Clojurians Log v2

I don't know if this is the right channel, but "triggered" by this tweet: https://twitter.com/radhikamorabia/status/1177993644063637504 I went to an Esperanto conference which had an alcohol free place where you could drink tea, play board games, have impromptu acoustic music by visitors, etc. Might be really nice for a Clojure conference too: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gufujo

Feels better to contribute here (than on twitter). As a non-drinking, somewhat introvert person, I don’t find much enjoyment in the later stages of alcohol induced social gatherings. But I don’t think that my peculiarities should decide how the social things are done.

Maybe there's more people like you that might enjoy something like a gufujo? Playing board games might be a nice way for people who like to interact without talking too much 😉

But, if it’s a goal for an organizer to have most people enjoying/contributing to the social stuff then less alcohol could be considered.

Well, gufujo doesn't mean less alcohol overall, just a place where there is no alcohol for people who aren't into "wild afterparties with alcohol".

I find this more disturbing in work settings, where “something with alcohol” is considered the norm for social gatherings and where my participation is expected.

So there is something for everyone.

I tend to enjoy one-on-a-few discussions, but that’s me. In a conference setting, I’m quite happy retiring to my room after a full day of socializing :)

I think I would enjoy both rooms, I would definitely also visit the gufujo if there was one.

Oh, and just for the record. I don’t feel unsafe, nor does it bother me that people enjoy alcohol, it’s just that I tend to get bored by people who’ve had too much to drink.

At ClojureX in London we give everyone 2 free drinks at the end of the first day for the social. People can choose alcohol-free drinks as well as alcohol drinks. If people want more they can buy drinks or go to the pub across the road. The exception is for the speakers, who get their own supply. I would like to cater better for people who don’t drink and especially those who don’t feel comfortable around people who are drinking. I don’t believe we have had issues, but not everything may have been reported. I don’t really drink myself these days, but don’t have much understanding of the issues.

I would be okay with removing alcohol from the event altogether, but feel that we would need to replace it with something else. We could have alcohol-free cocktails, make your own smoothies, different varieties of tea, etc.

Will need to think about what works and what we could afford to do, and have time to organise it

Any suggestions and feedback is welcome.

The least we can do is get the message across to drink responsibly and continue to act within the code of conduct during the social aspect of the evening.

We are planning a few breakout sessions in the evening, so could include activities which are alcohol free and are for people not drinking alcohol (and have not consumed any alcohol that day)

The last couple of conjes have had board game nights which were great fun.

I didn’t go but it also sounded like Heart of Clojure had a lot of alternative entertainment options.

I drink, but I also enjoy non-drinking, and a gufujo sounds really nice. As a convention attendee, I would love to have both available.

At Heart of Clojure we very deliberately did not serve free alcohol. In the end it all ends up in the ticket price, so it's a tax on people who don't drink. Or as my friend Florian Gilcher likes to say "when asked how the conference was people never say 'the free booze was amazing'"

We also asked people to moderate their drinking so they would be fresh and sharp during the day. I also consider this a courtesy towards the speakers. Unfortunately for many people conferences are an excuse to get smashed with their buddies.

I also empathise with people asking for alcohol free spaces. Depending on people's personal history and experience being around drinkers can be unsettling and feel unsafe. We had plenty of activities that did not involve drinking, and no official after party. At the same time I get the impression these calls mostly come from the US, where the drinking culture it seems can be more problematic than in Europe. I.e. more binge drinking accompanied with bro-y behavior and peer pressure.

I must have been lucky, I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone getting really smashed at a conference.

But I totally get concerns about alcohol from those who don’t drink or are more likely to receive unwanted attention in the presence of drinking.