Open Spaces

Open spaces are a way for people to come together to talk about topics, ideas, or whatever they like. They offer groups the ability to self-gather, self-define, and self-organize in a way that often doesn’t happen anywhere else at PyCon. Any subject that two or more attendees would like to talk about is a candidate for an Open Space. ## How do I participate in an Open Space? It's pretty easy: Just show up :) During PyCon, there will be Open Spaces boards somewhere near the registration desk. The boards acts as a time table for all the Open Spaces, so you know where and when to go for the Open Spaces you're interested in. If a topic is not listed yet, find an open time slot and add it! Open Spaces topic cards are included in the goodie bag you receive at registration. ## What Open Spaces are there? There are Open Spaces on many subjects a bunch of PyCon attendees would like to discuss. Since the PyCon attendees are a diverse bunch, so are the Open Spaces. In past years, we've had a mani/pedi party, a feminist hacking space, an AcroYoga space, and a board games room. There's also plenty of the usual suspects of technical subjects, from computer security to your favorite Python project to professional occupations like DevOps. ## Where and when are the Open Spaces? The Open Spaces are in a set of of dedicated rooms during all three of the conference days (Monday 5/30, Tuesday 5/31, Wednesday 6/1). The rooms may be needed for other events during portions of some days; please consult the Open Spaces boards for the final word on what's going on where. ## How do I host an Open Space? For PyCon 2016, we will be using the Open Space cards that were re-introduced a few years back. These are small postcard sized cards with a short explanation of what Open Spaces are. The back side of that card is for hosting Open Spaces. Just fill in the name and a short description of your Open Space, and then pin your card on the Open Space board in the room and time slot you want. It’s also a great idea to add your Twitter handle to the card in case anyone interested in attending your Open Space has a question or would like to contact you about it. The cards will be made available in the goodie bag which you will receive at registration. Extra cards will be available at the Open Spaces boards. In order to promote your Open Space we encourage you to tweet about it and use the hashtag #PyConOpenSpaces to make sure people see your tweets. ## Ideas for Open Spaces Here are a few ideas for potential Open Space topics and activities: * Hacker space (maker projects) that use Python (e.g. in Raspbery Pis, iOT, home automation, robots / drones / blimps autopiloted with Python) * Hacking/networking/devops * Data visualization/science * Natural language processing and generation (e.g. chatbots) * Quantified Self * Diversity initiatives, for example a feminist hackrrspace * A space for organisers - of conferences, workshops, diversity initiatives (Django Girls, PyLadies, etc.) * Framework specific Open Spaces, for example Django or Flask * How to contribute to open source - a help / mentoring group for beginners * Git * Support - how to avoid burnout * Recruitment workshops If there's a certain Open Space you'd love to see at PyCon but you don't want to host it yourself, please add it to our list and maybe someone else will take up the topic and host an Open Space about it. ## Planned Open Spaces If you have an idea for an Open Space, and a time when you want to meet, list it here on this page. It's also useful to add an approximate time slot if you have any preferences, so that attendees know where to look for your Open Space on the Open Spaces boards. Planned Open Spaces so far: - import antigravity (AcroYoga)