Building on discussions initiated at the Metadata Summit in Bolzano, Italy, and the metadata modernization session at the ISO/TC 211 62nd Plenary, Natural Resources Canada and the Open Geospatial Consortium are convening a Metadata Summit in Ottawa, Canada.

The summit will bring together metadata practitioners, standards experts, policy leaders, and data communities to explore how we can transform metadata from a compliance burden into a foundation for AI-ready, sovereign data infrastructure.

Metadata is an increasingly important foundation for modern digital infrastructure — helping make data discoverable, understandable, trustworthy, reusable, and FAIR.

The summit will focus on practical implementation: how we can develop metadata ecosystems that are simpler to implement, easier to govern, and capable of supporting the next generation of data-driven applications.

Discussions will explore how metadata can help meet evolving regulatory and policy requirements, strengthen digital sovereignty, enable interoperability, and prepare data infrastructure for AI.

Together, we will:

• Build a shared understanding of metadata challenges across Canadian data communities.
• Explore how ISO standards, DCAT, STAC, OGC API, and trust and policy requirements can work together as part of an interoperable metadata ecosystem.
• Identify practical implementation patterns and opportunities for shared infrastructure, tools, and approaches.
• Examine metadata requirements for AI-augmented data processing alongside conventional data discovery, access, and reuse.
• Develop actionable policy and standards recommendations to inform OGC, ISO/TC 211, and Canadian data strategy activities.

Join us in Ottawa and online to share implementation experiences, explore common approaches, and advance interoperable, FAIR, sovereign, and AI-ready data infrastructure.

📅 November 4–5, 2026
📍 Ottawa, Ontario, Canada and online

This event is open to everyone and complimentary to attend. Register today to reserve your spot! Registration closes October 15th

From the organisers: Once we reach capacity, new registrations will be added to a waitlist, and we’ll be in touch if a space becomes available.