Global Gathering Self-Organized

Facilitate a Meetup or Discussion at the Feira @ the Global Gathering!

This year's Global Gathering is designed to help digital rights defenders rejuvenate, reconnect, and relax while exchanging ideas, exploring new collaborations, and networking. How is this reflected in the event design? One of the key ways is that we are not centering the Global Gathering around formal sessions and presentations. Instead, all participants will have the opportunity to propose more relaxed and informal meetups and self-organized discussions that can run for 1 to 1.5 hours.

Meetups will be scheduled from 13:30 to 18:00 each day of the Global Gathering and will not overlap with the invite-only Summit taking place in the mornings.

Propose a Meetup or a Discussion! - Deadline to submit is July 31st

What topics will make for good meetups and discussions?

This year's event structure and venue allow for a lot of flexibility, so you can be creative with your proposals. Note, Team CommUNITY will already be hosting regional and practitioner meetups (see below).

A meetup or a discussion can be centered around:

• A specific topic or challenge that you would like to explore with other participants at the Global Gathering.

• Bringing together individuals from a specific professional or regional background to network, connect and exchange ideas. For example, Team CommUNITY will be organizing regional and practitioner meetups.
• A call to action or request for collaboration on a project or initiative.
• Sharing a skill, project, or research, or demoing a tool or exercise.
• Topics and skillshares that are not directly related to work! For example, a knitting meetup, an hour of meditative coloring, a language exchange, etc.

What meetups is Team CommUNITY already facilitating at the Global Gathering?

Team CommUNITY will be organizing a number of semi-private regional and practitioner meetups at this year's Global Gathering:

Regional Meetups Africa Asia Eastern Europe, Caucasus and Central Asia Latin America MENA

Practitioner Meetups Digital Security Trainers Policy Workers Technologists

Private Working Groups and Meetings VPN Community Initiative Gathering

What kind of meetup or discussion should you facilitate?

• Public Meetups and Discussions: Public meetups and self-organized discussions will take place in the main Feira space at dedicated tables throughout the afternoon. Meetups and discussions held in the main Feira space will have more visibility and allow Global Gathering attendees to step in and out of conversations more spontaneously. Your discussions will be open for all event participants to listen in on and participate in.
• Semi-Private Meetups and Discussions: Semi-Private meetups and discussions will be held in the quieter, semi-private Summit space so that participants can have more privacy. You may want to host a semi-private meetup or discussion if you want to have a more focused discussion or want to meet with specific participant profiles. For example, Team CommUNITY’s regional and practitioner meetups will be semi-private.
• Invite-Only Meetups and Discussions: Invite-only meetups and discussions will also be held in the quieter, semi-private Summit space so that participants can have more privacy. If you would like to host an invite-only meetup or discussion, you will need to manage your own invite list of already accepted Global Gathering participants. You will not have full privacy, as the discussions will still be hosted in an open, outdoor space, however all semi-private and invite-only meetups and discussions will be distanced from each other. For example, Team CommUNITY will host a VPN Community Initiative meetup limited to initiative members.

What resources will meetups and discussions have?

Meetups and discussions will be held at a series of dedicated tables and picnic benches throughout our outdoor venue. There will be internet access and charging stations available throughout the venue to keep your devices charged and connected, however the meetups and discussions will not have access to additional audio-visual resources. There will be no screens or projectors.

When will meetups and discussions be scheduled?

The self-organized meetups and discussions will be scheduled from 13:30 to 18:00 each day of the Global Gathering. They will not overlap with the invite-only Summit taking place in the mornings.

How long can a meetup or discussion last?

We will be scheduling meetups and discussions for either 1 or 1.5 hours. We have limited 1.5 hour slots, so there is no guarantee that we will be able to accommodate your preference.

How many meetups or discussions can you propose?

There is no limit to the number of meetups or discussions you can propose, however please be thoughtful about your proposals and only submit discussions and meetups that you think will bring value to the community and the event.