[FOSS4G-Oceania] Motion: extended, targeted call for papers if needed

[Alex Leith]

Hi All

I just wanted to weight in here again, briefly.

Regarding the call for papers, we have 61 general stream presentations and
18 lightning talks submitted. And with the draft program layout, including
12 stream sessions, with 1 taken up with academic talks and 2 lightning, we
have 9 x 4 = 36 presentations available. That means that we can currently
(and we'll discuss this, so it's not final) only accept a bit over half the
submissions, which is a good problem to have.

But, my point is that we have a great suite of presentations submitted, and
we're going to have a great program. And we've actually, once again,
exceeded my expectations in terms of the amount of support and demand out
there in the community for what we're building.

So let's be proud of what we've achieved, and although we can do better, I
think we've done very well.

And as we work on settling the program, we should be able to achieve that
in a couple of weeks, which means that two months out, we'll have a draft
program, which is also overachieving!

So onwards and upwards.

Regards,

Alex

On Fri, 7 Sep 2018 at 19:05 Edoardo Neerhut <ed at mapillary.com> wrote:

> Here here John.
>
> While there is definitely more we could have done (me especially) and can
> still do, it is not always in plain view. Particularly when this is the
> first conference we have organised together.
>
> I reject the notion that we're white guys making excuses. Open to ideas on
> how to do things better, but echo John: Let's not castigate ourselves.
>
> If this was easy it would have been done years ago. We need to keep
> pushing and positivity is key.
>
> "I'm an optometrist, not a pessimist".
>
>
> On Fri, 7 Sep. 2018, 10:50 am John Bryant, <johnwbryant at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> I'm reluctant to aggravate here, but I have to respond to characterising
>> our efforts as a failure, and especially this:
>>
>> *I don’t think we’ve done our best, we’ve done a bunch of stuff that fits
>>> within our (predominantly white male) comfort zone and then got out our
>>> excuse book*
>>>
>>
>> As a committee, we've been discussing diversity for 9 months, and I've
>> been impressed with how much everyone has been on board. It's a very
>> complex issue, nobody has all the answers, and we've learned a lot about
>> what we can do.
>>
>> Beyond just discussing it, we've taken many concrete actions. Many people
>> on this committee have put a lot of energy into this, I think it's unfair
>> to paint a picture of abject failure.
>>
>> Rather, I see quite a bit of success, and I see our efforts so far as
>> being constructive steps in the right direction. We've begun a journey of
>> building an event that attracts diversity, and we need to continue to work
>> hard on it, but we also need to have some patience as we learn and develop
>> this over time. Part of this may be actually fostering diversity within the
>> community, which certainly doesn't happen overnight.
>>
>> Have we created an event that is fully representative of a diverse
>> community? Certainly not, and there is a lot of room for improvement. But
>> rather than castigate ourselves for failing, let's accept this is
>> difficult, recognise the progress we have made, and re-calibrate our
>> efforts based on what we've learned.
>>
>> To end on a positive note, kudos to everyone who has worked hard on
>> making diversity part of this event over the last 9 months, and let's make
>> sure it continues to be a priority. Adam, your passion for progressive
>> thinking is an asset to the committee, please keep it coming!
>>
>>
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-- 

Alex Leith
0419 189 050
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