On the TechWaterloo stage ×1
First seen on the TechWaterloo stage in 2018. Every talk is searchable — ask the archive about Berry ↗
In their words
We're going to encourage it from an economic development point of view and say this is the kind of community we're developing — we needed to walk the talk as a city.
Our biggest challenge, and one that both the leaders in the tech community and the leaders in the municipalities are grappling with, is how to make sure that as we grow as a community we don't follow in the footsteps of cities like San Fran.
Around the web ×3
Quick answers
Who is Berry Vrbanovic?
The mayor of Kitchener, Ontario. He was a Kitchener councillor from 1994 to 2014 and has been mayor since, winning re-election in 2018 and 2022 and filing to run again in 2026.
What did he speak about at TechWaterloo?
How the City of Kitchener got into the tech business — the $110M economic development investment fund created in 2004, and the Digital Kitchener strategy built on being connected, innovative, on-demand and inclusive.
What is Digital Kitchener?
Kitchener's municipal digital strategy, among the first in Canada. It covers broadband gap-filling, a Digital Kitchener Innovation Lab at Communitech, an open-data portal launched in 2017, and free public Wi-Fi in city facilities.