PloneConf: why are we here?

It is the 'why are we here' blog. Calvin Hendryx-Parker and Alexander Limi discussed it during their presentation about the state of Plone. "We are here because of the community."

We have people from Europe, South America, Canada and even from Africa and Asia. The Plone community is great because we care for each other. When someone needs money to go to a conference, people donate. And there is more. People in the Plone community assume that other developers mean well, despite of differences in opinion.

Limi and Hendryx-Parker told the story about Dorneles Treméa, a guy who was a key Plone developer. He died this year in a car accident near his home in Brazil, only 31 years of age. He was a very positive guy; he came to Norway for a Plone event showing up in summer clothes. But he did not care. He kept smiling, just happy to be there. Even though he is not here anymore, we can still learn from him.

For people who are new to the Plone Community, stories like this are inspiring. It helps to understand that the community is about more than just developing. There is is no need to fly across the globe for just that. People attend to meet, work together and to feel that they are part of something special.