[Board] EGU General Assembly 2014: FOSS / OSGeo Townhall Meeting - Overview
Anne Ghisla
a.ghisla at gmail.com
Thu Mar 6 08:07:28 PST 2014
On Thu, 06 Mar 2014 06:49:48 +1100
Cameron Shorter <cameron.shorter at gmail.com> wrote:
> Hi Peter,
> I'm surprised that board members haven't commented on your proposal.
> Your proposal is not a standard request and we don't have specific
> guidelines to go buy.
Hi Peter, Board,
sorry for not answering before.
Well, except code sprint fundings and very few other items, nothing is
a standard request... we definitely need to streamline the process of
requesting funds.
That said, I am in favour of funding the OSGeo Townhall session at EGU,
it is an excellent visibility opportunity, and it has a good record
of FOSS presence in past years. Peter, I welcome you to join this
evening Board meeting, in case we have questions.
Best!
Anne
> I think the closest is the Code Sprint Guidelines:
> http://wiki.osgeo.org/wiki/Code_Sprint_Guidelines
>
> I expect you will have better luck if you can do a bit more ground
> work and provide:
> 1. A list of volunteers willing to help.
> 2. Source another sponsor, I expect that OSGeo would be able to
> provide matching funding.
> 3. Only request minimal funds from OSGeo. (Ie, it will be difficult
> for OSGeo to justify paying for a bar, and likely will question
> whether it should pay for food).
> 4. Once you have that in place, put a motion forward, that OSGeo
> should pay $XX for YY, which the board can then vote on.
>
> On 04/03/14 03:51, "Peter Löwe" wrote:
> > Hi Cameron,
> > can you please give me a hint on how long the decision processes of
> > the OSGeo usually take ? This is of course a classic case of RTFM -
> > but I'm not sure where this info can be looked up. The planning for
> > EGU is progressing and it would be sensible to request a a timeslot
> > for the OSGeo townhall sooner than later.
> > Also, to request money from the marketing committee for the
> > production of a stack of OSgeo Live DVDs for EGU - does a
> > semi-formal E-mail request suffice ?
> > Best,
> > Peter
> > <peter.loewe at gmx.de>
> > *Gesendet:* Sonntag, 23. Februar 2014 um 04:48 Uhr
> > *Von:* "Cameron Shorter" <cameron.shorter at gmail.com>
> > *An:* "Peter Löwe" <peter.loewe at gmx.de>, board at lists.osgeo.org,
> > marketing at lists.osgeo.org
> > *Betreff:* Re: Aw: Re: EGU General Assembly 2014: FOSS / OSGeo
> > Townhall Meeting - Overview
> > Forwarding to OSGeo board list, as apparently Peter was blocked
> > from sending to the list.
> >
> > On 23/02/14 05:17, "Peter Löwe" wrote:
> >
> > Dear OSGeo board, dear OSGeo marketing committee,
> > I'm forwarding the following info to you all about an
> > opportunity to launch an OSGeo themed event within the EGU General
> > Assembly, as suggested by Cameron Shorter. Feedback about the
> > feasibility of funding for the event would be very welcome.
> > Best,
> > Peter
> > http://wiki.osgeo.org/wiki/User:Peter_Loewe
> > *Gesendet:* Freitag, 21. Februar 2014 um 20:37 Uhr
> > *Von:* "Cameron Shorter" <cameron.shorter at gmail.com>
> > *An:* "Peter Löwe" <peter.loewe at gmx.de>, "Margherita Di Leo"
> > <margherita.di-leo at jrc.ec.europa.eu>,
> > jmckenna at gatewaygeomatics.com, "yann.chemin"
> > <yann.chemin at gmail.com>, "Markus Neteler"
> > <markus.neteler at fmach.it>, "Dominik Reusser"
> > <reusser at pik-potsdam.de>, massimiliano.cannata at supsi.ch, "Helmut
> > Kudrnovsky" <alectoria at gmx.at>, "Alessandro Frigeri"
> > <alessandro.frigeri at iaps.inaf.it>, "Jens Klump"
> > <jens.klump at gfz-potsdam.de>, "Jens Klump"
> > <jklump at uni-bremen.de>, markus.metz.giswork at googlemail.com
> > *Betreff:* Re: EGU General Assembly 2014: FOSS / OSGeo Townhall
> > Meeting - Overview
> > Hi Peter,
> > If ok with you, do you mind including board at lists.osgeo.org and
> > marketing at lists.osgeo.org to the email CC list on this thread?
> > (If you wish sponsorship $$, then these communities need to see
> > the proposal and vote on it).
> >
> > This event looks like a valuable promotional opportunity for
> > OSGeo. The question is whether it is more or less valuable than
> > the many other opportunities. I refer you to consider the board
> > priorities:
> > http://wiki.osgeo.org/wiki/Board_of_Directors#Board_Priorities
> > In particular: "Support initiatives which support themselves",
> > and "Packaging and Marketing".
