PCCA – Pacific Coastal Computing 4 Good | Digital Transformation, Innovation & Talent

PCCA | ABOUT US

The Pacific Coastal Computing Association (PCCA) incorporated in 2020 as a non-profit based in Vancouver, B.C., Canada. PCCA works with partners to advance innovation, student learning, capacity building and project-based impact in education, the arts, environment, health & wellness and technology. More succinctly, our mandate is computing 4 good.

Our approach to digital transformation advisory interweaves strategic thinking of IT infrastructure, tools and technologies alongside the advanced skills needed.

Our HEART Focus

H. Healthcare: health & wellbeing, esp. mental health.

E. Environment: sustainability and conservation.

A. The Arts: performing arts, interactive media and A&E.

R. Reconciliation: fostering harmony, diversity & inclusivity.

T. Technology: applying innovation, computing for good (C4G).

SERVICES

CONSULTING / ADVISORY

We provide consulting and advisory services with specializations in applied research and digital transformation, particularly in the areas of healthcare, environment and the arts/digital media. Our framework for digital adoption/transformation consulting/advisory builds on the individual experiences of our team, with the aim of cross-leveraging for new interdisciplinary projects.

CAPACITY BUILDING

We conceptualize, design, team-build, launch and or manage STEM/STEAM capacity building programs with partners in industry, community, non-profit, academia and government. Our goal is to narrow the digital divide between tech-related opportunities and marginalized groups through innovative, diverse and inclusive programs in education, training and upskilling.

C4G PROJECTS

Interdisciplinary Computing for Good project development round out our services. We take on leadership and delivery roles from ideation & strategy, partnership development to final delivery & evaluation, including government funding.

PROJECTS

Major C4G partnership projects, ongoing or in development, at Pacific Coastal Computing.

EARTH DATA STORE & ANALYTICS

STEAM, DANCE & RT3D TECH

MENTAL HEALTH & YOUTH

EDUCATION | Strategic Initiative Spotlight

CAPACITY BUILDING FOR DIGITAL PROGRAMS

The PCCA mission to support capacity for digital programs has led to the formation of an initiative aimed at empowering youth or individuals that are re-training to master digital technologies for cloud computing, initially for applications using geospatial data and then broadening to include other types of data store including real-time 3d. These programs are in the midst of development for certification of educational credit.

In preparation for a Digital Supercluster call for capacity building projects, PCCA is continuing to evolve a model that aims to assist in the fostering of digital skills through paired learning, industry-university-and-community collaboration, and social/environmental impact or computing-for-good (C4G) projects. It is envisioned that participating students, both university and community, will be as paid internship, work-integrated-learning or scholarship positions. Support for the hardware and cloud resources will also be worked into the proposal(s).

To join the PCCA EDUCATION email list, please send Yvonne Coady an email at ycoady@coastalcomputing.ca. This email is low noise, and is where new programs/projects and requests for partners will be announced.

EARTH DATA STORE (EDS)

This initiative builds on the ongoing Earth Data Store (EDS) project supported by the Digital Supercluster and other partners. The EDS project has an emphasis on geospatial data, but in reality, the parameters for the projects themselves are flexible enough to accommodate most student interests. As part of the work on the EDS project, we have developed some tools and techniques for use the Microsoft Azure platform for storing geospatial data, where the underlying techniques can apply to any cloud platform.

PAIRED LEARNING | STUDENTS

The initiative is designed as a paired learning experience. In previous summers, students from the VERNA J. KIRKNESS EDUCATION FOUNDATION PROGRAM visited Dr. Coady's Lab at the University of Victoria. The program addresses the under-representation of First Nations, Métis and Inuit students at Canadian universities. With a scholarship, these high school students were visiting for a couple of weeks to get a taste of university life in an engineering program. The pairing with university students in the lab was a fruitful and exciting learning experience on both sides. In this new age of potentially-reduced social interaction, it is wise to consider what elements of a paired experience would apply to remote collaboration.

PAIRED LEARNING | PROFESSIONAL

As a paired learning experience, the target of this program is not (just) high school students. The goal is to develop cloud computing competency at a local level, to enable development of the technological capacity to securely create, manage, backup, and control access to cloud computing applications and data sources. The implicit goal is to share the tools to enable a true data sovereignty built on top of commercial cloud services. As such, a mid-career professional looking to add a new competency is a great candidate for the program. The specific project will be jointly-designed, and to be conducted with hybrid or remotely. This synergy of pairing university students and industry professionals is of benefit to both.

TEAM

A forward-looking thinker for education, applied innovation, entrepreneurship and STEM/STEAM diversity & inclusivity, Yvonne brings experience in industry-academic co-operation and capacity building. Yvonne is a computer science professor at the University of Victoria, and visiting professor at the Khoury College of Computer Sciences at Northeastern University. She also serves as an adjunct professor at the Center for Digital Media, a partnership between SFU, UBC, BCIT and ECUAD in Vancouver.

Yvonne works with Indigenous community members to develop software learning tools and platforms for improved access to remote education. Yvonne's research changes the way software developers and users utilize the collaborative medium that is the World Wide Web. She believes that the power to harness cloud computing is on the horizon. Her ultimate goal is to take the enormous computing power that used to only be accessible to specialized researchers and share it with all communities in Canada and around the globe.

Education: PhD in Computer Science from the University of British Columbia; MSc in Computing Science from SFU.

At PCCA, Yvonne leads academic liaison, research and educational programs.

YVONNE COADY Co-Founder & Director

Leveraging an international perspective, Nate brings experience in developing integrated learning platforms, updating communication infrastructures and technology consulting. Nate is also the principle of Krafted Solutions, a private consultancy specializing in the digital transformation of the workplace, IT and project management. His skills have been honed in non-profits and industry.

Passionate about the benefits of information technology, Nate has the rare ability to see what needs to be done and then explain it to clients in understandable language. He not only demystifies technology; he makes it work for his clients. He audits their existing technology, researches their requirements and develops realistic plans for improvement. Nate helps clients find and negotiate the best software, hardware and support solutions, and stays close until their implementation is successful.

Education: Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA), Information Technology from the University of Technology, Sydney.

At PCCA, Nate leads digital adoption/ transformation advisory/consulting and project development in healthcare and social services. He also leads on developing the framework for digital transformation advisory.

NATHAN KRAFT Co-Founder & Director

With an entrepreneurial mindset, Sang brings her experience in working with start-ups in digital media & technology. Recently, she was Managing Director & Producer at Shocap Entertainment, bringing together real-time visual effects and human performances into XR storytelling. Other start-ups include Vidigami Media in the EdTech space, and Credo, a university spin-off, in software tools and R&D in digital media.

Previously, Sang spent 8 years at Mitacs, a national research organization with a mandate to drive innovation, talent and capacity building in Canada. Her Mitacs portfolio included university-industry partnership projects from tech, mining, healthcare to conservation, green energy and the arts. An early role as research manager in the Graphics Research Lab at Simon Fraser University (SFU) roots her academic connections.

Education: MSc in Computing Science (Animation & AI) and BSC (Hons & Co-Op) in Computing Science (Minor in Business Admin) from SFU. Certificate in Advanced Strategy, UBC Sauder School of Business Executive Education.

At PCCA, Sang leads digital adoption/ transformation advisory and project development in digital media, with a special focus on start-ups and SMEs in the Arts & Entertainment and digital interactive media sectors.

SANG MAH Executive Director

Pacific Coastal Computing 4 Good