Listen Up
An ongoing virtual conference for people working in tech to listen to critical voices from outside our industry.
Brought to you by Ragtag.
If you work in tech, you might be starting to feel slightly uneasy. The negative consequences of the things we build seem increasingly concrete and visible, even if the effects aren't completely known.
Maybe you believe in the work you're doing, but you have a sneaking suspicion that there are important topics and perspectives that aren't making it into your discussions at work.
Here's the good news: smart people outside of our industry have been researching, thinking, and writing about technology and society for a long time, and now is the second best time to start listening. (As the saying goes, the best time was twenty years ago.)
It's time to invite them—and yes, pay them—to come talk to us. And it's time for us to listen.
By listening to voices outside of our usual orbit, we can do the best, most important, best informed, and most positive work of our lives.
If you're ready to listen, sign up. We'll keep you posted.
What's an "ongoing virtual conference"?
We'll have regular (paid) speakers presenting their work via videoconference, followed by a discussion with the attendees.
What topics will be covered?
We'll start with talks in the following categories:
- Science, technology, and society
- History of technology
- Stories from the real world (technology in practice)
The vast majority of speakers will either be outside the field of tech practitioners, or will be doing technology-related work outside of the typical structures of corporations.
What will it cost?
Tickets are $40 per talk, or you can get a season pass (the whole year!) for $250. We will offer student discounts and early bird pricing, as well. We charge admission so that we can pay our speakers and pay for live captioning. Any additional revenue goes to future event costs and donations to Ragtag.
If you or your company are interested in sponsoring the conference, please get in touch. Donations to the Ragtag Education Fund are tax deductible, and may even be matched by your employer.
Will it be recorded?
We will record the talks, although we may choose to leave the Q&A out of the recording. All ticket holders will be able to watch the video, whether or not you were able to attend.
What's Ragtag?
Ragtag organizes tech volunteers to help activists, organizers, non-profits, and candidates break down tech barriers to achieving their organizing goals.