I had the pleasure of serving as the OSGeo representative for the 2016 FOSS4G NA conference selection and planning. I thought the team did an excellent job in selecting, planning and running the conference. The team made the decision to not pursue a 2017 NA conference so as not to compete for resources with the OSGeo international conference. Our efforts will focus on 2018 planning and selection for the next NA regional conference.
On a personal note I was initially concerned about how the relationship with Location Tech and OSGeo would evolve. Our teaming has resulted in yet another successful conference that I believe plays to the strengths of both organizations. I was very pleased with the openness and collaboration that I witnessed. — Mark The synopsis from Andrea Ross is included below: FOSS4G NA 2016 Synopsis (please feel free to re-use this data) The conference ran from May 2-5, at the Raleigh Convention Center, in Raleigh North Carolina. The code sprint & unconference ran May 6 & 7 at Red Hat’s headquarters, a few blocks from the convention center. A Tour of the NCSU OSGeo Research and Education lab took place on May 6th. The conference featured 1 day of workshops, 3 days of sessions, a code sprint, an unconference, and social events every night. There were 93 full length (35 minute) sessions, 36 short length (15 minute) sessions, 10 workshops, and 3 keynotes. This represented an increase in full length. The rooms were generally always near full or slightly overflowing for particularly popular talks, despite them being big rooms. The conference grew by 33% . There were 558 attendees. This level of increase is very positive, when so many other conferences are in decline. Like 2015’s team, 50% of the 2016 committee were women. Also like 2015, a significant proportion of speakers and attendees were women (in the 30% range), which is great to see. 23 people were at the conference who wouldn't have otherwise been without the financial support we gave them. From the attendee survey, people were clearly thrilled about the conference... 99% positive feedback. (n=102). The one negative response said they were disappointed there was no lunch served. We’re not sure how they missed it! The venue, the strong program, and the positive & supportive atmosphere were the things people commented (positively) on most. People loved the keynotes, and especially Tamar Cohen's entitled Extreme Mapping. The video recordings of sessions are being uploaded to Youtube, with dozens up, and more each day. 90% of sponsors rated the value excellent. 10% rated it very good. The layout of the conference was especially appreciated as it meant plenty of traffic for sponsors at all times. This year’s conference was produced by Andrea Ross and the team at the Eclipse Foundation, the same as 2015. Sarah Cordivano served as Community Chair. Rob Emanuele was Program Committee Chair, repeating the same role he performed in 2015.
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