> > Sourcing a co-sponsor would be compelling, and noting that you
> > will have numerous volunteers already attending the conference
> > helps your case.
> >
> > I note also that the marketing committee is mostly ineffective
> > due to a lack of volunteers to support requests such as these. In
> > particular, we are missing a process for approvals and
> > distribution of funds. (This is a thinly veiled suggestion that
> > you might wish to help out).
> >
> > On 22/02/14 02:52, "Peter Löwe" wrote:
> >
> > Hi all,
> > [cc: Cameron Shorter for the OSGEO Marketing Board]
> > [cc: Jeff McKenna, OSGEO Prez]
> > Thank you very much for all your feedback concerning the
> > current discussion on options for FOSS/OSGeo meetings during
> > the upcoming EGU General Assembly (Vienna, April 27 –May 2
> > 2014). Here is an (exhaustive) update on the topic, based on past
> > experience organising one Townhall and various Splinter
> > Meetings in the past. Beware - this is a rather long
> > posting. It boils down to two questions:
> > - Do we want/need to raise awareness for OSGeo within EGU ?
> > - Are we willing to invest about 1500 Euro / 2000 USD for a
> > one hour reach-out event, which will pave the way to make
> > OSGeo a stakeholder within EGU/AGU ?
> > *Background Info:*
> > *What is this European Geoscience Union (EGU) ?*
> > EGU, the European Geosciences Union, is Europe’s premier
> > geosciences union, dedicated to the pursuit of excellence in
> > the geosciences and the planetary and space sciences for the
> > benefit of humanity, worldwide. It was established in
> > September 2002. It is a *non-profit international union of
> > scientists* with over *12,500 members from all over the
> > world*. Membership is open to individuals who are
> > professionally engaged in or associated with geosciences and
> > planetary and space sciences and related studies, including
> > students and retired seniors.
> > What is this *Americcan Geophysical Union (AGU) ?*
> > [Wikipedia] The American Geophysical Union (AGU) is a
> > nonprofit organization of geophysicists
> > <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geophysicist>, consisting of
> > over *62,000 members from 144 countries*. AGU's activities
> > are focused on the organization and dissemination of scientific
> > information in the interdisciplinary and international field
> > of geophysics. The geophysical sciences involve four
> > fundamental areas: atmospheric and ocean sciences;
> > solid-Earth sciences; hydrologic sciences; and space sciences.
> > *Researchers in the Geosciences can be members of either EGU
> > or AGU *- a membership in one of the organisations allows to
> > benefit from from both AGU and EGU offerings, including
> > attending annual conferences like the EGU General Assembly.
> > In a nutshell: *The EGU General Assembly is open to the 62,000
> > members of AGU as well. *
> > *What is a EGU General Assembly ?*
> > The annual EGU General Assembly is *the largest and most
> > prominent European geosciences event*. It attracts *over
> > 11,000 scientists* from all over the world, *of which more
> > than a quarter are students.* The *meeting’s sessions*,
> > typically *over 500*, cover a wide range of topics,
> > including volcanology, planetary exploration, the Earth’s internal
> > structure and atmosphere, climate, as well as energy and
> > resources. General Assemblies have around *4,500 oral
> > presentations* and *over 9,000 posters*. Aside from
> > disciplinary sessions, dealing with the topics covered by
> > each scientific division, the meeting also features Union-wide
> > sessions such as great debates, Union symposia (including
> > the EGU Awards Ceremony), medal lectures, short courses and
> > education and outreach symposia.
> > *What is a Townhall Meeting, what’s a Splinter Meeting* *?*
> > (http://geolog.egu.eu/2013/11/19/townhall-and-splinter-meetings-at-egu-2014/)
> > Both types of Sessions are open (only) to EGU participants
> > and be booked free of charge (*no cost for the venue!*).
> > *Townhall Meetings* are *meetings open for all participants*
> > in the conference. During these meetings new initiatives or
> > decisions are announced to a larger audience following an
> > open discussion on the matter. Townhall Meetings will be scheduled
> > from Monday to Friday from 19:00 to 20:00 in the conference
> > centre’s lecture rooms. *Townhall Meetings last 60 minutes
> > in the evening, fit 50 to 350 people, and are announce in the
> > Information&Schedule Book. They attract large crowds, as
> > they are staged in the evening after the scientific
> > sessions. Usually people linger after the official ending of the
> > Townhall to discuss the topics raised and to network.
