We’re proud to sponsor the FOSS4G:UK Local event on the 7th of September, 2023.
As national sponsors, we’ve contributed towards the event costings and enabling OSGeo:UK to continue to provide financial support to open source projects. We’re also keen to play our part in helping to spread the word about FOSS4G:UK, so here’s everything you need to know so far!
Is FOSS4G:UK worth attending?
Absolutely! FOSS4G:UK is an low-cost event for everyone who is interested in free and open source software for geospatial (FOSS4G). Organised by OSGeo:UK, it’s a worthwhile day out for anyone who uses, promotes, develops or wants to learn about open source tools and open data for geospatial. Tickets cost £20. A number of free tickets are available (see the ‘How to register’ section below for more details).
Where is FOSS4G:UK held?
FOSS4G is a hybrid conference with no central physical location.
There are eight venues across the UK and Ireland:
- Glasgow University of Glasgow
- Lancaster Fraser House Hub
- Keyworth (Nottingham) British Geological Survey
- Maynooth (Ireland) Maynooth University
- London Geovation
- Swansea UWTSD IQ Campus
- Basingstoke Willis Museum
- Bristol Engine Shed
We’re on a mission to have a representative at as many locations as possible, although Ireland may be challenging! As well as current Astuners, you’re likely to bump into familiar faces from Astun in days gone by, as many of our old colleagues still volunteer for OSGeo. If you’d like to volunteer at a venue, please get in touch with OSGeo:UK via its mailing list, Matrix Chat Room or osgeouk@gmail.com.
If there’s no physical location near you, you can join remotely and view streamed sessions from wherever you are on YouTube. OSGeo:UK will also have the OSGeo:UK Matrix room room to allow people to chat with each other before, during and after the event.
Who’ll be speaking at FOSS4G:UK?
OSGeo:UK has announced two keynotes from Ujaval Gandhi and Helen McKenzie. There will also be a panel discussion in Nottingham to mark ten years since the city hosted FOSS4G 2013. Keynote presentations and the panel discussion will be streamed to all venues.
Each venue also has its own speakers. You can find out more in the ‘Fancy giving a talk?’ section below.
How to register for FOSS4G:UK
Registration is now open! Book early to bag your place – almost all venues sold out in 2022. There’s a nominal fee of £20 per ticket. Refunds are available from Eventbrite (less a service fee) up to seven days before the event.
There are a number of codes available for free tickets. These are available for students, underrepresented groups, those on a low income, those in precarious employment, those who would like to volunteer and anyone else for whom a £20 ticket would be a barrier (financial or administrative). All of these criteria are self-defined. If you need a code, please email osgeouk@gmail.com, stating which group you belong to (no further justification is needed).
Any surplus made from the tickets, sponsorship and conference will be used to allow OSGeo:UK to provide financial support for open source geospatial projects.
Fancy giving a talk at FOSS4G:UK?
The Call for Talks has been extended to Monday, 7th August 2023. FOSS4G:UK offers a friendly and supportive audience, so it’s an ideal opportunity for novice and experienced presenters.
As usual, several Astuners have responded to the Call for Talks. We should know where we’ll be presenting by mid-August. If you subscribe to our events newsletter, we’ll keep you posted. You can read our write-up of last year’s FOSS4G:UK to get a flavour of the type of talks available.
If you fancy presenting, you can find lots of information here. Just remember to leave enough time to write your bio!
