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Start time by time zone
12 Noon PDT (BC) / 1 PM MDT (AB, SK) / 2PM CDT (MB) / 3PM EDT (ON, QB) / 4PM ADT (NB, NS, PEI)
What happens when our toaster breaks? What can we do with a broken cellphone? Why don’t we have access to repair information for farm machinery? Should equipment manufacturers really be allowed to charge the rates that they do to fix tractors? The right to repair goes beyond the ability for consumers to repair electronics, appliances, and machinery. The right to repair is about independence and freedom from major manufacturers in order to have access to timely and inexpensive repairs, as well as operability between products that suit the needs of consumers and farm businesses. It is also about affordability and sustainability – repairability and durability of products ensure that Canadians do not have to re-buy products that were intentionally designed to be replaced with newer products – also known as planned obsolescence.
Dr. Alissa Centivany will present on the current state of the right to repair in Canada, including legislation on repairability, interoperability, and durability. We will hear about recent changes to the Copyright and Competition Acts that have made a substantial right to repair more achievable in Canada. Dr. Centivany will also talk about the values of the right to repair and argue that a right to repair reflects deeper values about how we take care of the tools we use, ourselves, and our relationships.
Dr. Alissa Centivany is an Assistant Professor in the Faculty of Information and Media Studies at the University of Western Ontario working on technology policy, law, and ethics. Dr. Centivany co-directs the Starling Centre for Just Technologies & Just Societies. She serves as a core expert in the AI Insights for Policymakers Program (AIPP) convened by the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research (CIFAR) and Mila— Quebec Artificial Intelligence Institute. She is co-founder of the Canadian Repair Coalition and is an affiliate member of the Rotman Institute of Philosophy. Dr. Centivany has provided expert testimony before the Canadian House of Commons and Senate on two copyright reform measures that received royal assent in November, 2024.