A couple of weeks in the past in October, a lot of the Ethereum neighborhood got here collectively in South America as we reunited for Devcon VI in Bogotá, Colombia!
Today we need to say Thank You(!) to each attendee, volunteer, and contributor that made Devcon VI a hit. In this weblog publish, we’ll recap the highlights of an extremely enjoyable occasion, and reminisce about Community Hubs, the Road to Devcon, insightful talks and panels, fantastically designed presenter rooms, and far more.
Watch the Recap Video to refresh your reminiscence and benefit from the Devcon VI vibe!
What Devcon is all about
For these which are new to the Ethereum household, Devcon is the one annual convention held by the Ethereum Foundation, and it dates again to a small meetup in Berlin (ÐΞVcon-0) a couple of 12 months previous to Ethereum’s first blocks. For some members of the Ethereum ecosystem, Devcon is a household reunion of kinds, whereas for others it’s a big stage on which to talk to (and study) the newest breakthroughs on content material starting from technical analysis to software releases and extra.
Over the years, it has grow to be clear that Devcon serves the neighborhood in different methods too. As we deliberate for Devcon VI, we labored to outline these objectives. Now we need to describe them as soon as extra and replicate on how we tried to perform every of them.
1. Collaboration & data sharing
Devcon is just not solely a convention that options displays, however it’s a novel place to get some work finished with so many essential builders in the identical rooms. This 12 months, we wished them to have area to speak, to drag as much as a whiteboard, and get to work collectively.
At Devcon VI we hosted workshop rooms, devoted co-work areas, bookable assembly areas, and a hacker basement the place folks got here collectively to fulfill and work. We additionally provided a co-working area after the occasion within the venue.
The hacker basement – Photo by Shintaro Yoshimatsu
2. Teaching, speaking, and producing new concepts
Devcon is an opportunity to be taught, and to show. People traveled to Devcon to know the leading edge within the Ethereum area, and to share what they’ve discovered during the last 12 months with a big viewers each on the occasion, and on-line.
Over the 4 days, 60,000 viewers all over the world watched the Devcon livestreams (21,780 on the primary day alone). Providing high quality stay streams and movies was essential for Devcon Satellite Events – academic meetups all over the world organized for many who couldn’t make it to Bogotá. The neighborhood organized Devcon Satellite Events in Argentina, Bolivia, Colombia, Malaysia, Portugal and Turkey.
Community Hubs have been devoted areas powered by the neighborhood for the neighborhood. Whether you began your day with a cacao ceremony within the Regens Hub, you went anon IRL by crafting a mask in the Temporary Anonymous Zone, witnessed the launch of the primary Token Engineering Fundamentals program, or visualized your values about decentralization within the Design Hub, we hope that you just felt extra like a member of a various neighborhood than merely an attendee.
This was additionally the primary Devcon that featured “Impact Booths”, which have been areas reserved for groups and efforts making a optimistic impression on Ethereum and the ecosystem at massive. Great issues occur when purchasers, rollup-teams, and different impactful teams come collectively in a single place. Allegedly rivalrous rollup groups turned buddies, others gained a rare Gitcoin plushie by revealing their favourite public good, some snagged a pair of the primary ever socks.sol swag, or accepted the problem of exchanging as many ENS POAPs as they may with different attendees to climb the leaderboard.
The Latin American neighborhood had its personal artistic area: a Colombian Chiva Bus. There, individuals hosted dialogue rounds, podcasts, and saved the music going till nicely after displays had wrapped for the night time.
The ETH Latam crew in entrance of their Chiva Bus
3. Use our greatest stage to ship a message
Devcon is a crucial alternative to speak with the world about Ethereum. As the biggest convention in our trade, the broader expertise area and mainstream organizations take note of Devcon.
