[Linux-aus] [Grant Application] Kids Tracks at BuzzConf

Thu Sep 21 19:34:14 AEST 2017

Hi Kathy,

Thanks for the info about Fruitbowl. They did offer to provide
assistance with reaching new potential sponsors, and I thought LA were
on the "do-not-call" list we'd provided them. Please accept my apologies
for the failure in this instance. Given your other feedback, perhaps I
need to better inform them of our promotion and advocacy of open source
too :)

I'd still be very grateful for any consideration in regards to the
request I submitted, relating to the funding of hardware for two of the
kids tracks, both of which are completely based on open source technologies.

Cheers,
Ben

On 21/09/17 16:32, Linux Australia President wrote:
>
> Thanks for the additional information Ben.
>
> We received a sponsorship prospectus from Fruit Bowl productions on
> behalf of Buzzconf which we politely declined on 17th August.
>
> I'll send you the email trail,
>
> Best,
> Kathy
>
>
> On 21/09/17 16:02, Ben Dechrai wrote:
>> Thanks Kathy, and LA members, for considering this request.
>>
>> On the topic of open source and BuzzConf, I'd argue that less than
>> 10% of our content touches on proprietary technologies.
>>
>> Deakin University's talk will no doubt cover encumbered technology,
>> as university product so often is; and AusPost's talk on emerging
>> technologies will touch on products such as Google Home; but all
>> presentations are theoretical, with aspirations and predictions being
>> the take-aways, which apply equally to all technologists, regardless
>> of philosophy.
>>
>> The kids workshops use Arduinos, Makey Makeys, MIT's Scratch game
>> development project, paper, conductive ink, and so on. One of the
>> workshops uses Minecraft.
>>
>> The main workshops use Blender3D, Arduinos, Python and packages. The
>> Deep Learning workshop uses exclusively FLOSS tools. The workshops on
>> Augmented and Virtual Reality use proprietary hardware (such as the
>> HoloLens and HTC Vibe), but based on development in open source
>> technologies. Some applications might connect to cloud services,
>> which might be proprietary.
>>
>> I'm also a bit confused about the comment on the declined sponsorship
>> request earlier this month. Neither Rick nor I have ever formally
>> requested funding from LA. In early 2016, I was encouraged to
>> investigate the possibility, and I spoke with Hugh Blemings by email
>> about that, but the matter died off at some point, and I didn't
>> pursue it. If someone else is applying for funding in BuzzConf's
>> name, I'd love to know more. If my memory is failing, I'd like to
>> know that too :)
>>
>> Cheers,
>> Ben
>>
>>
>> On 21/09/17 14:29, Linux Australia President wrote:
>>>
>>> This is a courtesy note to acknowledge receipt of this Grant
>>> application. Community feedback is welcomed on this request up to
>>> 2nd October, and this Grant Request will be considered at Council
>>> meeting 12th October.
>>>
>>> The 2017 Grants program ends on 30 September, and the funds
>>> allocated here are all spent. However, what I'd like to recommend is
>>> that we simply follow the established process for Grants to consider
>>> this request, until we formally open the 2018 Grants program.
>>>
>>> The 2018 Grants program has $AUD 35k allocated, so the $1000 amount
>>> request is 1/35th of this. The larger amount requested as an event
>>> partner - $5000 - is 1/7th of our total Grant and sponsorship pool
>>> for 2017/2018.
>>>
>>> For transparency, Linux Australia declined a sponsorship request for
>>> BuzzConf earlier this month given that the conference covers
>>> primarily proprietary, not open, technologies.
>>>
>>> Kind regards,
>>>
>>> Kathy Reid
>>>
>>>
>>> On 18/09/17 20:19, Ben Dechrai via linux-aus wrote:
>>>> Dear LA council and members,
>>>>
>>>> You may have heard about BuzzConf <https://buzzconf.io/>. It's an
>>>> annual technology festival that's about to see its third event run
>>>> from Dec 1st to 3rd. Take liberal portions of tech conference, mix
>>>> in a family friendly atmosphere, a strong focus on diversity, and
>>>> the party atmosphere of a music festival, and you're on the right
>>>> track.
>>>>
>>>> This year, we've had a fantastic number of submissions to the kids
>>>> track <https://buzzconf.io/kids-track/>, and have enough to run two
>>>> tracks for them! Some of them require the supply of hardware, in
>>>> particular:
>>>>
>>>>> *Nightmare Light*
>>>>>
>>>>> In this workshop we will help you design, build and program a
>>>>> nightmare-light. We’ll have sensors available for those who want
>>>>> to detect ambient light for an extra challenge. The workshop is
>>>>> geared towards children but those young-at-heart are welcome to
>>>>> join too! Younger children can participate too if they have an
>>>>> overseeing parent to help them.
>>>>>
>>>>> Participation is $30 per person to cover hardware costs. Each
>>>>> person will get a kit with:
>>>>>
>>>>> 1 x Arduino (will need a USB cable for programming)
>>>>> 1 x Photo resistor
>>>>> 1 x LED light pack
>>>>> 1 x Battery
>>>>> 1 x Set of wires (for electrical connection)
>>>>
>>>> Children attend BuzzConf for free and get their own educational
>>>> track, because we want to make events like these as accessible as
>>>> possible to families, especially single-parent families, who often
>>>> can't get to conferences.
>>>>
