Date for Sex 2.0 2010

Survey results are in, and the weekend selected for Sex 2.0 2010 is the weekend of May 22, 2010. Keep in mind that since feedback overwhelmingly supported a two-day event this time around, the conference and surrounding events will not take place only on the 22nd. The Seattle organizing team will determine exactly what form the two-day conference will take, but go ahead and mark your calendars for May 22, 2010 at the Center for Sex Positive Culture in Seattle!

Let’s pick a weekend for Sex 2.0 2010!

Please use the quick survey below to indicate your order of preference for the three weekends being considered for Sex 2.0 2010.

We don’t yet know what form the two-day version of Sex 2.0 will take, so please note you are indicating a preference for the entire weekend, not just Saturday.

The survey will be open until July 10.

Thanks!

Sex 2.0 planning and updates for 2010, and survey results

A few notes about how Sex 2.0 will work for 2010. This will be kind of long, but please read the whole thing!

Organizational updates

As I mentioned in an earlier post, going forward the conference will be overseen by a steering committee comprised of up to 13 people who have attended at least two previous Sex 2.0s. The steering committee is responsible for high-level management and direction of the conference, e.g., making sure each year’s event is in line with the conference’s core values.

The Sex 2.0 2010 Steering Committee is: Audacia Ray, Elizabeth Wood, Ellie Lumpesse, Melissa Gira Grant, Renegade Evolution, Rusty Tanton, Stacey Swimme, Viviane, and moi.

Here are just a few examples of the types of things the steering committee will be responsible for:

• Mission statement, language on web site, framing of conference goals, etc. (including a “lexicon” Ren is working on! sometimes we forget that some of the language we use can be very inside baseball)
• Establishing and maintaining best practices
• Overall high-level maintenance of web site
• Answering questions local organizers might have about logistics

Additionally, as I stated previously, the on-the-ground organizing and logistics for the Seattle event itself will be handled by a mostly-locally-based team. Furry Girl has already expressed interest in utilizing her unique position as local to Seattle and having attended two Sex 2.0s to serve as a liaison between the local folks and the steering committee. Allena from the Center for Sex Positive Culture (our venue) will also be heavily involved, and I know several other Seattle folks have expressed interest in being involved. Don’t hesitate in getting yourselves together ASAP – there’s going to be a lot of work to do, and the more enthusiastic people involved, the better! The great thing is, we already have a venue and a hotel, so those two issues, which are typically two of the biggest concerns, are out of the way.

Changes for 2010 based on your feedback

Now, onto some particulars for Sex 2.0 2010. Based on the results of the survey, the clear preference is to cap conference attendance. Based on the survey answers and feedback in the Google group, next year’s attendance will be capped at 250 participants.

There was also overwhelming feedback in support of making Sex 2.0 two days instead of one. There were many different responses as to how the two days should be structured, but the majority answer was “All day Saturday, Sunday morning/early afternoon” with “Friday late afternoon/evening, all day Saturday” as a close runner-up. Ultimately, the Seattle team will make the decision of what the two days will look like based on factors such as the venue’s availability and continued input from members of the Google group.

The majority of survey respondents said the length of sessions was just right at 50 minutes, although it was close, with an almost equal number of people saying it was too short. My recommendation would be to increase session length to 1 hour as it was in 2008 and maintain the 10 minute break between sessions. But ultimately that decision will be up to the Seattle team.

Overwhelmingly, survey respondents indicated that they prefer discussion-oriented sessions rather than one-way lectures or presentations. One of the most common complaints about the sessions was that they did not have enough participation. As this is one of Sex 2.0’s core values, everyone involved in the steering committee, the local team, and of course everyone on the Google group (because we’re all involved in some way, none of us are passive – another core value!) will be working hard with this in mind to ensure that 2010’s sessions get back to the conference’s roots. To go along with that, we may offer a short training for discussion leaders on how to handle potential derailing, as that was a problem in some sessions that endeavored to be more discussion-oriented.

Survey respondents also felt that an official pre-conference organized event for participants that is more neutral than “Brownies and Porn” would be a fun and important way for people to get to know each other. The Seattle team will work out the particulars of the pre-con event with input from everyone in the Google group.

A large majority of survey respondents were happy with the privacy/photography policy and we will be maintaining it next year, and working even harder next  year to make sure it is strictly enforced.

