Summit Purpose and Background

The aim of the Summit was to bring together Western political, military, and industry leaders to discuss the convergence of digital and cyber technologies and their effect on NATO, the Five Eyes Community and national defence and security of the participating countries.

The Policy Insights Forum (PIF) and the Canadian Defence Review (CDR) collaborated to bring together key Allied government and military decision-makers and defence industry leaders to facilitate a timely discussion in an era marked by strategic competitors (Russia, China) and disruptive technologies which are transforming the geopolitics of liberal Western Democracies.

Since no nation or organization has complete dominance over cyberspace, it is critical for international peace, security, and economic stability to bring together prominent and influential leaders to address emerging threats to the Transatlantic region and beyond as well as within the cyber domain.

Date and Timing

The Summit took place over two days, from Wednesday, November 17 to Thursday, November 18, 2021, from 9:00 AM to 12:00 PM (EST) each day.

The Keynote by Mircea Geoană, NATO Deputy Secretary General, took place from 9:10 to 9:30 AM (EST) on the morning of November 17 and the Keynote by Goldy Hyder, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Business Council of Canada, took place from 9:35 to 9:45 AM (EST) on the morning of November 18.

The specific time slots allocated for the Speakers were from 09:35 to 10:25 AM (EST) for both days. This was followed by the Speakers’ participation to the Roundtables, which took place from 10:30 to 11:35 AM (EST).

Venue

The venue was hybrid, both online and in-person to be broadcasted from Ottawa, Canada. The in-person event was held at the Hilton Hotel Ottawa Downtown main conference room (361 Queen Street, Ottawa, Ontario, K1R 0C7, Canada).

Theme and format

The Summit was designed to feature two Keynote Speakers, and a Roundtable of prominent Allied political, military, and industry leaders.

Each Speaker was given ten minutes to make opening remarks to be followed by an interactive Roundtable discussion. Questions were prepared in advance and were forwarded to the Speakers.

The theme of the Summit was the Digitalization of Defence and Security. The Summit’s aim was to encourage greater Allied government collaboration through better defence, security, digital and cyber cooperation to meet tomorrow’s strategic challenges.

Target Audience Description

We attracted a wide audience composed of people from government, industry, military, and academia.
- This included at a political-level, ministerial staff and at the ministry-level, deputy ministers, assistant deputy ministers, director generals, directors, and policy analysts.
- At the military-level, this included general staff officers, as well as cyber and digital security military experts.
- Regarding industry-level attendance, we expected participation from C-suite-level executives, vice-presidents, and senior company directors.
- In addition, attendance also included think tanks, academic institutions, and government-operated learning institutions.

The event was public to facilitate a wider discussion, but subject to appropriate registration approvals and screening.

Summit Highlights