Vicky Eatrides to the Canada VRS 10th Anniversary Celebration

CRTC Chairperson Vicky Eatrides speaks at the celebration of ten years of video relay services being available in Canada.

“Answering the call: Ten years of Video Relay Service in Canada”

Vicky Eatrides, Chairperson and Chief Executive Officer
Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC)

Good evening, everyone, and thank you, Patrick, for that warm welcome.

Before we begin, I would like to acknowledge that we are gathered on the traditional unceded territory of the Algonquin Anishnabeg peoples. I would like to thank them and pay respect to their Elders.

I am very pleased to be here tonight, and to be joined by my colleagues, Nanao Kachi, the CRTC’s Head of Social and Consumer Policy, Nancy McLaughlin, our Senior Policy Advisor, Accessibility, and Eric Joyce, our Chief of Staff.

We are honoured to be part of your celebration of ten years of video relay service, or VRS, in Canada.

Ten years of VRS is a remarkable milestone, and one that belongs to so many people -- including many of you in this room, who have helped build the service and make it what it is today.

While an anniversary like this gives us a chance to reflect on how far VRS has come, it also gives us an opportunity to think about what lies ahead.

To think about the future we are working toward, and what it will take to get there.

And I think we share a vision for what that future can be.

To borrow the CAV’s words, we are collectively working toward a “connected Canada where people can reliably communicate across signed and spoken languages.”

When people can reliably communicate, they can participate more fully in the things that matter -- at work, at school, and in everyday life. That is what a connected Canada means in practice.

Creating those opportunities is something we all have a role in. And for us at the CRTC, that starts with learning from Canadians.