>>>> In this spirit, we'd love to cover all workshop costs for children
>>>> too. We currently have 37 child tickets sold, with 13 more
>>>> available. With an anticipated 20-30 children making a nightmare
>>>> light, the workshop organiser will be supplying $600 - $900 worth
>>>> of hardware.
>>>>
>>>> CoderDojo Carlton are also running a number of workshops and, while
>>>> they will be bringing hardware from their pool, they anticipate
>>>> incurring costs of around $65 for the components that kids will be
>>>> taking away (conductive tape, and LEDs).
>>>>
>>>> We are seeking funding to cover the cost to the organisers of
>>>> running the children's workshops, estimated at no more than $1,000.
>>>> Would LA be amenable to covering this cost? After the event, we
>>>> would provide a detailed itinerary and costs of hardware that was
>>>> given to the kids (we wouldn't expect workshop organisers to be
>>>> reimbursed for hardware that they don't give away), so that LA's
>>>> contribution is only for those costs. It may, in this scenario, be
>>>> easier for this request to be that the organisers are paid directly
>>>> by LA, and that we are seeking funding on their behalf.
>>>>
>>>> In acknowledgement of this support, we would including LA's logo on
>>>> our website as a Festival Sponsor (a $1,000 value in our sponsor doc).
>>>>
>>>> On the off-chance that LA would consider a larger investment, in
>>>> order to run the two tracks for children, we are needing to secure
>>>> additional facilities, such as tables, tents, power, and projection
>>>> facilities. If LA were to consider a $5,000 investment and become a
>>>> Festival Partner, we would prioritise these funds to ensure the
>>>> children's workshop cost outlined above are covered first and
>>>> foremost. The remainder would help us with the increased costs of
>>>> additional facilities. The Festival Partner support level also
>>>> includes two festival tickets, which LA could use as they wish.
>>>> (You might want to send some representatives of LA, or give them
>>>> away to the community. We could help promote any activity around
>>>> making these available to others.)
>>>>
>>>> Many thanks in advance for your consideration. I welcome any
>>>> questions for clarification.
>>>>
>>>> Ben Dechrai
>>>> Co-founder, BuzzConf Technology Festival
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>> linux-aus mailing list
>>>> linux-aus at lists.linux.org.au
>>>> http://lists.linux.org.au/mailman/listinfo/linux-aus
>>>>
>>>> To unsubscribe from this list, send a blank email to
>>>> linux-aus-unsubscribe at lists.linux.org.au
>>> -- 
>>> Kathy Reid
>>> President
>>> Linux Australia
>>>
>>> 0418 130 636
>>>
>>> president at linux.org.au
>>> http://linux.org.au
>>>
>>> Linux Australia Inc
>>> GPO Box 4788
>>> Sydney NSW 2001
>>> Australia
>>>
>>> ABN 56 987 117 479 
>>
>> -- 
>> Technologist, Strategist, Speaker
>> Community Advocate
>> Passionate about Security and Privacy
>>
>> Tel: +61 415 127 120 <tel:+61415127120>
>>
>> Ben Dechrai: CTO for Hire <https://bendechrai.com/> 	Privacy Bastion
>> <http://privacybastion.com/> 	BuzzConf Technology Festival
>> <https://buzzconf.io/> 	The Art of Bullshit
>> <https://bullshitart.ist/> 	Meetup Mixup Melbourne
>> <https://melbourne.meetupmixup.com/>
>> Need a Technical Consultant
>> who also understands
>> Business Development? 	Bastions of Privacy.
>> Savourers of Civil Liberties.
>> Defenders of Data Sovereignty. 	The Emerging Technology
>> Festival for the whole Family! 	An Evening of
>> Frolicking Fun and
>> Outrageous Oration... 	The end-of-year
>> mixer for the whole
>> Melbourne tech community
>>
>>
>> /The attachment, signature.asc, isn't meant to be read by humans;
>> it's a digital signature that assures this email hasn't been tampered
>> with. Did my email text arrive as an attachment? You're probably
>> using Outlook, Outlook Express or Live Mail, which are buggy. I
>> recommend switching to a modern program like Thunderbird
>> <http://www.mozilla.org/thunderbird>./
>>
>>
>>
>
> -- 
> Kathy Reid
> President
> Linux Australia
>
> 0418 130 636
>
> president at linux.org.au
> http://linux.org.au
>
> Linux Australia Inc
> GPO Box 4788
> Sydney NSW 2001
> Australia
>
> ABN 56 987 117 479 

-- 
Technologist, Strategist, Speaker
Community Advocate
Passionate about Security and Privacy

Tel: +61 415 127 120 <tel:+61415127120>

Ben Dechrai: CTO for Hire <https://bendechrai.com/> 	Privacy Bastion
<http://privacybastion.com/> 	BuzzConf Technology Festival
<https://buzzconf.io/> 	The Art of Bullshit <https://bullshitart.ist/>
Meetup Mixup Melbourne <https://melbourne.meetupmixup.com/>
Need a Technical Consultant
who also understands
Business Development? 	Bastions of Privacy.
Savourers of Civil Liberties.
Defenders of Data Sovereignty. 	The Emerging Technology
Festival for the whole Family! 	An Evening of
Frolicking Fun and
Outrageous Oration... 	The end-of-year
mixer for the whole
Melbourne tech community

/The attachment, signature.asc, isn't meant to be read by humans; it's a
digital signature that assures this email hasn't been tampered with. Did
my email text arrive as an attachment? You're probably using Outlook,
Outlook Express or Live Mail, which are buggy. I recommend switching to
a modern program like Thunderbird <http://www.mozilla.org/thunderbird>./

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