Grand Rapids
BarCamp
We're taking a hiatus for 2021.
Get in touch with us if you want to help make 2022 happen.
Watch Presentations from 2020:



























For over 15 years,
the Grand Rapids community
has gathered to share their passion.
Technology
Entertainment
Design
Development
Entrepreneurship
Health & Wellness
Share Your Passion.
Sign Up.
Speak.
Barcamp is about meeting interesting people, talking about what you want to talk about, and listening to what you’re interested in. Subjects of discussion have ranged from web programming and digital photography to computer vision and turkey basting.
About
Although BarCamp started in Palo Alto, California, in 2005, the event has spread like wildfire across six continents and dozens of BarCamp events are held each year.
Who
Anyone can attend BarCamp GR. This event focuses on technology and design, so having an interest in one or more of these topics is strongly encouraged.
When
August 21 & 22 For more details, view the schedule.
Where
This year we will be virtual. More details to come.
Cost
Free! But everyone is encouraged to present something or get involved, even if this is your first time at BarCamp. We’re very friendly people.
Bringing together the community since 2006
15
150
1000
One of BarCamp's pivotal tenets is participation.
One of BarCamp’s pivotal tenets is participation. We ask that all of our attendees participate in one way or another, even if you’re a first timer. Read below to find out how you can take part in this year’s event. Note, despite the ‘bar’ in Barcamp, the event doesn’t take place in a bar, only the (optional) Friday afterparty does.

Schedule
You’re free to come and leave as you want. No obligations to stay the whole time, of course
The specific sessions will be determined during BarCamp, all based on who wants to give talks on topics of their interest.
Friday, August 21, 2020
- 6:30-7:00 PM – Opening session
- 7:00-9:30 PM – Sessions every 1/2 hour
Overnight
- Chat with other night owls as long as you wish
Saturday, August 22, 2020
- 10:00 AM-12:00 PM – Sessions every 1/2 hour
- 12:00-1:00 PM – Lunch break
- 1:00-4:00 PM – Sessions every 1/2 hour
- 4:00-4:30 PM – Closing session
Participate
Barcamp is about meeting interesting people, talking about what you want to talk about, and listening to what you’re interested in. Subjects of discussion have ranged from web programming and digital photography to computer vision and turkey basting.
One of BarCamp’s pivotal tenets is *participation*. We ask that all of our attendees participate in one way or another, even if you’re a first timer. Read below to find out how you can take part in this year’s event. Note, despite the ‘bar’ in Barcamp, the event doesn’t take place in a bar, only the (optional) Friday afterparty does.
*(No, there wasn’t a talk on having a computer visually monitor your turkey, but if you’ve tried it, you’re welcome to report on your experiences!)*
What's the format?
Presentations are 25 minutes long, with 5 minutes in between. You’re welcome to sit in on a presentation or hang around in the lounge and talk; it’s all the same with us. If you run a presentation, we don’t care how you run it–so long as you don’t get us in trouble! Give a monologue, a Q&A or a round table; it’s your topic, your presentation, your audience. If people didn’t want to spend 25 minutes on your topic, they wouldn’t be there.
Don't know what to talk about?
Certainly you have some relatively unique experiences. What do you do for a hobby? What’s something you managed to fix that you’re proud of? It doesn’t matter if the height of your accomplishment is changing your car’s oil or if you’ve wardriven half of the Grand Rapids area; if people aren’t interested, they won’t show up at your talk. If they are, they will.
But I'm not an expert!
Sure you are! If you know the first thing about a subject, you know more than people who don’t. And, yes, people who know more than you will probably attend your presentation. Interact with them; you both have something to learn from each other. Chances are, if you’re both really interested in a subject, you’ll find yourselves looking for each other in the lounge, later.
But perhaps you’re…
Shy?
That’s fine. Come on in, get a look around and a feel for things. It’s a two-day event; come by on Friday, sit in on presentations which interest you or hang around in the lounge and network with other people. Perhaps you’ll be inspired to talk about something later, or on Saturday. You never really know.
If you’d like to be able to listen, but don’t know if you’ll have anything to say, you can still…
Help Out
Spread the word with our marketing materials. If you want to help plan the event, join the BarCampGR Organizers mailing list.
On the days of the event itself, we typically need people to help at check-in, to clean up, to keep the food lines flowing, to babysit the facility overnight (some folks stay overnight), people to respond to technical issues such as “why won’t the projector work with my laptop” and “could someone turn down the lights so we could see the screen?”
Share Your Passion.
Sign Up.
Speak.
Sponsors
Without support from the companies below, this year’s BarCamp GR event just wouldn’t be the same. Please join us in thanking each and every one of them for such a great event!
If your company is interested in sponsoring BarCamp, please contact us for more information, we’d love to have you!
Contact Us
Don’t be shy now! If you’ve got a question, comment, or anything you’d like us to know, don’t hesitate to contact us.