Devcon VI was the primary after The Merge occurred in September of this 12 months! 🐼Ethereum Mainnet now makes use of proof-of-stake for consensus, and Danny Ryan talked about how busy the previous few months have been for the Ethereum core devs, what difficulties they confronted after they merged the consensus and execution layers, and what it implies that they exist as one chain – Ethereum.
Other talks which are extremely beneficial to (re)watch are Aya Miyaguchi’s speak about Executing with Subtraction within the Infinite Garden, Kurt Opsahl’s speak The Value of Cryptocurrencies in Supporting Human Rights, and Pia Mancini’s speak The Future is Collective.
Apart from our suggestions, we additionally need to let you recognize what have been a number of the favourite picks by members of the neighborhood this 12 months:
4. Using tech constructed on Ethereum by means of “dogfooding”
“Dogfooding” is the follow of utilizing one’s personal services or products. Devcon is a convention made by and for our neighborhood, and we need to make use of instruments constructed by our neighborhood the place potential and helpful to attendees. Devcon desires to allow attendees to be taught and experiment first-hand with merchandise constructed on Ethereum.
Beginning with ticketing, 268 folks participated in the on-chain raffle and auction earlier than the final ticket sale started.
Smart Token Labs helped to make Devcon VI ticket attestations a actuality, which allowed attendees to attest that they have been Devcon VI ticket-holders with no pockets deal with or different private figuring out info being made public. Through their platform, separate third events provided permissionless perks completely for Devcon VI attendees.
Speaking of dogfooding, how did you guide your lodge in Bogotá? Attendees have been capable of pay for his or her rooms utilizing crypto, because of Winding Tree.
You can now watch all talks and panels from Devcon VI on extra open and strong platforms too – Swarm and Etherna helped us to make the Devcon Archive extra decentralized by internet hosting the movies from talks and workshops. Check out the Swarm crew’s recap for extra info on their work at Devcon VI.
Many environmentally acutely aware attendees offset their flights with the carbon offsetter by Discarbon. As of now, individuals have contributed to offset the equal of 403.9 Tonnes of CO2. Voters on the snapshot proposal selected to retire these credit from the Cordillera Azul National Park REDD+ Project in Perú.
And it goes with out point out that everybody collected lots of POAPs alongside the best way.
Panel: Signing in With Ethereum: the Most Powerful Protocol in Web3?
5. Growing the Ethereum Ecosystem
Devcon is a chance to achieve, excite and have interaction extra native Ethereum communities all all over the world. This 12 months, the Latin American Ethereum neighborhood paved the Road to Devcon by organizing about 14 neighborhood occasions round Latin America, all main as much as Devcon VI in Bogotá, the place the leaders of the Latam Ethereum neighborhood organized ETH Latam Day someday earlier than the principle occasion began. Watch their recap video here.
We imagine Ethereum can have real-world impression in South America, and it’s wonderful to see how robust the Latin American Ethereum neighborhood has grow to be.
EF’s Executive Director Aya Miyaguchi recently said that she “strongly believe[s] it’s important for builders to go out there and see all different parts of the world they are trying to change.” Some Devcon attendees used the chance that the occasion offered to discover South America a bit of additional after Devcon. They got here to know a neighborhood and a part of the world that was beforehand international to them, or they arrived earlier and adopted the Road to Devcon.
The Road to Devcon map
Devcon can also be a possibility to achieve blockchain-related groups and newcomers from different industries. UNICEF was as soon as extra a visitor and speaker at Devcon, in addition to Arkadiy Kukarkin from the Internet Archive, and geopolitics and expertise writer Bruno Maçães.
Ethereum Foundation’s Next Billion crew organized a one-day occasion for Devcon attendees, authorities officers, non-profit and civil society organizations, and “anyone interested in learning about how we can use Ethereum as a public good destined to help billions of people coordinate and thrive.” The occasion centered on the ‘real-world’ elements confronted by those that use Ethereum to create impression.