I promised myself I wouldn’t cry

As always, thanks to everyone for your continued support of this crazy idea. It is absolutely amazing to see this scheme I hatched in a backyard in 2007 turn into a one-of-a-kind full-blown conference now in its third year. Everyone, please continue to be actively involved in bringing Sex 2.0 2010 to fruitition! See y’all in Seattle. :)

Two reminders: 2009 participant survey, and 2010 steering committee

May 30 is a deadline for two things…

1) If you have not completed the 2009 participant survey, please do so. Only 28 people have responded so far, which is less that one fifth of the total number of people who participated. So please share your feedback; without it, we cannot know if there’s an area that you loved and work to maintain it, or an area that you hated and work to change it. Please share as many details as possible in the survey, even if you have already shared your thoughts in the Google group. Access to the survey will close on May 30.

2) If you have participated in two Sex 2.0s and would like to be on the steering committee for 2010, please inform me of your interest by May 30. After that date, membership on the 2010 steering committee will be considered closed. You can read more about the steering committee’s function here. And I am still looking for feedback from the group on areas of responsibility that I mentioned about a week or so ago on the Google group.

2010 conference location, organizational structure, and more

Here is the message I sent to the Google group last night:
—

First of all, I am thrilled to announce that Sex 2.0 will be in Seattle next year, and the venue will be the Center for Sex Positive Culture! The director of the Center, Allena Gabosch, is super excited about Sex 2.0 and is behind our mission 100%. I can’t think of a more perfect venue. You can read all about the Center at their web site, http://www.sexpositiveculture.org. They’ve been open for ten years, which is pretty freakin’ awesome.

We do not yet have a date, but it will be sometime in summer 2010. It will definitely be after the Seattle Erotic Arts Festival. As always, we’ll work to make sure we minimize conflicts w/ other events as much as possible.

I also have a strong lead on a block of rooms at the super-cool sex-positive Hotel Max: http://www.hotelmaxseattle.com. They offer “kinky kits” in their rooms, among other things. Perfect tie-in, right? (Argh… no pun intended!) I’ll keep everyone posted on that, of course.

Yay for Seattle 2010!!

Next up: It’s been said that a conference’s third year can make it or break it. Sex 2.0 is growing, and as you know from the discussions we’ve had here on the list over the past two weeks, we all share the concern over how to manage that growth and keep Sex 2.0 the unique event it is. So, going forward into year three, we’re making a few changes.

First of all, we’re dropping the word “unconference” from the description, since that seems to ruffle some people’s feathers. Sex 2.0 will remain community-driven and committed to our core ideas of everyone having something to teach and something to learn; this event will continue to be what you make of it, with everyone expected to contribute something to get the experience they want. I’m not willing to keep fighting a battle over the word “unconference,” though, so we’re nixing it. It’s more important that we have a great time, rather than what we call it!

Next, in planning for the 2010 conference, Sex 2.0 will have a steering committee. This was the logical decision after listening to feedback from participants for the last two years, including goals and questions for next year. The steering committee’s reason for existence is to help in the guidance of the event: the direction in which it moves and grows, and what we want to offer as a safe, social and educational gathering. In no way does this committee reflect on the planning of events in various cities, but rather it exists to ensure the spirit of Sex 2.0 remains consistent. Each year, a team of local organizers will be responsible for on-the-ground logistics, planning, and implementation in whatever city the conference is taking place.

Input from everyone is always needed, but in having this committee, it lessens the need for the planners of the event itself to be so burdened. Sharing the stress is always good – it’s ensures that no one is overwhelmed; and personally, I feel that an important part of a supportive community is taking care of each other and being accountable in this way.

Membership on the steering committee is open to people who have attended at least two Sex 2.0s. This requirement is to ensure that committee members have a good grasp on the mission and history of the conference. These are not permanent positions nor set in stone in any way; membership will naturally change from year to year. The maximum number of people for the committee is 13 – because that’s how we do it at Sex 2.0, we subvert societal paradigms that arbitrarily label some numbers “unlucky!” If you would like to be on the steering committee this year, please reply to the group or email me.

Finally, remember, if you have not taken the survey yet, please do; even if you have given your input on the group, please include as much feedback as possible in the survey, so it will be there in delicious analysis-friendly format. Access to the survey will close May 30, and you can find it here: http://sex20con.com/2009/05/16/2009-sex-20-participant-survey/

2009 Sex 2.0 Participant Survey

If you attended Sex 2.0 this year, please take a few moments to complete this survey. The more detailed your responses, the better! This will help ensure that Sex 2.0 continues to meet the needs of the various communities that support it.

Please complete the survey only once. Access to the survey will close on Saturday, May 30.

Thank you!

UPDATE: Access to the survey is now closed.