10 Mar - 09 Jun, 2024 Schedule Published

Welcome to PyCon India 2024

Join us for the 15th edition of PyCon India, the premier Python conference in India, happening in the bustling tech hub of Bengaluru, famously dubbed as the "Silicon Valley of India." From September 20 to 23, 2024, the Python community will come alive in a celebration of innovation, learning, and collaboration.

This annual gathering brings together Python enthusiasts, developers, and industry professionals for four days of inspiring Talks, hands-on Workshops, and networking opportunities. Visit the official website for more information: https://in.pycon.org/2024/

Call For Proposals (CFP)

Proposals for Talks and Workshops are invited from Python enthusiasts. Submissions open on 10th March 2024 and end on 9th June 2024.

Talks

Technical talks are the most important event at PyCon India, the core of the conference. Two of the four days are dedicated to talks. Talks are short lectures that are 30 minutes long (including Q&A – 5 mins) and can be on any topic related to Python. Speakers come from the Python community.

Talks are selected through a CFP (Call For Proposals) process. Interested members of the community may propose their talks through an application. An editorial panel designated by the organizers has been entrusted with a procedural methodology for selecting the talk. In the 2023 edition, the conference received an impressive 228 proposals, out of which 39 were selected.

For more details and insights, read the CFP announcement blog post.

CFP applications from the previous year can be seen here.

Important Points

• Talk duration is 30 minutes (25 mins for the talk, 5 mins - Q&A)
• CFP closes on 9th June 2024
• Schedule shall be released on 1st September 2024
• Talks will be presented on 21st and 22nd September 2024
• We may have up to 3 parallel tracks of talks in each session. The morning session will run from 10:00 AM to 1:00 PM. The evening session will run from 2:00 PM to 6:00 PM.

Format

• The format of each talk will be up to the speaker but should include a mix of lectures, demos, and Q&A.

Workshops

These are 3-hour-long interactive sessions where attendees can learn by doing. Hands-on learning is as important as talks for a fulfilling conference experience. Like talks, workshops are also conducted by the members of the Python community.

Anyone can propose conducting a workshop. Any topic of interest to the Python community is okay - the workshop should help attendees learn a new skill, technology, or library. To get a sense of the topics from last year, take a look here.

In the CFP proposal, please mention an outline of the workshop and the prerequisites and the slides if possible. Also, mention if you have conducted the same workshop before.

The workshop should be interspersed with proper hands-on exercises. After the workshop people should be ramped up on the workshop topic and should be able to take it forward themselves.

To know about Best practices please check the Workshop Proposal Announcement blog post.

Important Points

• Workshop duration is 3 hours (A small break in between as planned by the speaker)
• CFP closes on 9th June 2024
• Schedule shall be released on 1st September 2024
• Workshops will be conducted on 20th September 2024
• We may have up to 3 parallel tracks of workshops in each session. The morning session will run from 10:00 AM to 1:00 PM. The evening session will run from 2:00 PM to 5:00 PM.

Format

• Workshops are aimed at beginner, intermediate, and advanced experience-level participants.
• Workshop proposals must include a detailed outline of the covered topics and allocated time.

Important Dates

• CFP for Talks and Workshop Open on 10th March 2024 and closes on 9th June 2024.

What to Propose

Anything of interest to Python programmers is welcome. However, there are a few topics that we feel might be great -

• Lessons from using Python in your project. Did you find something against conventional wisdom? Something confirming conventional wisdom? Do you have advice for people solving similar problems? Example - I tried Python for video processing, or in my medical imaging project, and here are the lessons.
• Something you're doing to make the language/ecosystem better. Writing a library to solve an interesting problem? Or have some new ideas on optimization.
• Something you learned from a different language that may be useful to the Python community. How about a type system? Or patterns from functional programming. Or logic programming maybe?
• Thoughts on tech culture and living. Ideas on improving diversity and inclusiveness. On programmers’ physical and mental health. On getting better at productivity. On workplace issues. Anything that can make an impact, especially if you have used Python for any of the above or have seen someone using Python.

And if you don't get any ideas along these lines, try plain and simple teaching. Pick up a niche topic (maybe a recent technology, or a scientific paper), and help us learn. A well-delivered lecture even at a beginner level is often well-received.

The Review Process

• Authors should propose their talks using the CFP application
• CFP volunteers review the proposals for completeness
• Once the proposals are ready, they are reviewed by a panel of experts
• If the proposal does not look complete, or the reviewers need clarifications, the author is notified via comments
• The panel of experts finally vote on the proposals
• A pre-final shortlist is eventually prepared based on the votes
• The shortlisted proposals go through a round of rehearsals (more details in the section below)
• A final list is created and published.

Rehearsals

Shortlisted speakers will be expected to participate in rehearsal sessions. Rehearsals will be done via teleconferencing, where the speaker shall give a mock run of their talks in a time-bound manner. The audience will consist of volunteers, reviewers, and possibly other speakers. The speakers will be given feedback if necessary.

The point of this exercise is to make sure speakers are ready with their talks ahead of time. And also, to make sure they can finish the talk in the stipulated time. It is useful for the speakers too as they'd get feedback on the content delivery and presentation.

Participation in the rehearsal sessions is likely to be a required step - chances of an unrehearsed talk making it to the final stage are substantially lower.

Diversity

We in the Python community believe in making our community more diverse. This means we are encouraging content from diverse walks of life. This also means we want to improve participation from under-represented groups.

Our goal is to maximize content from under-represented groups. You can help us by encouraging your friends, family, and colleagues to submit talks. You can also help by mentoring.

Also note that we have a strict code-of-conduct. This is to make it clear, in intent and practice, that we are committed to making the conference a pleasant, welcoming, and harassment-free experience for everyone, especially for under-represented groups.

Best Practices for Speakers

1. Apply

Even if you have a vague idea, submit a proposal. We're available for help with ideas and feedback (contact information is in the section below). Don't worry about communication skills or English - we are there to help with that too. And our focus is more on the content.

2. Make it detailed

Add as much detail as possible to the proposal. Add the presentation slides if you already have one. Add a short minute video giving a summary of the proposal. More detail helps reviewers make better judgments.

3. Propose early

We will start the review process as the proposals come in, and not at the end. Proposals submitted early will get more attention and feedback

4. The code of conduct

Take a look at the code of conduct, and be mindful of it. The gist is, to be nice and avoid using sexist language.

5. Add a preview video

Add a small intro video about what your talk is about to provide a preview to what's to be expected.

We've put together a set of detailed best practices - take a look. It also contains links to some well-written proposals from previous years.

Questions and Discussions

Ping us on Zulip or IRC (#pyconindia) Or contact the coordinators through email:

CFP Lead - Dr. Murali, CFP shadow lead - DM on Zulip

The team: cfp@in.pycon.org