In the Ether is an approach to fully remote meet-ups, meetings, conferences and events. It is a remote first approach to bring like minded people together from across the globe, to discuss, share and learn about topics they care about.
How did in the Ether start?
The in the Ether format was originally created for Agile in the Ether by
Emily Webber in 2018. Building on top of previous experience of organising meet-ups, she wanted to create an inclusive event for people wherever they were. It was a great success and has been running ever since.
The approach has also been run as a successful one day remote conference, which you can find out more about here.
The principles of in the Ether
Remote first: everyone should be remote, this makes a level playing field. We embrace the opportunities and uniqueness of being remote, it is not about just trying to replicate a physical meet-up.
Intentional inclusivity: being remote allows people to join that who would otherwise be unable. Either because of location, travel time and cost restrictions or a number of other reasons. Being inclusive also means making sure that everyone has a chance to speak and engage in the conversations.
Respect and reciprocity: this means listening to each other’s questions, ideas and opinions; sharing ideas, stories and guidance and taking part to make a great event.
What do people need in order to take part?
The event is held online. For video we recommend zoom as it allows you to see 25 people at the same time and is pretty stable. It also has great screen sharing options and breakout rooms. For collaboration, we recommend google docs as it is easy to use without explanation.
This means that participants need
- a computer with enough access to install zoom (or alternative video software) on
- decent internet connection to cope with a video call
- a webcam and microphone so everyone can see and hear them
- quiet space and headphones so they can hear everyone
- a desire to learn and share
How can you start your own in the Ether
The in the ether format has been open sourced under a creative commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International licence, which means you can use the format by following some guidelines. Find out more on the running your own in the ether page.