June 14 and 15. “People who blog or use social-media help build the sorts
of communities that fit the wired world we’re all now living in. The meaning of community has
changed since the 1950s—it’s even changed since the 1990s—and many people now seek
others online who share their interests and ideas.”
A strategy to build community and reduce people’s sense of isolation needs to include
sincere efforts to further encourage online communities and social media, says McHugh. “This is
the ninth year that our conference has taught and encouraged people to share their stories with
an authentic voice and build communities around their interests. We’re proud to help build the
leaders and participants of an #engagedcity. And Vancouver has become a centre of both
personal and business participation in social-media.”

2. 2
NEW LOCATION & SPEAKERS
This year’s Northern Voice conference is moving to the futuristic H.R. MacMillan Space
Centre and Museum of Vancouver.
“The space centre is a perfect venue for a conference celebrating the advances in
communication and community building brought about by the web and new media,” says
McHugh. “We think the space centre will inspire people to try new things and make new friends at
the conference. And we’re inviting everyone at the conference to join us for a photo-walk or
podcast-walk in beautiful Vanier Park around the space centre and museum.”
THIS YEAR’S LINEUP
Other social-media conferences focus on corporate communication. Northern Voice has
built its reputation on helping average bloggers and social-media users explore the personal side
of online expression. “We’re not about how to make money with a blog but rather how to share
ideas and create community,” says Treasurer Allyson McGrane (contact: 604-873-6373 or
amcgrane@leftrightminds.com).
This year’s lineup includes some of the leading bloggers and social media experts in B.C.
and Canada exploring online storytelling and digital publishing. Mike Vardy (@mikevardy), the
face behind renowned blog Productivityist will discuss how blogging changed his life journey from
retail middle management to full-time online writer and published author. Technologist Darren
Barefoot (@dbarefoot) explores quantification of modern life—why we track our lives through
compulsively counting calories, pennies, hours of sleep and nearly every facet of our daily
existence.
Two politicians—Kamloops city councillor Arjun Singh (@arjunsingh) and Seattle’s Brad
Meacham (@bradmeacham)—will share how they use digital media to reach supporters and
constituents. Meacham ran for city council in 2011 using a digital strategy.
Keynote speakers this year are internationally known Mark Blevis and Bob Goyetche
(@markblevis & @bobgoyetche). The Ottawa duo were among Canada’s first podcasters and the
founders of Podcasters Across Borders. Dave Olson (@daveohoots), one of the minds behind
Vancouver’s very successful tech start-up Hootsuite, will also give a keynote.

3. 3
For more information from Northern Voice, please contact:
Duncan McHugh, president
Email: duncanmm@gmail.com
Phone: 604-376-1139
Twitter: @duncanmm
Ben Abel, marketing and communications
Email: info@vancouvergadgets.ca
Phone: 778-223-8555
Photos available through Ben
FOR INFORMATION ON #engagedcity
http://www.scribd.com/doc/143015026/Engaged-City-Task-Force-First-Report
http://www.mayorofvancouver.ca/engaged
BACKGROUND ON NORTHERN VOICE
Founded in 2005, Northern Voice was Canada's first web blogging and social media
conference, and it remains the largest grassroots conference of its kind in Western
Canada. As web blogging has evolved, Northern Voice has kept up with an increasing
emphasis on microblogging (Twitter) and other social media developments. Last year,
conference sessions included explorations of Pinterest and self-publishing e-books. But
whatever the communication channel, Northern Voice’s focus is been about aficionados
sharing their knowledge with other blogging and social-media practitioners. Key to
success for Northern Voice has been an ongoing series of talks helping bloggers find
their authentic voice and build a community through sharing experiences.
Organizers keep the cost accessible to average people through sponsorships
and a volunteer structure. The annual event is inexpensive, informal, and accessible to
techies and newbies alike. Each conference brings together a diverse group of new
bloggers, social media experts and those who are curious about online personal
expression.
In 2012, session topics ranged from free speech to copyright, from crowd-
sourcing to building online communities, from lean publishing to the blogger's brain, and
from WordPress to Pinterest. Keynote speakers spoke of their work creating Twitter,
keeping the Internet free of censorship, and finding their personal voice.
Northern Voice is Western Canada's grassroots social-media camp, with good
content, good fun—and is less than half the cost of others.

