The Canadian Conference of Photo-Educators began in 2008. Two photography instructors (Gary Robins from SIAST in Regina and Tomo Tanaka from Langara in Vancouver) came up with the idea while attending a Professional Photographers of Canada conference together. Its goal is to help photography educators from all across Canada connect with each other in order to share ideas and trade best practice strategies. Through roundtable discussions, speakers, workshops and personal connections, participants come away recharged, inspired and with plenty of new ideas. This year's theme is "The Next Step". The main focus is for instructors to discuss and exchange concepts and strategies to better help students find and achieve their goals within the field of photography.