The programming observe Opportunity & Global Impact featured many extra fascinating talks and panels discussing how Ethereum can overcome “gaps in representation across cultures, nationalities, and economic classes.” (Next Billion)
Devcon VI welcomed many individuals which are newer to the Ethereum ecosystem and that attended Devcon for the primary time. With different programming tracks like Governance & Coordination, and Cryptoeconomics, and with numerous crypto artwork and music alongside the best way, we hope they felt impressed by our wonderful neighborhood by the week’s finish.
Growing the Ethereum ecosystem additionally means supporting those that “have the potential to make a positive impact on Ethereum and its community, but who were unable to attend without financial assistance.” The Devcon Scholars Program had its second class this 12 months, and 50 people acquired assist to attend Devcon. Read a few of their tales and their views on Devcon VI right here!
6. Fun!
Playfulness has all the time been a part of Devcon and of the Ethereum ecosystem at massive. This is why Devcon swag is colourful, Jonathan Mann is singing The Merge Song on stage, and the opening video options animated dancing bears merging right into a panda representing Ethereum.
Calling Devcon a convention misses the mark in mild of the colourful levels designed with love for element, the grownup playground with video games like large Jenga, and the hacker basement stuffed with digital artwork to discover.
Ix Shells and Rosendo Merel Choy – Photo by Shintaro Yoshimatsu
Many of the enjoyable issues Devcon VI provided have been delivered to life by the neighborhood itself. The music stage within the Chiva Chillout was a neighborhood initiative that was born from a Devcon Improvement Proposal (DIP) by The Fellowship of Ethereum Musicians that become a bigger mission. You can watch a video with highlights from all 4 days right here. Each day, attendees may be part of a graffiti tour organized by CRYPTOMURALS, and the groups of Social Dist0rtion Protocol and daedalus industries puzzled out the Treasure Hunt Challenge “Time To DAI” for you.
7. Feedback & Continued Improvement
We are all the time making an attempt to be taught and enhance as nicely, and we thank everybody who gave us precious suggestions (you may nonetheless give suggestions by way of our attendee survey and earn a POAP.)
There are some things we discovered this 12 months. Wi-Fi was a problem once more, particularly on the primary day, and we all know there’s room for enchancment, and our SIM playing cards for attendees have been extra very important than ever! The meals will be much more versatile – together with higher vegetarian and vegan choices. Female, Transgender, Non-Binary and different genders made up 20%+ of Devcon VI’s attendees. Still, we will do extra to make each Devcon and the ecosystem extra consultant when it comes to gender range & inclusion in a still-male-dominated area.
As our occasion has grown bigger and with over 6,000 in attendance, we acknowledge that the possibilities are higher for rivalry between some attendees. The first rule within the Devcon Code of Conduct is to “be excellent to each other”, and our dedication is to create a cushty surroundings for all. We will evaluation our CoC and take into account enhancements primarily based on what now we have discovered this 12 months.
What’s Ahead?
We are assured we gained’t have to attend three years for the subsequent Devcon. It’s already time so that you can get entangled by proposing concepts to enhance Devcon.
Aya’s speak about subtraction made us rethink the phrasing of DIPs. Devcon Improvement Proposals at the moment are supposed for collaborative neighborhood enter on what must be modified (subtracted, added, or modified) for the upcoming Devcon7.
Where will Devcon7 happen? In brief: We don’t know but. But the selection will probably be arduous, as now we have many unimaginable ideas for Devcon7 areas from members of the Ethereum neighborhood.
We hope that you just’ll be as excited as we’re after we share extra info within the weeks to come back. For now, thanks as soon as once more to all of our attendees for becoming a member of us in Bogotá, to the presenters, the Impact groups, Supporters, Community Hub organizers, DIP contributors, and volunteers that made Devcon VI potential. ❤️🦄
Until we meet once more, you may take a look at extra pictures by the Devcon crew right here, and discover extra pictures by Shintaro Yoshimatsu right here.
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EF Devcon Team
