I love community and human relations centered projects, and I like everything open-source which allows everyone to have their voices heard (“Democratize publishing”). I have these values in common with WordPress and its code of conduct.
Here is how I like to contribute to the amazing WordPress project, a tool that anyone can use freely.
I like to get involved in the WordPress community, as it’s a pleasant way to give back to WordPress what WordPress allows me to accomplish with Virtuaza, patriciabt.com, WPMondo (previously GatheringWP) and Interaction.Site.
I co-organise the WordPress meetups in Geneva since 2013. This group have been created in 2012 by Paolo Belcastro and Jenia Laszlo, and when they left Geneva, 2-3 of us took the group in charge. We organise monthly meetups from September to June, and talk about various topics for all kind of knowledge level. We like to be very inclusive and welcoming, and always follow the meetups by a dinner out.
I have also been part of the WordCamps organisation teams in Geneva in 2016, Bern in 2017, Lausanne 2018, Zurich 2019, Genève 2022 ( 2020 postponed to 2022, due to COVID) and WordCamp Switzerland 2023. I have been a volunteer at WordCamp Europe in 2017, 2019, 2022, 2023, among other WordCamps. I applied to be an organiser for WordCamp Europe 2024 in Torino. I’m also sometimes a microsponsor or a speaker. See a full list below.
I now also contribute to the community team by being an official Event Supporter = previously called “WordCamp mentor”, an intermediary between the WordCamp’s lead-organisers and WPCS (WordPress Community Support, the entity behind all official WordPress events) to guide and support local lead-organisers.
List of past and future WordCamps participation and role
Independent events, which are not official WordCamps, are also mentioned (such as WPTech, WPSessions, WordFest Live, …). My role is mentioned when I was a speaker, (co-)organiser, volunteer, microsponsor, or just a happy simple attendee.
WordCamp Genève – Switzerland, due to COVID-19, the WordCamp Genève (Geneva), initially planned for 20-21 March 2020 has been first postponed to 9-10 October 2020, then cancelled and was finally held on 9 April 2022, lead-organiser
WordCamp Europe “online” – due to COVID-19, the event initially planned to be held in Porto, Portugal, 4-6 June 2020, became an online event, attendee
WordCamp Paris – France, due to COVID-19, the WordCamp Paris, initially planned for 17 April 2020 has been postponed to a later date or cancelled, I was scheduled to be a speaker
I spoke at WordCamp Lausanne. As I was a co-organiser, I was not scheduled to give a talk, besides the panel, but as 4 speakers didn’t make it to Lausanne, last minute warning, we had to find a replacement. So I was not prepared and had no slides but it was great. See the video from WordPress TV (or here below).
I spoke about “fighting the fear of public speaking” and gave tips and tricks, such as the bottle of water, meditation, breathing, and training in meetups and with Toastmasters. I would like to speak about that topic again, in English, as an upgrade to that Lausanne talk = not the tips and tricks, but about the inspiration to give a talk in a WordCamp, and how to find that exciting. I’ll propose that.
Lausanne- Switzerland 2018 – panel
Then, in the same WordCamp, I was suggested by the organiser in charge of speakers to be the “local” participant to a panel talking about how women are perceived in the WordPress community, and in general. I was with other great ladies: Deborah Donnier, Frédérique Game, Carole Olinger and EmilieLebrun. See the video from WordPress TV here below:
Marseille – France 2017
The second talk was in WordCamp Marseille 2017. The title was “S’inspirer du code des WordCamps dans la vie de tous les jours”. You can see it on WordPress TV or here below. The first 10 minutes of video are missing, but sound is there.
The first time was in Zurich for WordCamp Switzerland 2014. The video never made it to WordPress TV. I was presenting a site I made for local communities, with forums and membership.
We (myself and fellow co-organisers Michelle Bulloch and Maxime Culea) were preparing the WordCamp Genève 2020, the one which has been postponed to 2022 due to COVID, and talking about how to organise a WordCamp and other contributions to WordPress. Thank you to Infomaniak Networks, where the WordCamp Genève 2020’s Contributor Day was to be held.
On WordPress.tv (some WordCamps videos – and many meetups – were never uploaded there)
The Code of Conduct
I love the Code of Conduct, that shows inclusivity and acceptance of everyone. Here below is an extract but you can read the full text here. When we organise WordPress events, or contribute as a speaker, volunteer or sponsor, we have to agree to this code and this enforce good behaviour which should go without saying.
WordCamp CITYNAMEHERE believes our community should be truly open for everyone. As such, we are committed to providing a friendly, safe and welcoming environment for all, regardless of gender, sexual orientation, disability, ethnicity, religion, age, caste, social class, preferred operating system, programming language, or text editor, among other identifying characteristics.
and
Be considerate, respectful, and collaborative.
Refrain from demeaning, discriminatory or harassing behavior and speech.
Be mindful of your surroundings and of your fellow participants. Alert conference organizers if you notice a dangerous situation or someone in distress.
Participate in an authentic and active way. In doing so, you help to create WordCamp XXX and make it your own.
I love those and that corresponds to my basic values. I gave a presentation at WordCamp Marseille 2017 about that. “Apply to Code of Conduct in our everyday life” (in French).
Another advantage is that participating in WordCamps allows you to meet people from many different countries and cultures.
You can read the full bio going with this video on the WordCamp Lausanne site (English), (français).
Manage Cookie Consent
To provide the best experiences, we use technologies like cookies to store and/or access device information. Consenting to these technologies will allow us to process data such as browsing behaviour or unique IDs on this site. Not consenting or withdrawing consent, may adversely affect certain features and functions.
Functional
Always active
The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network.
Preferences
The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user.
Statistics
The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes.The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you.
Marketing
The technical storage or access is required to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or across several websites for similar marketing purposes.