4. 4
BACKGROUND ON 2013 KEYNOTE SPEAKERS
BOB GOYETCHE
http://bobgoyetche.com
One of the pioneers of Canadian podcasting back in 2004, Bob’s been credited with
helping create and develop the Canadian podcast community. The Bob and AJ show as
well as theCatFishShow are still preferred content for listeners worldwide. As well as
hosting and producing several shows, Bob founded ROGIC (www.rogic.com), one of
Canada’s first podcast networks, and co-founded Canada’s premier podcasting
conference, Podcasters Across Borders (www.podcastersacrossborders.com) which
drew podcasters and podcasters-to-be from all over North America during its seven-year
run.
The creation of the weekly podcast Canadian Podcast Buffet
(www.canadianpodcastbuffet.ca) in 2005 gave Bob and co-host Mark Blevis an
opportunity to share information with Canadian podcasters and listeners, as well as keep
listeners up-to-date on all aspects of podcasting and social media in Canada ranging
from legal issues to tips and techniques. This podcast has been referred to as a “must-
listen” for anyone wanting to be involved in the Canadian podcast space. In 2006 Bob
took over CanadaPodcasts.ca (www.canadapodcasts.ca), the leading directory of
Canadian-produced podcasts. Thousands of visitors each month use this website to not
only promote their efforts but to find the uniquely Canadian podcasting voices on the
internet. His presence and actions in the space have led to several print and radio
interviews, and Bob is a regular speaker at podcasting and social-media conferences
and meet-ups.
MARK BLEVIS
http://markblevis.com
Mark was finally able to unleash his inner radio-host when he learned about podcasting
in the spring of 2005. He launched his first podcast, Electric Sky (electricsky.net) a few
weeks later, joining a growing field of Canadian podcasters. In June 2005, Mark saw an
opportunity to build a Canadian podcast community, helping to put a train on the tracks
Tod Maffin was laying during his Canadian travels. That train would be driven together
with pioneering podcaster Bob Goyetche. The two produced the weekly Canadian
Podcast Buffet and co-curated the annual Podcasters Across Borders conference for
seven years.
At his more prolific, Mark produced five weekly podcasts. Of those, the Just One More
Book (justonemorebook.com) children’s book podcast which he co-produced with his
wife Andrea was the most popular, serving more than two million downloads during its
three-year run. He has viewed each of his podcasting efforts as an opportunity to
inform, entertain and connect like-minded individuals into a community. This is
evidenced in other podcasting efforts, including We Can Rebuild Her
(wecanrebuildher.com), a podcast which Andrea and Mark co-produced to document
Andrea’s cancer treatment and return to good health. Mark harnessed his experience
with online communication and community-building to build Full Duplex (fullduplex.ca), a

5. 5
public affairs consultancy which specializes in digital communication and online
reputation management. In addition to consulting work, Full Duplex conducts ongoing
research on the role of digital in politics, public engagement, advocacy and activism.
DAVE OLSON
http://www.uncleweed.net/
Dave Olson is a mixed media storymaker who explore topics around culture, history,
technology and creativity. He frequently presents at events – including SXSW and
Northern Voice – and shares his opinions on social and traditional media channels.
A graduate of Evergreen College (BA Interdisciplinary Studies, 2004), Dave's work is
published in magazines and journals and in his own documentary podcasts.
After traveling to 30+ far-flung countries, working dozens of jobs from mushroom farmer
in Japan to submarine tour guide in Guam to grape picker in Germany, Dave now enjoys
listening to old vinyl albums on the back porch whilst gazing at North Vancouver’s
mountains and trees.
Dave is also the VP Community for HootSuite.

6. 6
NORTHERN VOICE CONFERENCE MOVES TO
H.R. MACMILLAN SPACE CENTRE JUN 14-15
Conference known for educating people how to blog
and participate in social media
Some of the top bloggers and social-media practitioners in Vancouver and Canada will
be speaking at Northern Voice on June 14 and 15 at the H.R. MacMillan Space Centre
and Museum of Vancouver. Canada’s first, and still largest, grassroots social-media
conference is in its ninth year of helping local bloggers connect and learn from each
other. Northern Voice has helped build a thriving community of social-media
practitioners in British Columbia. This year’s speakers include Dave Olsen, a co-founder
of Hootsuite, and pioneering podcasters Mark Blevis and Bob Goyetche. Some 20 other
sessions and a Friday-night party round out the weekend. For more information and
advance tickets, visit www.northernvoice.com .
Media Contact:
Duncan McHugh, president
Email: duncanmm@gmail.com
Phone: 604-376-1139
Twitter: @duncanmm