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Name of organization
Digital Naturalism Conference (Dinacon) -
Email address (or preferred and reliable way of official contact)
Info@dinacon.org or hello@leecyb.org
- Tell us about your organization
Dinacon is a unique event that hosts field biologists, interaction designers, engineers, artists, and anyone simply interested in exploring new ways of interacting with nature in some of the world’s major hubs for biological field research. The key goal of the conference is to share knowledge, so we bring together a mix of connecting local and international groups who want to spread their knowledge about hacking and nature. Dinacon was created in reaction to many traditional academic conferences which fail to connect the participants to the interesting locations they visit (or even to each other) There have been two previous Dinacons, one in Thailand, May-July 2561, and one in Panama, August 2019. The work of the participants was collected and freely shared in these nice books we made for each conference: https://www.dinacon.org/2018/11/02/book
You can also review our website for more information about people and events from past conferences: www.dinacon.org
- Does your organization have representation for a marginalized demographic due to factors such as, but not limited to, race, ability, place of birth, gender, sexual orientation, socioeconomic class situation or other identification? If so, how?
We strive to be actively inclusive in an environment known to have embedded and systemic bias. To do this, we partner with local organizations in every space we visit, and ensure they are gaining benefit from hosting our conference in a true partnership. Our organizational team is intentionally made of a diverse background, and we uphold a commitment to ensuring our attendees come from varying backgrounds as well. To do this, we understand that many attendees may apply with experience that may appear different than traditional “academic” “scientific” or “professional” and actively look to elevate alternative experience of science, hardware and hacking. Our leadership team actively seeks out Node Leaders, workshop leaders, and attendees that would benefit from experiences like dinacon or who are typically marginalized by science communities and offer them opportunity to grow, participate, and lead.
- What is the event about, and what do you want to achieve with it?
Every year Dinacon is hosted in a different location. This year we will be in Sri Lanka working with Dreamspace Academy, a local makerspace. Participants from around the world submit attend and spend at least 1 week exploring the environment, researching, and collaborating with locals and peers. Participants, who can be artists, designers, scientists, engineers, academics, etc, are encouraged to give skill-sharing workshops and must produce 1 project themselves.
There are only 3 basic requirements for participating:
- Make something
- Document and Share it Publicly
- Get at least two other participants to provide you with recorded feedback
Participants will use the facilities at Dreamspace Academy to build and document projects. Outings exploring the biodiversity of the area will take place throughout the month, as well as skill building workshops. The conference will run for the entire month of July, with a rotating set of attendees.
- Which of the three levels of funding would you like to apply for? (in round 1 only USD $9910 is available for applications, in further rounds $3000, $6000, or USD $9910 will be available)
9910 USD
- What is the funding for? Describe your budget. List what you are going to spend it on and how.
| item | cost |
|---|---|
| Local documentation Team | 3000 |
| Local space Rental | 3000 |
| Supporting Travel Costs | 3000 |
| Accessibility Accommodations | 910 |
| Total | 9910 |
This funding allows us to provide additional support and wider access to the conference.
Rental and documentation costs go directly to our partner organization Dreamspace Academy and their support team.
Supporting travel costs are intended to allow marginalized participants to travel if attending the conference is beyond their financial ability.
Accessibility: These costs are dependant on the needs of applicants, it is intended to offer support services which can range from: mobility assistance, travel accommodations, support persons, etc so that anyone may attend.
- How will you share the outcomes of this event. What documentation will result that will this project benefit the community as a whole? (videos? photos? a how-to? innovative hardware designs?)
During our conference we have a documentation team that is dedicated to both general conference documentation as well as individual project documentation. At the end of the conference we have a published book that showcases the work done at the conference.
We require that all participants review each other’s work and provide constructive feedback. At the end, all participants get professional documentation of their work, feedback, and a published work. In addition, social media posts, chat groups, and community newsletters offer ongoing support.
In summary:
. A freely available, peer reviewed book that documents how each project is done
. Each node leader is required to teach a workshop at the conference which is documented in the book
. Social media documentation
. Photo, video, and audio recordings for personal use
- How would your event address GOSH’s values of diversity and inclusion?
As stated above, we strive to be inclusive in our leadership, partnership, and attendees. We actively seek leadership and attendance from marginalized people in science and hardware and approach people actively to take part. We believe it is not enough to state that we are open, or to mandate it, but that it is critical to actively invite and support women, people of varying (or lack of) genders, people of color, people of varying (dis)ability, people from varying social and economic backgrounds, and people with alternative education or professional structures that differ from those often presented as “leaders” in science/hacking/hardware/engineering/research. We offer accessibility support to leadership and attendees, and provide mentorship. We have a robust code of conduct, which we frequently review and adapt as we learn and grow to ensure everyone involved feels safe and has a path to resolve any conflict that may arise, and believe structures of power should be challenged and rebuilt to be inclusive.
- Are there any conflicts of interest that you wish to declare?
Yes, Andrew Quitmeyer is on our leadership team