DEREK REILLY

Dr. Derek Reilly is a Professor in the Faculty of Computer Science at Dalhousie University and President of the Canadian Human Computing Communications Society (CHCCS). 

Derek’s area of expertise falls in ubiquitous computing, human-computer interaction (HCI), and mixed reality. A leader in his field, he was integral to bringing Canada’s premier HCI and graphics conference to Halifax in 2024. 

Graphics Interface (GI) is the longest continuously running conference in the field worldwide. Beginning in 1969, 2024 marked the 50th edition of the conference. 

WHY THEY DID IT

Selected to be General Chair of the upcoming HCI/Graphics Interface Conference, Derek decided to bring the conference home to Halifax. “I was the chair of the event. I’m in Halifax, so it’s easiest for me to have the conference in Halifax,” said Derek. 

Apparently, Derek didn’t have to do a hard sell to the rest of CHCCS. “Halifax is such a fun city. Also, relatively compact. It has a lot of great things going for it.”

Leading the conference was new to Derek, however. “I had never organized a conference as a General Chair before, and I didn’t know where to begin. Within 20 minutes of discussion with the team at Discover Halifax, I felt like I had it under control. Discover Halifax was an indispensable resource for me.”

BIG OUTCOMES

HCI/Graphics interface 2024 brought together 150 national and international researchers  working in areas such as gaming, visualization, and virtual reality to present latest advancements and findings, discuss industry challenges and applications, and network with potential collaborators. “We had a number of people say it was the best Graphics Interface Conference they’d ever been to,” said Derek. 

Derek’s unit within the Faculty of Computer Science at Dalhousie also saw great value in having the conference in Halifax and are actively planning to bring more conferences to our city. “We’re growing as a unit. We have a number of early career researchers who are keen to bring the community to Halifax.”

The event left behind over $360,000 in economic impact for Halifax and a legacy of knowledge and connections for local students, researchers, and industry professionals.