Open Exchange: International Open Data Unconference

The Open Exchange, also known as the International Open Data Unconference, is a collaborative space where we can exchange ideas on open data in a horizontal manner, capitalising on common knowledge and promoting the participation of attendees. Thus, participants are invited to collaborate and propose the sessions and topics that will make up the event in contrast to traditional conferences - a different organizational structure where creativity, dialogue, and joint work become the main pillars.

On Tuesday October 4, 2016 under the slogan "Open Exchange for Social Change", this unconference will take place at the IFEMA Norte Convention Centre in Madrid. On this occasion, it aims to overcome the limitations of focusing on open data itself, and instead will focus primarily on how open data create, contribute, and promote social change. Thus, the aim will be to better understand the necessary actions to increase the positive impact of re-use in communities.

Open Exchange is an official event designed to complement International Open Data and led by Open Knowledge International, with the support of the IODC steering committee members from International Development Research Centre (IDRC), The Web Foundation, the Iniciativa Latinoamericana por los Datos Abiertos (ILDA) and Civica Digital.

The Unconference is open to any member of the open data community—beginners and experts alike. The event is pleased to welcome attendees from a variety of backgrounds, including the private sector, journalists, or civil servants (to name a few). All ideas and actions proposed during the meeting will be fed into the main conference and will help to set the goals for the IODC Roadmap (see the 2015 edition of the Roadmap here).

Finally, the event organizers have opened a discussion forum where users can propose ideas, sugest topics, and meet other attendees of Open Exchange. In addition, a contact email is also available for any questions about the meeting. See you in Madrid!