Proposal
Zest Software is a community minded Plone Integrator based in Hoogvliet-Rotterdam The Netherlands. My wife Esther and I will be very honored to host this conference. Together with Paul Roeland and Sisi Nutt from Friends of the Earth (Milieudefensie) the second largest environmental activist organisation in The Netherlands we are convinced we can make this event a great success. They have lots of experience in organising conferences and have been assisting in preparing this proposal.
Costs
Although the venue costs are higher than in Seattle, we do not want to raise the entrance fees too much.
- Regular € 260,-
- Early bird € 220,-
Location
The location we choose for the conference is available at September 10th, 11th and 12th and is called Pakhuis "De Zwijger". It has a capacity of 350 persons in the large room, four smaller rooms and is located a 10 minutes walk from Amsterdam Central Station. All rooms are equipped with good projectors, an abundance of wireless access and the fastest internet connection in the world, a direct fiber link to the Amsterdam Internet Exchange.
Address
Piet Heinkade 181 B
1019 HC Amsterdam
T +31(0) 20 788 44 40
F +31(0) 20 624 63 64
Google map
Lodging
Amsterdam is not the cheapest city, but lodging is available from € 25,- per night per room in hostels or even as low as € 10,- when sleeping in a dorm. Three blocks from the conference venue there is a large hotel and a botel, which is actually a hotel on a boat.
Hostels
Hotels
Travelling
Amsterdam is easy to travel to. It takes about 15 minutes by train from Schiphol Airport to the City centre. From there it takes about 5-10 minutes walking to the conference location.
Public transport within Amsterdam can be paid for directly in the bus or tram, but it is cheaper to buy a "strippenkaart" at central station kiosk or vending machines.
3 strippenkaart - € 2,40 (allows you to travel within Amsterdam for one hour).
15 strippenkaart - € 6,80 ( allows you to stamp 2 strips for each trip).
Depending on the location of the hotel you choose you might be better off using public transport, but most of the hotels are within walking distance of the venue.
Pre- and After Conference Activities
The Sunday before the conference Friends of the Earth will organise a day especially for NGO's. After the conference two days of sprinting will be facilitated.
We would also like to provide a Plone training before or after the conference for those who are new to Plone.
More details about these activities will follow.
Possible Sponsoring
- Milieudefensie - will mainly sponsor time to give us valuable information and organise a special NGO day on the Sunday before the conference.
- Mediamatic - providing live video streams for all rooms during the conference.
- De Waag - technical assistance during the conference.
- Philips Research