RadioRob Hopkins

Background

President of Utilities Consumers Group

Responsibilities:

  • Has kept analog community broadcasting alive through sheer force of will

  • Fought regulators, software limitations, and the inevitability of the internet

  • Founded tools, systems, and entire platforms so others could broadcast

  • Champions public access media, local voices, and low-cost DIY solutions

  • Provides big-picture vision, historical context, and occasional reality checks

  • Encourages the next generation to take over (while quietly watching)

  • Actively planning retirement — confident the station will survive without him

In addition to running community radio, Hopkins founded OpenBroadcaster, an open-source platform that helps rural and Indigenous communities in Yukon and beyond manage radio and emergency alert broadcasts using low-cost, user-friendly technology. This software, which is compatible with devices like the Raspberry Pi, supports local languages and community programming—a key aspect for the culturally rich but geographically isolated communities in northern Canada. Hopkins’s work exemplifies his passion for public access to media and his ingenuity in building affordable broadcasting solutions from scratch.

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President