tl;dr:
Wikimedia Conference 2014 in Berlin
https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Conference_2014
Venue: Tagesspiegel Tagungszentrum, near Potsdamer Platz
Date: April 10-13, 2014
Registration: Will open in January
Dear Wikimedia friends,
It is my pleasure to invite you to come to Berlin for the 2014 Wikimedia Conference.[1] We will be hosting the event from April 10-13 at Tagesspiegel Tagungszentrum, in the heart of Berlin.
In addition, I am delighted that the Funds Dissemination Committee and the Affiliations Committee will hold their annual meetings as part of the conference as well. This will give us all the opportunity to talk, discuss ideas, exchange experience, build capacities and shape the future of our movement together. I am extending this invitation also to the board and staff of the Wikimedia Foundation, and I hope that they again choose to join us for a couple of productive days.
== Themes and program ==
The program team [2] has already kicked-off its planning process and is now collecting topics and themes from all movement entities. Team members come from several entities and countries in the movement, including the Wikimedia Foundation, and generously volunteered to manage this process together. They will present the major themes and goals for the conference within the coming weeks.
The team is supported by Anna Lena Schiller, who is facilitating the whole process in the months before and after the conference. Nicole Ebber, as head of WMDE’s International Affairs unit, is a member of the program team and will also liaise between the team, the event management and the facilitator.
== Participation and registration ==
Based on the conference themes, the program team will make a recommendation regarding the number and type (board, staff) of representatives per affiliation. This includes a consultation with the AffCom to come up with a decision upon inviting Thematic Organizations, User Groups and affiliations-to-be.
We will open the registration in January, after the program team has presented the conference
themes and goals. By following this order, we aim to motivate and consult the participating organizations to send representatives and experts according to the conference’s themes.
== Travel, accommodation and supply ==
We are delighted that the Wikimedia Foundation has agreed to cover the general costs of the event.
Several organizations have included the travel and accommodation costs in their FDC proposals, project and events or other WMF grants and are responsible for covering these costs and booking their flights/trains themselves. For all those who have not budgeted for the conference, travel grants are offered and can be applied for in the registration process. Their bookings will be handled by the WMF travel coordinator.
Following the same principle, we will offer standard 4-bed-rooms in a hostel for everyone. Hotel beds will be available, but please not that the travel grants only allow for the hostel accommodation. We will block a range of beds in nearby hotels for that purpose.
Free food will be provided on all conference days at the venue, and Wikimedia Deutschland will host a light dinner at the new WMDE office every evening, plus a social program on Friday and Saturday.
Our event manager Wenke Storn will be the main contact for all questions regarding the logistics, you can reach out to her and her team via wmcon@wikimedia.de wmcon@lists.wikimedia.de.
On behalf of the Wikimedia Deutschland board, I am looking forward to welcoming you in Berlin in April!
Best regards,
Pavel Richter
[1] https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Conference_2014
[2] https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Conference_2014/Programme_team
With kind regards,
Pavel Richter Executive Director
Wikimedia Deutschland e.V. Tel.: +49 - 30 - 219 158 260 Twitter: @pavel