FOSS4G 2023 Prizren - the spirit went from Kosovo to the world

With this final press release we would like to wrap up FOSS4G 2023 and look forward to the next year with more events to come.

FOSS4G 2023 numbers

We would like to provide some numbers.

Workshops – 44
Presentations – 274
Academic talks – 36
Participants 683 out of 733
Countries – 56
Travel grants – 34
Studentship grants – 34
Volunteers – 68
~210 hours video
Coffee 20 KG of coffee was sold out

FOSS4G 2023 was the next level for the local team

Kosovo Open Source Community is existing since 2009, we tried to go as much as we could in FOSS conferences in general, but it was always hard for us to travel because of Visa and related issues. The organizing of FOSS4G 2023 was a next level activity for our organization in Kosovo. It was of a high importance, for both the local reach regarding FOSS and Geospatial software, also for the global impact that the conference has. In advance Besfort Guri, the Conference Chair, for many years has been trying trying to explain the importance and and the spirit of the OSGeo family / community, but without “touching” and being part of it, it was harder to understand and resonate with.

We are sure that the local team and the volunteers are still living with the energy of FOSS4G and are willing to contribute and be active in the global community.

Because of missing a big hall for hosting +700 participants at the same time, we created an outdoor stage and we also needed to find a solution for the Gala Dinner. The outdoor stage was a great success and was used for keynotes, talks, the Gala Dinner and an amazing concert.

We tried to do our best and from the feedback that we received it was quiet good.

Another thing that was new in Prizren. We discovered that our community is multi-talented and enjoys Karaoke. So we had great parties.

Also the 24-hours bar was special and needed as we were active day and night.

Valmir Mustafa the Project Manager of FLOSSK wrote in a letter to the OSGeo board “We would also like to thank the OSGeo Community for this valuable opportunity to host FOSS4G in Kosovo. Your support has been instrumental in empowering FLOSSK to strengthen its team and further promote and advocate for open-source GIS in Kosovo. This journey wouldn’t have been possible without your help. Thanks again for your trust and partnership.”

We would like to thank all people involved organizing FOSS4G 2023

Videos

The videos are published in the TIB AV-Portal.

https://doi.org/10.5446/s_1671

You find the videos of the talks at our FOSS4G Youtube Channel.

https://www.youtube.com/@FOSS4G

279 videoas were uploaded. From from the statistics it looks like many people enjoyed the videos already.

We hope you like the videos and get valuable information. We would like to spread the world and we hope you will learn about our great software and our community.

Presentation files

All the presentations are accessible in the following link: https://nextcloud.osgeo.org/s/2P4dfmn5D4xZCno

How to navigate in the link above

All the presentations refer to the published agenda https://talks.osgeo.org/foss4g-2023/schedule/#
From the agenda find the presentation that you want to look up
Note the room name and the date of the presentation
In the cloud link, select first the room or the building (in case of C/D/E/F) & after it the date of the presentation inside
Inside that folder should be all the presentations which are uploaded by presenters, some of them used their own laptops and we do not have them.

Photo gallery

We are pleased to share the photo gallery from FOSS4G 2023, captured by our team.

https://nextcloud.osgeo.org/s/28W5c2MckpxPo9R

In the gallery, you will find a collection of photos that highlight the essence of FOSS4G. From inspiring keynote sessions and interactive workshops to lively networking events and social gatherings.

But that’s not all! We want YOU to be part of the FOSS4G 2023 story. We invite all participants, speakers, volunteers, and organizers to contribute their own photos from the conference. Share your favorite moments, interactions, and highlights by uploading your photos directly to this link:

https://nextcloud.osgeo.org/s/AKor5CGdQZXobtP.

Let’s create a collective visual narrative of this remarkable gathering!

New initiative Open Spatial Kosovo

Open Spatial Kosovo is a new initiative that was started immediately after the FOSS4G event in Prizren by FLOSSK and map enthusiasts to support and increase OSGEO and Open Street Map activities in Kosovo.
Considering Kosovo’s small size, our goal is to organize and effectively represent both the local chapters and the local FOSS GIS communities. We have launched Open Spatial Kosovo and planned monthly meetups and mapathons, as detailed in our yearly calendar. Updates and information are available on our social media channels.