I went to RustFest and it was amazing !
It was clearly the best conference organizational-wise I’ve been to so far. It made me think of what I really liked there. What made it so awesome and welcomy ? To me this was a large number of small things just coming together. I listing them here for me to remember and for others to use. Let’s make conferences at least this friendly, together !
Before the event:
- very clear emails, repeating messages couple of times in different emails for the important stuff
- maps of the popular routes provided, e.g. from the airport and bus station
- supporter ticket sale - two times the price - you pay for another person that wouldn’t be able to get a ticket otherwise
- survey on dietary requirements/allergies
- survey on childcare needs
- clear statement of the code of conduct for the conference
During the event:
very good MC person
- keeping people entertained through the tech breaks
- keeping tabs on the talk length, allowing appropriate amount of questions if the time allowed
live captioning of all talks - small screen outside of the view of the main screen with the text live
getting the next speaker prepared and mic-tested before the end of the current talk
quiet room to rest with clear rules on no talking and interrupting there
clear signage for the different parts of the venue (washrooms, quiet room, party space etc)
washrooms
all same, ungendered
basic items for free in said washrooms
- chewing gum
- tooth paste
- tampons, pads
- baby wipes
info desk/registration
- clear info during registration, handing out programme
- asking people if they want to be on the photos - giving out lanyards accordingly - flashy red lanyards for people who do not want photos of them taken
emergency number to call with stated purpose
- code of conduct violation
- if you are lost in the city