Interesting Vancouver

 
Interesting Vancouver will be an unconference inspired by inspiring conferences like TED and Idea City,  but accessible to anyone and with more of a uniquely Vancouver flavour.

Interesting was founded in London by marketing guy/writer and uber blogger Russell Davies who spent some time as a strategic planner at Wieden Kennedy and Nike.  Following the first successful event, the sequel London edition takes place this weekend.  And events in New York, Amsterdam, Sydney and soon Portland are on board for this year.  As described by Russell the ethos of Interesting is:

"The plan is to have all sorts of speakers speak about all sorts of stuff. Not brands, advertising, blogging and twitter but interesting, unexpected, original things. I'm hoping to find fascinating people and to just ask them to speak about something they care about. I want to replicate the experience of clicking from one really good blog to another, ranging across sciences, arts, musics, jokes and whatever."

So that's it.  We thank Russell for starting Interesting and letting us give it a shot in Vancouver.  

Event will be comprised of a number of speakers given either 20 or 3 minutes.  It will be held in late October and cost $20 or so and hopefully we'll have enough left over for a beer nearby afterwards. Exact date will be confirmed in the next couple weeks and we'll probably use Eventbright for tickets unless someone has a better idea.  We're debating a day long affair on a Saturday versus an evening affair on a Friday or Thursday.  Want to find the right day when everyone's not being too west coast and outdoorsy to attend something indoors.   The nifty confines Performance Works on Granville Island is our leading venue which will be confirmed with the date. 

Everything about the conference will be tagged with interestingvancouver2008 so that all the discussions, writing, images, videos and whatever else of both the event itself and the pre/post organization will be cataloged for attendees and anyone not able to attend, no matter where you are. 

Your input on all this is welcome. Interesting is a collaborative affair.  And while it will be very non conference like - no tote bags, logoed stress balls or weak coffee - we are going to need some help organizing a few details and identifying speakers.   But part of the founding spirit of Interesting is to be an easy event to attend and organize so the burden of participation is low.

In addition to myself, Rob Newell and Stefan Hawes are birthing Interesting Vancouver and a few other folks have already put up their hand to pitch in.  Thank you, but there's still room for more to jump aboard.  Here are some of the areas we're seeking hands.  Leave a comment or send me a note if you want to join in - 'me' at 'brettmacfarlane' dot 'com' 

1. Conference things:

- Design / branding.  We need a logo
- Web people to build a bit of a hub to archive of all the interestingness.
- Nourishment - coffee, snacks, etc....
- AV support.

Anyone who pitches in will be a sponsor.  We aren't looking for cash, just services or things. So it's low commitment, and you'll get some recognition but we won't over promise more than a mention from the stage and celebration in the blog.

2. Speakers:
 We have a few in mind but want attendee suggestions or self nomination.  Shoot me a note or nominate your most interesting friend.  We'll have a preliminary speaker list when tickets go on sale so you know what you're showing up for.  Here's who spoke in Amsterdam over the weekend to give you a sense of the type of thing it might be.

3. Spread the word:
Please spread the word by whatever means you deem appropriate and you can use interestingvancouver.com which points temporarily to this thread. This is where details will be released and comments, suggestions and excitement will be collected. 

So that's it for now, hope you come along for the ride.

Comments

[James]

I'm in. What can I do? Put me to work.

I've done a few events like this beforehand -- Barcamp Vancouver and Northern Voice -- so I suggest a kickoff meeting at some time soon in some suitable, friendly, convenient locale.

[Darren Barefoot]

Great idea. It appeals to my civic pride. Having spent, uh, 55% of my life in Vancouver, I'd love to do a talk. I'll devise a topic and send you an email.

[Jason Landry]

I'm in as well. I'm an interactive/graphic designer with IBM Interactive (and I'm good friends with James).

I think the Interesting conference is a wonderful thing. How can I help?