The 2023 Call for Speakers has closed.
Use this post as a guide for your submission.
WordCamp US 2023 is being planned as an in-person event with live streaming for those who cannot attend. Speakers are encouraged to make their presentations applicable to both in-person and virtual audiences.
Please limit the number of topics submitted to no more than three. This enables the WordCamp US (WCUS) team to provide the proper amount of time to consider each proposal.
Types of Submissions
Typically, there are three different styles of sessions:
- Lightning talks (15 minutes)
- Traditional sessions (45 minutes)
- Workshops (90 minutes up to half a day)
Feel free to submit topics for any of the listed presentation styles! If you have an idea for a presentation that doesn’t match up with one of those styles, we want to hear about that too! We love creativity!
The most important thing is making sure that your session attendees leave with a usable idea they can apply to their work or a better understanding of something.
LIGHTNING TALK
Lightning talks are brief yet informative. They are great for getting started as a speaker if you have hesitations about putting together a full-length session.
- This might be a quick demonstration of something you’ve built. Or a great new tool you learned how to use.
- This is a perfect category for ‘tips-and-tricks’ topics.
TRADITIONAL SESSION
Full-length talks typically cover an entire concept within WordPress. These are geared towards diving deep into a specific concept, skill, or way of working.
- You might have a remarkable project that helped you expand your skills or see things differently and can walk attendees through the experience, highlighting your learnings, recommendations, and observations that would be relevant to others.
- Perhaps you worked on something that has changed your organization or a project that led to insights you previously didn’t have and you can share those specifics with attendees.
These talks dedicate time to sharing something that can’t be easily demonstrated in one or two steps or requires an in-depth discussion of a specific topic.
WORKSHOP
Workshops offer a deep dive into a topic. They encourage intensive discussion and activity. The length of the workshop would depend on the subject, running up to a half-day.
- In-depth demonstrations that attendees can follow along with.
- Attendees may have an opportunity to implement what they’re learning in real-time.
Topic Suggestions/Ideas
While there is virtually an unlimited number of topics from which to choose, here is a list of ideas to help you get started.
Blocks
- Making and using block patterns
- How to build blocks
- What you can do with Full Site Editing (FSE)
- The future of themes
Inspiration
- Web3
- WordPress success stories
- Connection while working remotely
- Work-life balance
Contribution
- Why should companies contribute to open source
- Finding your place to contribute
- WordPress for the next generation
- WordPress in the classroom/educational settings
Skills
- Artificial Intelligence
- Marketing & Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
- E-commerce
- Inclusion and accessibility
- Copywriting
- DevOps and coding
Performance and availability
- Headless
- Optimization
- Core Web Vitals
- Security
- System administration
All Are Invited
With such a large community, it can be easy to question what you might have to offer at a large-scale conference. The beauty of WordPress is that there are an endless number of paths to growth and learning that are unique and individual. Everyone has something to offer; don’t second guess yourself!
That Includes You
WordPress is a diverse community and the organizers want to create a speaker lineup representative of this. If you are considering submitting a topic but have hesitated in the past, we have great news! The WordPress Diverse Speaker Training group has been working since 2017 to develop materials for folks like you:
- The Myths of Being a Speaker (aka “Impostor Syndrome”)
- Finding a Topic for a WordPress Talk
- Writing the Pitch for your WordPress Talk
- Creating Your WordPress Talk
- Becoming a Better Speaker
- Creating Great Slides
Check out these topics and on-demand recordings.
There is a Slack channel #diverse-speaker-support where you can meet potential speakers from marginalized and underrepresented groups. This Slack channel is for:
- Anyone who takes the Diverse Speaker Training workshop
- Event organizers seeking speakers for diverse and inclusive events
- Experienced speakers and community members who want to help mentor new speakers
How to join the channel:
- Video on how to join the WordPress Slack: http://bit.ly/setupwp2slack
- Join: #diverse-speaker-support
Your Submission Matters
Whether or not your talk is selected, submitting a talk is a great way to do some reflecting on your WordPress journey and appreciate your accomplishments. While the organizing team receives more submissions than can fit into one conference schedule, seeing the variety of topics is helpful and important to fulfilling the mission of WordPress. Your WCUS organizing team is made up of volunteers from across North America that want to discover your interests and experiences. Having a better idea of what the community at large is doing helps groups find and share relevant and exciting content.
WCUS Programming Office Hours
While the WCUS team does not have official office hours, teams monitor the WordPress Slack workspace via the #WCUS channel. An organizer or volunteer will be active in the #WCUS channel in the WordPress slack on Tuesdays at 4 PM UTC starting May 9 until the call closes.
There is a helpful guide to joining the WordPress Slack for those that haven’t already. Feel free to ask your question(s) and team members will respond in the Slack channel (or privately if appropriate) as soon as possible. Questions will be answered up until the submission deadline.
Timeline
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| May 4 | Call for speakers opens |
May 31 11:59pm EST | Call for speakers closes |
During the months of June and July, we’ll be making speaker decisions and reaching out to applicants to confirm availability and commitments
The entire WordCamp US 2023 team looks forward to seeing you!