LOCALHOST 2024 Retrospective

On August 18, co-organizers and participants from the inaugural LOCALHOST event got together for a retrospective-themed dinner at the coFood Collaborative Garden. We talked about - what worked, what do we know better for next time, what transferrable lessons are there?

Some key takeaways from this conversation:

• The event's main goals were twofold; bring IETF folk out into local events, and inform local people about IETF. The presence of two IETF directors and other IETF attendees and contributors at the Social on Thursday satisfied the first. However, LOCALHOST as an amplifier for a visiting event could be improved; there didn't seem to be an uptick in the local people seen at the IETF events frequented by Chad and Boris any more than if LOCALHOST hadn't taken place.
• The LOCALHOST Social on Thursday was well-attended. The range and breadth of people who stepped up to speak to their initiatives really bolstered the sense of "Vancouver Energy". The venue was great, and should be considered for future events.
• At the Social, many people in the audience hadn't heard of or weren't very familiar with DWeb overall, nor the Vancouver node, so it proved a good opportunity to spread the lore of the DWeb principles.
• Our Networks had 2 organizers step back leading up to the week, which left only 2 people to put this one-day multi-speaker event together, with one of them remote. It would be easier to run with a minimum of 4 people, with at least 2-3 of them local to where the event is being held.
• Overall, Our Networks had fantastic feedback from attendees. The speakers, sequence and format were compelling.
• The Hack Day on the final Sunday had moderate-low attendance. Following directly on the heels of Our Networks, a hack day to close out the week is more effort and energy both to host and participate in than might be ideal. The last day of an event is always a bit harder to program; the 2nd last day is the climax.

Prompt questions for future events

• How can organizing be compartmentalized?
• What would incentivize community members to host their own crossover events?
• How can more diverse sponsors be attracted? What kind of lead time and approach is required?
• How can LOCALHOST amplify the visiting event/org to engage local folks more? Does collaboration with the visiting event matter?