Canada After Dark

In 2018, Ariel Palitz was appointed to lead New York City’s first Mayor’s Office of Nightlife.

Collaborating across various city departments, she spearheaded multi-agency and community support for programs that are successful to this day. In this keynote, she shares solutions and meaningful guidance to navigating change management and creating nighttime economy strategies that last.

Speakers

• Ariel Palitz, Founding Director, New York City Mayor’s Office of Nightlife 

Nighttime Governance & Hospitality Advisor, All Hours NYC (U.S.A.)

What is the true economic and cultural potential of nightlife? This panel brings together local and national experts to explore the data, opportunities, and growing value of the nighttime economy.

Speakers

• Erin Benjamin, Executive Vice President, Advocacy and Strategy, Ottawa Board of Trade (ON) 
• Veronica Farmer, Chief Marketing Officer, Wesley Clover International (ON) 
• Xavier Roy, Senior Vice President, Membership Engagement and Advancement, Canadian Chamber of Commerce

Brian Block literally wrote the book on planning for entertainment-related sound.

A deeply-experienced resource on land-use and zoning levers, nightlife districts, and solving conflicts between entertainment and residential uses, Brian comes to CAD26 with proactive solutions that support vibrancy, while mitigating noise complaints.

Speakers

• Brian Block, President, Sound City Planning, Austin (U.S.A.) and

Board Treasurer, Nighttime Economy Culture and Policy Alliance (NITECAP)

Coexistence between live music venues and residents is a chronic nightlife tension felt around the world. As a result, cities have developed different ways to manage noise issues. Learn about the approaches taken by various city officials, stakeholders and other experts who modernized sound bylaws, developed mediation programs and used zoning and land planning tools (and more).  

Speakers

• Farid Dagher, Founder, CITY AT NIGHT, ANNX & GRIDWRKS (ON)
• Ariel Palitz, Founding Director, New York City Mayor’s Office of Nightlife
• Nighttime Governance & Hospitality Advisor, All Hours NYC (U.S.A.)
• Corey Poole, Music Sector Development Coordinator, City of Mississauga (ON)

Romain Dumoulin specializes in architectural and environmental acoustics, assessing acoustic environments in music venues and cultural spaces across North America. Through immersive, real-time listening demonstrations, he will sonically illustrate the impact of nightlife activities on nearby indoor and outdoor soundscapes and demonstrate how these environments relate to measured sound levels and various entertainment noise bylaw criteria.

Speakers

• Romain Dumoulin, Acoustician and Project Director, WSP Canada (QC) 

What is at stake when a city loses live music spaces? This panel reflects on practitioner experience, policy, new research, and ways of protecting places that sustain creative ecosystems. Learn about Venue Trusts, new commercial and partnership models, and ways to acquire and sustainably manage cultural spaces.

Speakers

• Shulie Smolyanitsky, Operations & Education Manager, Wavelength Music (TO)
• Marc-André Robertson, Co Founder, HocheLab (QC)
• Jon Weisz, Founder & Executive Director, Les SMAQ (QC)

New research confirms that nightlife plays a role in a city’s capacity to attract and retain highly-skilled professionals, acting as a hard economic driver of urban competitiveness. Professor Jean-François Ouellet shares his data and insights on core determinants of where the next generation of workers will choose to live, identifying opportunities that help partners plan to entice (and keep) world-class talent.

Speakers

• Jean-François Ouellet, Professor of entrepreneurship and innovation, HEC Montréal (QC)

What’s next for night studies? Three of the world’s leading night studies scholars and nighttime urban governance experts reflect on their emerging field and exchange the latest evidence, research and preoccupations that are moving the nighttime economy needle across the globe.

Speakers

• Luc Gwiazdzinski, Doctor of geography, Professor at ENSA (école d’architecture et formations supérieures) Toulouse, Jean Jaurès University, Toulouse (FR)
• Andreina Seijas, Founder, Night Tank, expert in nighttime urban governance (ES)
• Will Straw, James McGill Emeritus Professor of Urban Media Studies, McGill University (QC)

Aire Commune shares the results, lessons learned and key success factors from nearly a decade of placemaking projects across Canada. Offering a practical framework for launching initiatives that support economic development and vibrant, safe public spaces, this keynote explores how placemaking can move from pilot projects to long-term strategies for city building.

Speakers

• Marie-Pier Tessier De L’Étoile, Co Founder and General Director, Aire Commune (QC)

Guided by the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, Canada’s five UNESCO Creative Cities join forces to explore how targeted support for cultural stakeholders, spaces, and infrastructure creates opportunities to extend economic and social activity beyond traditional business hours. Offering insight into the policy frameworks, partnerships, and investments that have enabled each city to build on its unique UNESCO designation, this panel showcases distinct approaches to shaping resilient, vibrant and sustainable nighttime economies across Canada.

• Full lineup of speakers coming soon

Challenger Cities Salon, Ottawa Edition – More details coming soon!

Lightbahn x Royal Astronomical Society of Canada (Ottawa) night viewing event – More details coming soon!

October 7 and 8, 2026 during Capital Music Week (CxMW)

National Arts Centre – Fourth Stage (1 Elgin Street, Ottawa ON)

• Two full days of programming at the National Arts Centre
• Actionable takeaways from industry experts and keynote speakers
• Panel discussions, collaborative conversations and workshops to exchange best practices, solutions and inspirations for nightlife in your city
• Networking opportunities with professionals from across Canada and beyond
• Lunch included with Day 1 and Two-Day passes
• Free live music showcases and other activities as part of Capital Music Week

Access panel discussions, workshops, networking opportunities and more at Canada After Dark 2026!

Flexible ticketing options are available for Day 2 and Two-Day tickets. If cost is a barrier, and you are a student, a nightlife professional, or a non-profit worker, please contact ticketing@ottawamic.com to learn more.

• Day 1 Ticket (includes lunch)
• Day 2 Ticket
• Two-Day Pass

Limited availability. Book now.

Alt Hotel Ottawa Downtown: Rates starting at $239 for a Classic Room. To reserve at Alt Hotel Ottawa Downtown click here.

Le Germain Hotel Ottawa: Rates starting at $309 for a Classic Room. This rate includes breakfast. To reserve at Le Germain Hotel Ottawa, click here.