DDD Europe Open Space

The DDD Europe Open Space is an in-person unconference. There is no upfront agenda: you and the other participants self-organise the sessions. The outcomes are unpredictable… but often surprisingly good!

You can join sessions that are proposed by the other participants. Or you can propose your own sessions. You can do a domain modeling session, using a tricky problem from your job. You can do a presentation, on a topic you’re passionate about, or a Questions & Answers session, or an ensemble programming session.

You don’t even need to know the topic in advance. “I’d like to learn about XYZ, who wants to explain it, or experiment with me?” is a perfectly valid session.

How does it work?

In the Marketplace, you can propose your sessions, pick a time slot, and discover other people’s sessions. You can also start ad hoc sessions with others throughout the day.

There are a couple of principles that make this work.

• Whoever comes are the right people. A session with two people can be as valuable as a session with ten.
• When it starts is the right time to start, and when it’s over, it’s over. And if it’s not over, make plans for continuing the conversation.
• Whatever happens is the only thing that could've happened.
• The Law of Two Feet: If you’re not getting value from a session, or not contributing value, feel free to go somewhere else. This way you can make the most of your day.

In short, explore, experiment, have fun!

I'm new to Open Spaces

Don't worry! It's perfectly fine to butterfly around, and see what's happening in the different sessions without participating. You'll find people are usually very welcoming.

Tickets

There are 50 tickets available. The tickets include:

• Two nights in the hotel
• Access to the event
• 3 lunches, 2 dinners, 2 breakfasts, morning and afternoon refreshments

There is a choice of single rooms or shared rooms. We'll contact you later for your sharing preferences (with a friend, with someone of the same gender...).

Program

• The Open Space starts with lunch on Friday and ends with lunch on Sunday.
• At a number of fixed times (TBD), there will be a short plenary session, used for announcements.
• The announcements are followed by the Marketplace. During the Marketplace, anybody can pitch their session(s) and allocate a time and space for them.
• After each Marketplace, the sessions start, and you choose which sessions to join.
• Sessions can happen anywhere: in one of the meeting rooms, in the bar, in the restaurant, outside.
• Sessions can happen at any time: daytime, evening, night, early morning, during meals. It’s a 48h continuous unconference. (But we encourage that you get enough sleep.)
• Sessions can last between 1 minute and 48 hours (but do clear the room if other sessions are scheduled.)
• There is a debrief session before the last lunch on Sunday.
• Beside announcements, the Marketplaces, and the Closing Debrief, there are no scheduled plenary sessions — unless you propose them. For example, if you feel the group would benefit from a session to share experiences at the end of the day, you can pitch that during the Marketplace.
• There is no separate time planned for entertainment. As a participant, you can propose fun sessions at any time. Popular topics are games, outdoor activities, crafts, or tastings.

Code of Conduct

To ensure a safe and welcoming environment, all participants are required to adhere to the Aardling Code of Conduct.

Accessibility

Please get in touch for accessibility requirements. We'll help figure out how to accommodate. There is a hotel room optimized for wheelchair access.

Getting There

The hotel Floréal is at the top of the Mont-Saint-Aubert, Belgium. The Tournai train station is a 15min drive from the hotel. We are looking into organising transportation. We also encourage carpooling, which you can organise via the chat channel.