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SkeptiCamps are informal, community-organized conferences borne from the desire for people to share and learn in an open environment. Everyone from casual skeptics to the experienced participate, give talks and get to know each other.
Please excuse the mess, as the SkeptiCamp Wiki is undergoing a redesign and rewrite in preparation for multi-language support. Meet SkeptiCamp Don't let the "camp" fool you. SkeptiCamp is NOT a kid's camp. Nor does it involve the outdoors. Rather, it's a new approach to conferencing with practices and goals that diverge markedly from the traditional lecture events which have dominated organized skepticism for decades. More specifically, SkeptiCamp is an event model that builds on a set of practices adapted from the wildly-successful Barcamp conference model that debuted in the tech community in 2005. First among the practices: these are open events where anyone with a desire to learn and share is welcome to participate. Second, we compensate for our lack of experience as organizers through collaboration, spreading the effort among many. And third, we encourage, but don't require, each participant to offer an interactive talk on a science or skeptic theme to share with his or her peers. Our central goal arrives from Barcamp as well: to tear down the barriers to organizing substantive events that focus on sharing knowledge within communities of skeptics. Why do we do it? Attending lectures can be informative and enlightening and help each of us grow as skeptics. However, sitting in the audience is largely a passive experience, at least compared to the intensity of offering a talk to one's peers. Both contribute to one's development as a skeptic, but a gulf of difference lay between them. We learn not so much through passive absorption, but rather by actively engaging the subject matter. In composing a presentation we must grasp a subject at a more intimate level than merely reading about it. We anticipate questions and prepare to offer thoughtful answers. We also learn through focused discussion where we ask questions and listen to answers with the benefit of context. Some domains, including skepticism, require a mastery of skills, where we benefit from rich opportunities to practice and refine those skills. Open events build squarely on these principles by emphasizing participation and interaction. This includes asking that speakers take questions during their talks, not only to make the most of the context of a question, but also as a mechanism of quality control. HOWEVER, such learning opportunities are of scant value if providing them is financially risky, unaffordable, or a pain to put together. This is where the Barcamp model shines. The lightweight practices surrounding this model place substantive events within the reach of informal groups of skeptics anywhere. We've seen them in places where traditional events are infrequent or absent altogether. Much like Barcamp we want to see open events in every corner of the world building communities of better informed, more skilled, articulate and engaged skeptics. Where do you fit in? Hosting your first event starts with a call for organizers, a face-to-face meeting where you decide on potential dates and locations. Full details at Organizing a SkeptiCamp Event. Outside of organizing, to gain the most from open skeptic events, we ask that you offer a talk to your peers on a topic that drives your passion for science and skepticism, as it's an accelerated path towards your mastering the knowledge and tools of this domain. But at the very least show up and interact with the speakers and your fellow skeptics. This is a collaboratively-edited wiki, so please give back by sharing your experiences of organizing, specifically on the What Went Right and What Went Wrong pages, to benefit your fellow organizers. Where do our organizations fit in?As skeptic organizations share our goal of building an articulate and engaged community of skeptics, open events will provide an ideal way to support local groups. Sponsorship can take many forms, such as a local campus group or company providing a venue for free. National organizations can provide books, DVDs and magazines for door or trivia prizes. However, it's hard to beat "Your lunch sponsored by ORGANIZATION" as food is consistently popular. Each event should contact these organizations directly to inquire about sponsoring:
Interested in becoming an event sponsor and listing your organization above? You can edit the Sponsor List Template to include your organization. It's strictly opt-in. Please keep the list in alphabetical order. To ensure ongoing support, we organizers should take care to enthusiastically promote the participation of our sponsors, not only in social media and on our Event Pages but also at the start and end of our events. For more informationStart by browsing through the site. A few notable articles...
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Upcoming EventsWith NYC's event in December, 2011 will have seen 16 events, a growth of 23% over last year. Watch this space to see what 2012 will hold!
You can edit the text in this sidebar yourself! To do so, go to the Upcoming Events Template page. Please help tidy things up by keeping events in chronological order and moving past events to the Event Archive. |
