An unconference is a participant-driven meeting. The term "unconference" has been applied, or self-applied, to a wide range of gatherings that try to avoid hierarchical aspects of a conventional conference, such as sponsored presentations and top-down organization.
History
According to Tim O'Reilly, the first unconference (reducing the usual emphasis on formal speeches and emphasizing informal connections instead) was organized by Alexander von Humboldt in 1828.The term "unconference" first appeared in an announcement for the annual XML developers conference in 1998.Unconferences often use variations on Open Space Technology, the format/method developed by Harrison Owen in 1985. Owen's 1993 book Open Space Technology: a User's Guide discussed many of the techniques now associated with unconferences, although his book does not use that term.
The term was used by Lenn Pryor when discussing BloggerCon (a series of conferences organized by Dave Winer and first held October 4–5, 2003 at Harvard's Berkman Center for Internet & Society.)Sarah Winge, the organizer (with Tim O'Reilly) of Foo Camp, an...
Evan Prodromou
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