Nerdearla reflects on openness and inclusivity

Last month, OSI affiliate sysarmy organized the 10th edition of Nerdearla, one of the largest Open Source conferences in Latin America, bringing together a community of 10,000+ participants in Buenos Aires and 25,000+ online. Nerdearla is 100% free for attendees both online and in-person, relying solely on the companies that sponsor the event.

Keynote speakers included Megan Smith, former U.S. CTO and assistant to the President; Jon “maddog” Hall, board chair for the Linux Professional Institute; and Douglas Crockford, author of the data format JSON (JavaScript Object Notation).

The Open Source Initiative (OSI) was kindly invited to present the “25 years of Open Source.” As community manager at the OSI, I gave an overview of the rich and interconnected history of both the Free Software and Open Source movements, and later looked towards the future to reimagine a new world where openness and collaboration prevail. In my presentation I explored the challenges and opportunities ahead, including Open Source’s key role in fostering collaboration and innovation in emerging areas such as AI/ML.

One of the high points of the conference was the keynote from Megan Smith: “Accelerating solution making through inclusion.” Megan shared her vision for a more productive, innovative, multi-disciplinary and positively-impactful technology community that accomplishes this mission through including and building for all of humanity. Openness and inclusion were a big focus of her presentation, where she highlighted how Open Source, open collaboration, open innovation, open education and open government can help bring different people and perspectives together.

Sysarmy organized several social and inclusive activities as part of Nerdearla. The event adopted a hybrid approach, where participants who could not attend in person were able to watch the presentations and interact with others online. Kids were also invited to be part of the conference by participating in activities like the Roboteam experience. 

While technology was the main focus of the event, adjacent topics like mathematics and astronomy were also incorporated into the program, including a “night at the planetarium.” Finally, there was also a special “women in technology” social event where both new and experienced participants could share their experiences with other colleagues.

In my opinion, Nerdearla is one of the best conferences in the world with a vibrant community. The event relies solely on sponsors and tickets are 100% free for attendees, who gain the opportunity to learn from top class speakers. Please visit: https://nerdear.la/