MiniDebConf 2020 Regensburg Registration is now open -- with caveats
====================================================================
We are pleased to announce that we decided to open up registration for the
MiniDebConf and MiniDebCamp in Regensburg, Bavaria, Germany [1].
The Camp is scheduled from September 23rd to September 25th, and the
MiniDebConf on September 26th and 27th 2020.
However, please make sure to read the whole mail for important details first!
You can either register by visiting [2] or by sending an email to the local
team at info(ät)minidebconf-rbg.debian.net if you've got privacy concerns.
If you prefer to stay at home and attend remotely, we will try to make that
possible too. However, we still ask you to register to get us a better idea of
attendance figures.
[1] https://minidebconf-rbg.debian.net/
[2] https://minidebconf-rbg.debian.net/Registration
Call For Papers
===============
You can now submit an event proposal. Events are not limited to traditional
presentations or informal sessions (BoFs): we welcome submissions of tutorials,
performances, art installations, debates, or any other format of event that you
think would be of interest to the Debian community.
Regular sessions may either be 20 or 45 minutes long (including time for
questions), other kinds of sessions (workshops, demos, lightning talks, ...)
could have different durations. Please choose the most suitable duration for
your event and explain any special requests.
In order to submit a talk, please send an email to the content^Wlocal team at
info(ät)minidebconf-rbg.debian.net with informations about your propsed event.
Please submit your event proposal until August 16th.
The Pandemic Situation
======================
The elephant in the room is of course the current pandemic situation. Currently
it looks like that the situation is becoming more stable, so it it might become
possible to have a on-site conference. However, even if many federal states
have already lifted their restrictions on events like the MiniDebConf, Bavaria
is on the conservative side and has not yet lifted those concerning us. That
means that we will require either the measures to be further lifted or a permit
to make it happen.
We strongly believe that everyone is able to decide for themselves whether they
want to come to an in person meeting.
If you feel that the only thing you want to do is lay low and stay at home, we
understand completely. All we ask is that you do _not_ register. To emphasis
that, we strongly believe that everyone should be empowered to do their _own_
decission whether to come to a MiniDebConf or not.
Unfortunatly, out of our control, there are travel restrictions in place,
mostly for non-EU countries. To see if you affected, the RKI has a list on
[rki], there is an interactive map on [eu], but also check with your local
authorities if there are restrictions e.g on your way back. (The resources are
updated frequently)
[rki] https://www.rki.de/covid-19-risikogebiete, link to English pdfat the bottom.
[eu] https://reopen.europa.eu/en/map/DEU
Cut Off Date
------------
Therefore we have decided on a cut off date: On August 16th we will decide
whether MiniDebConf 2020 can take place in Regensburg or if we have to postpone
it into next year or so.
We may for example consider the following information for the decision:
- Situation regarding the regulations.
- Number of people planning to come to Regensburg, as of the cut off date.
- Number of CfPs received.
As the Covid-19 situation might escalate again, we might be forced to cancel
the event even after the cut off date on short notice.
Therefore, when you arrange your travels and accommodation, please make sure to
be able to cancel the booking without fees.
Sadly, things are still not clear enough for us to make a final and binding
commitment to holding an in-person conference this year, but knowing how many
people intend to attend will be a great help in making that decision. Therefore
the number of registrations and response to CfPs will be used as criteria
whether to hold or postpone the conference.
Maximum Number of Participants
------------------------------
It is possible that we will have to have an upper limit of on-site-participants
due to regulations imposed on us. As everything is in flux, we cannot say if
that will happen or what the limit will be, but we should have a clearer image
on the cut-off date.
Unfortunatly that also means, that if we find out that we have hit a limit, we
might limit registrations on a first-come-first-served basis.
FAQ (Frequent, Anticipated Questions)
======================================
Q: Will MiniDebConf 2020 be held online-only?
A: No, MiniDebConf 2020 will not be online-only.
Q: What are the fallback plans if the conference will not happen in September?
A: In this case we will look into options to postpone the event. If this
happens, we will aim for spring or autumn 2021.
Q: How can I contact the local team?
A: Write an email to info(ät)minidebconf-rbg.debian.net or go to #debconf-germany on OFTC.
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