> > *During this informal part, *beverages* and *finger food* are
> > consumed by the attendees (*this has to be funded *– more on this
> > below). *Splinter Meetings* are *side meetings* on non-commercial
> > purposes organized by participants. They can be organized
> > during the course of the conference and they can be public
> > or by invitation only. *Splinter Meetings last up to 90 minutes
> > and are held during the day. Scientific sessions are held in
> > parallel, which can prevent interested people from
> > attending. They fit 36 to 60 people and are announced in the
> > Programme (Information & Schedule Book) if booked early.*
> > *OSGeo related background:*
> > *Since 2012*, there have been “*FOSS in Earth Sciences*”
> > themed events at the EGU General assembly, hosted by
> > *OSGeo/FOSS volunteers*. This started with an improvised
> > Splinter Session which drew a surprisingly large crowd.
> > References to OSGeo software can be spotted rather often
> > every year during the poster sessions (> 9000 posters!). Last year
> > we had the first session on FOSS in the Earth and Space
> > Science Informatics (ESSI). *This year there will be two
> > independent FOSS sessions *(ESSI and Hydrology). *This is a
> > significant step ahead.* *By now, researchers can apply to
> > attend the conference, to showcase the FOSS aspects of their
> > work.* Before this, everything “FOSS” had to be
> > relabelled/closeted since there was no recognition for this
> > kind of scientific work.
> > While we have two FOSS sessions this year, I strongly
> > believe that *many people already doing FOSS-based research, or
> > wanting to learn about OSGeo, have not been reached.*
> > FWIW: ESR! and Microsoft Research usually have nifty booths
> > at EGU.
> > *Options for OSGeo:*
> >
> > 1. We can opt to apply for a *Splinter Meeting on FOSS
> > (GIS) in Earth Science* like in the past years. This will cause
> > only moderate effort. We can structure the session as we
> > like. There can be presentations, show&tell, discussions
> > etc. This has been done before and it's fun. We will
> > reach an audience of *30-50 people* (- in comparison to 11,167
> > attendees in 2013). Since there are FOSS-related
> > sessions, a FOSS-themed Splinter Meeting is logical, while *a
> > Splinter Meeting title referring to OSGeo would be
> > difficult to justify - until now OSGeo has not stepped
> > forward within EGU*.
> > 2. We can apply for a *Townhall Meeting on OSGeo* *and its
> > impact on Earth Science*. This will allow us to step
> > forward and officially *put OSGeo on the map within
> > EGU*. The Townhall could include presentations on what OSGeo is,
> > why it’s significant for Earth Science, latest
> > developments like OSGeoLive [option: *OSGeo-Live demo +
> > OSGeoLive-DVDs as giveaways*], etc., making it a genuine
> > reach out event. However, *this requires financial
> > support and volunteers*:
> > 1. Putting the *Townhall programme* together would be a
> > *collaborative effort by OSGeo volunteers* attending
> > the conference. I am sure *we can easily put
> > together an one hour show *from existing material + what
> > OSGeo/FOSS people activists will showcase at the
> > conference.
> > 2. The event *needs to be announced *before and during
> > the conference. Since the FOSS/OSGeo attendees do
> > their research in many different fields, *we should
> > be able to reach out to a large interdisciplinary
> > community*. While very large Townhalls draw over 350
> > people, *an expected size of 100 people* seems more
> > realistic to start with (this is already twice the
> > size of a Splinter Session). Reality check: In 2012,
> > Alessandro Frigeri and myself were able to attract
> > at least 40 people by putting up posters made in a copy
> > shop two days ahead of the Splinter Session -
> > geoscientists dig FOSS !.
> > 3. *Funding for OSGeo-Live DVDs*: The Townhall would
> > need reliable funding for the production of OSGeo-Live-DVDs
> > before the conference.
> > 4. *Funding for beverages/food*: Townhall sessions
> > usally come with free “refreshments” (softdrinks,
> > alcoholic beverages, finger food) for the attendees.
> > The is only one company available for the catering:
> > 1. Their estimate for *limited catering* (water,
> > beer, some wine. breadsticks) for *100 people*
> > is about *1500 Euro (ca. 2000 USD).*
> > 2. A “*cash-bar“*, where the attendees (~100people)
> > pay for themselves, costs about *1040 Euro (1450
> > USD)* for labour wages and general effort.
> > 3. Theoretically, having a *Townhall “on a diet”*
> > without any beverages or food would be
> > *possible*, but is rather *unusual.*
> >
> > Thanks for reading through all of this!
> > I hope this overview will help you all to come up with a
> > "well-informed opinion". Your thoughts would be much
> > appreciated. Peter
> >
> > --
> > Cameron Shorter,
> > Software and Data Solutions Manager
> > LISAsoft
> > Suite 112, Jones Bay Wharf,
> > 26 - 32 Pirrama Rd, Pyrmont NSW 2009
> >
> > P +61 2 9009 5000, Wwww.lisasoft.com, F +61 2 9009 5099
>
>
--
http://wiki.osgeo.org/wiki/User:Aghisla
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