Some people will need to leave early to catch planes, etc and some may be dropping in later. But that's a-o-k! This is very informal and there are no obligations. Feel free to invite acquaintances who would just like to listen. And if they do decide to grab a 10 minute spot to present their community to the group, Liz has hers for sale on eBay
Over dinner Wedesday night we decided it would be interesting to follow our own community stories by exploring one topic in particular. An idea emerged to look at the design of f2f conferences. The format tends to be very similar wherever you go and it may be time to rethink the design. This group could make a great contribution to conference organizers by coming up with a Design Plan to encourage more opportunities for community building. I spoke with Griff Richards as an organizer for eLearn and he hopes to join us.
Since that dinner I've raised the topic in conversations around eLearn, and people tend to agree. Sandy's description of her experience at the networking lunch is a good example. Do we need to create more opportunities like that? Paul Stacey and Frances Long are planning online conferences (2 separate conferences). How can we build community into the design of those events? Lucifer Chu, who made a memorable appearance at Curtis Bonk's Keynote, described a terrific group discussion which resulted from one conference delegate raising her hand during the Tuesday morning Keynote void to see if anyone was interested in talking about the use of games in education. How can we allow for more spontaneous, loosely organized, member-initiated dialogue?
So if you receive this message before the Rendezvous you'll have a few hours to reflect on your conference experiences. Come with criticisms and let's turn them into design ideas which will be a valuable contribution back to eLearn and other conference planners.
See you later!
Where: The bar, Sheraton Wall Centre (North Building)
When: Friday, October 28, 2005 1:00 - 4:30 pm