[OSGeo-Conf] Open open source, reduce registration fees.

[Eli Adam]

On Mon, Feb 6, 2017 at 7:54 AM, Steven Feldman <shfeldman at gmail.com> wrote:
> Reposting this from the board list as it may interest the CC.
>
> The current target in RfP is $650 including social activities but excluding
> workshops. The costs of travel and accommodation have equalled or, for out
> of region delegates, exceed the registration costs.
>
> To my knowledge no proposal has been received for the last 5 years that was
> able to support 800+ delegates at ca $500
>
> 2019 will be a ‘European’ year, I am sure that the CC would welcome a $500
> proposal from the Netherlands community
>

That would be great!  From a more selfish perspective, even if it is
over $500 it would make it less expensive for those local people.


> ______
> Steven
>
> Date: Mon, 6 Feb 2017 09:38:47 +0000
> From: <l.g.j.boerboom at utwente.nl>
> To: <board at lists.osgeo.org>
> Subject: [Board] Open open source, reduce registration fees.
> Message-ID: <62bfc24ab8c3406490757d8c14802bbe at EXMBX32.ad.utwente.nl>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"
>
> Dear board,
>
> Where is the cap on registration fees for FOSS4G? You have closed open
> source to me with these steep registration fees. You have to change this. A
> few years ago I could hardly convince my departmental management to pay for
> registration. Now it is impossible! Please open up the conference again.
> Open open source! Those who cannot organize a conference below $500 should
> not be allowed to organize. Scale down. No fancy stuff. Back to the basics!
> Back to the core!


I think that this also highlights the different roles of different
events.  In Portland, we spent ten years organizing small local OSGeo
events that were in the price range of no cost (and food and other
things were provided) to $20 to $150 (as part of other conferences
which included more than just the OSGeo event that we added to the
main event).  These continue to occur after the 2014 international
FOSS4G as well.  Other local chapters do the same thing in other areas
as well.

This is part of the beauty of OSGeo and FOSS4G, there are continually
more events in more areas.  Many are small local events with very
little financial barriers.  There is also a route by which interested
people can organize an event in their area and make it the type of
event that they want to see.  In one year, someone could attend
hundreds of incredible OSGeo and FOSS4G events around the world at
very low prices (excluding travel and accommodation costs) and not go
to the international FOSS4G.  In some ways FOSS4G now comes to you
rather than the old model in which attendees came to FOSS4G.

LOCs always need volunteers who commit and successfully complete a
substantial amount of work over the organizing duration.  Those
volunteers typically get complimentary registration which opens
another avenue to FOSS4G.

Jody is pursuing increasing OSGeo sponsorship which if successful
would open many different ways to run FOSS4G.  Increasing OSGeo
Foundation support is a great way for the Board (or anyone) to
potentially change the structure of FOSS4G.

Darrell made an excellent point about why travel grants are so important.

Best regards, Eli


>
> With kind regards,
>
> Luc Boerboom
>
> Dr. Ir. Luc Boerboom
> Assist. Prof Spatial Planning and Decision Support Systems and
> Infrastructures
> Department of Urban and Regional Planning and Geo-information Management
> Faculty of Geo-Information Science and Earth Observation (ITC),
> http://www.itc.nl/
> University of Twente, http://www.utwente.nl/
>
> E: l.g.j.boerboom at utwente.nl<mailto:l.g.j.boerboom at utwente.nl>
> T: +31 (0)53 487 42 47 or +31 (0)53 487 44 44
> Postal address
> PO Box 217
> 7500 AE  Enschede
> The Netherlands
>
>
>
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