[open-government] Fwd: Announcing the Open Knowledge Conference (OKCon) 2013

[Rufus Pollock]

Hi folks & apologies for any cross-posting!


I wanted to share the announce of the 2013 Open Knowledge Conference which
will take place in Geneva in September. Blog post here & full details below:


http://blog.okfn.org/2013/03/21/announcing-the-open-knowledge-conference-2013-open-data-broad-deep-connected/

https://twitter.com/OKFN/status/314682012764090369


Regards,


Rufus



Open Knowledge Conference 2013

Open Data - Broad, Deep, Connected


The Open Knowledge Foundation is pleased to announce that the 2013 Open
Knowledge Conference (OKCon) will take place in Geneva, Switzerland on
17th-18th September. The theme of this year’s edition will be Open Data –
Broad, Deep, Connected.


   -

   Where: Geneva, Switzerland at the CICG – Centre International de
   Conférence de Genève
   -

   When: 17th - 18th September 2013
   -

   Announce: blog
post<http://blog.okfn.org/2013/03/21/announcing-the-open-knowledge-conference-2013-open-data-broad-deep-connected/>-
   tweet <https://twitter.com/OKFN/status/314682012764090369>
   -

   Official Website: http://okcon.org/ - register at
   http://okcon.org/tickets/ <http://okcon.org/tickets-and-registrations/>
   -

   Social media: Twitter <http://twitter.com/okfn> with hashtag #OKCon and
   on Facebook <http://www.facebook.com/events/571499826223701/>
   -

   Press: http://okcon.org/press - Press Release for the
event<http://okcon.org/files/2013/03/OpenKnowledgeConference2013PressRelease.pdf>


The world’s leading open data and open knowledge event, OKCon is the latest
in an annual series run since 2005. Last year’s installment in Helsinki had
more than 1000 participants from over 50 countries and was largest event of
its kind to date. Previous speakers have included inventor of the World
Wide Web Sir Tim Berners-Lee, Hans Rosling of Gapminder, Brewster Kahle of
the Internet Archive and Ellen Miller of the Sunlight Foundation.

Located in Geneva, a major site for the United Nations and many other
international institutions, this year’s event will focus on coordinating
and strengthening public policy around the world to support a truly global
and interconnected ecosystem of open data.

Open Data - Broad, Deep, Connected

In the last few years we’ve seen government open data initiatives grow from
a handful to hundreds, and we’ve seen open data become important in areas
such as research, culture and international development. This event will
explore how open data is not only expanding geographically but also
touching new sectors and new areas. How should governments and
international institutions such as the UN react to these changes? How
should business take advantage of new opportunities and contribute to the
open data economy? How do citizens and civil society organizations turn
data into accountability and into change?

This year’s OKCon will focus on the following questions:


   -

   How do we broaden open data - not only geographically across countries
   and regions, but also across domains and institutions? For example, whilst
   open data is now firmly on the agenda for government, in business its
   potential is only just starting to be explored. Similarly, though “open” is
   prominent in some areas of research, such as genomics, in others it is
   still barely known.
   -

   How do we deepen open data - ensuring a commitment not only for today
   but for the long term, and ensuring that open data is fully embedded into
   processes and policies? For example, though many governments have now
   signed up to the [Open Government Partnership](
   http://www.opengovpartnership.org/) and announced open government data
   initiatives, in many cases the amount of data actually released remains
   limited.
   -

   How do we ensure the open data ecosystem is connected? Much of the value
   of open data will be lost if open data ends up locked into isolated silos -
   whether these are legal, technical or social.  In today’s globalized world
   it makes no sense if open data ‘stops at the border’: we need data that
   extends across countries and institutions, and is easy to interconnect
   thanks to common standards and interoperable infrastructure.


Organizers

The event is jointly organized by the Open Knowledge
Foundation<http://okfn.org/>,
Open Knowledge Foundation Switzerland <http://opendata.ch/> with the
support of the Swiss Government and the Canton of Geneva and with Lift
Events <http://liftconference.com/> as an organizing partner.

FAQs

Will there be other events in town during the Conference week?

Yes, we’re planning satellite workshops on Monday 16th September and
Thursday 19th September. Please consider this when booking your travel!

When will the Call for Proposals be launched?

We will launch a Call for Proposals inviting you to send us your ideas for
talks, panels and workshops in April. We can’t wait to make this happen
together with you!

I’d like to offer my support as a volunteer. How can I apply?

We expect to welcome around 30 stewards in our team. Applications for these
positions will be opening shortly. Stewards will receive a free ticket.

Tips & support for travel and accommodation?

We’re planning to provide a travel bursary programme, and details of
recommended hotels and hostels with good connections to the OKCon venue
will be announced in the coming weeks.

What’s Happening with OKFestival?

Last year our annual Open Knowledge Conference expanded into the inaugural
[Open Knowledge Festival (OKFestival)](http://okfestival.org/) which took
place in Helsinki in September. This was a great event with a broad
structure and festival atmosphere, and we look forward to future Open
Knowledge Festivals. With their expanded format we’ll likely be running
these in alternate years, giving plenty of time to plan and bring the
community together.
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