Google Summer of Code Summit 2024: A First-Time Attendee’s Experience
Introduction
Every year since its inception, Google Summer of Code (GSoC) has hosted an in-person event commemorating the achievements and lessons learned over the summer. This year’s summit, marking the program’s 20th anniversary, brought together 217 attendees from 37 countries and 12 Google volunteers at the Google complex in Sunnyvale, California.
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As a first-time attendee, I initially felt nervous about meeting new people, especially in a crowd of predominantly older men whom I perceived as more experienced. However, the organizers’ thoughtful morning emails before and during the event reminded us that “we were among friends” and encouraged us to “pretend to be extroverted until we made new friends.” This simple advice proved remarkably effective.
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Discussing LibreCube with both genuinely interested participants and curious observers was exciting. The numerous questions I received highlighted gaps in my knowledge about our community/organization, motivating me to grow further into my role.
Summit Format: The “Unconference”
The summit followed an “unconference” format, offering a flexible two-day schedule where participants chose their activities. A session board displayed colored sticky notes with topics and corresponding room assignments, including capacity limits. For those interested in the session content, detailed summaries are available in the GSoC 2024 Mentor Summit session notes document.
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Lightning Talks
Two main lightning talk sessions featured more than fifteen organizations presenting their projects and mentees in three-minute slots. Notable presentations included:
- caMicroscope’s groundbreaking open-source 3D patient modeling technology for cancer imaging research
- AOSSIE; Australian Umbrella Org for Open-Source Projects and their innovative work
- Valuable insights from former mentees who successfully transitioned to mentoring roles and continued contributing to their projects
Social Activities and Networking
The event featured several engaging activities:
- A scavenger hunt
- The popular chocolate table, where my Mount Fuji-engraved chocolate biscuits disappeared within hours
- A commemorative video interview
- A raffle
- Generous swag distribution (note to self: bring an extra bag next time!)
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The networking sessions surprisingly brought out conversations of any and everything. From bad drivers in the Japanese countryside to the origins of the Amharic language to the history of Chinese tea in Ukraine. That, I think, is what I loved most about the event.
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I must have missed the email where they said bring an extra bag for swag because I was surprised at how much cool stuff they gave us.
Personal takeaways
Because I didn’t know how this event was going to be I wanted to just observe. At future unconferences I will come prepared with at least 2 possible session topics and suggest my own for others to join. I saw how difficult it was to title a session concisely without having people coming in expecting something else. I will definitely always pack an extra bag for swag from now on.
Unexpected Impact
My presence at the event had an unforeseen impact. In a sea of casual attire, my formal style earned me the unofficial title of “best dressed.” More meaningfully, another person of color shared how seeing a fashionable hijab-wearing woman of color made them feel represented in the tech community.
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Conclusion
The GSoC 2024 Mentor Summit proved to be much more than just a technical conference. It was a vibrant celebration of open source collaboration, diversity, and community building. The unconference format encouraged organic interactions and knowledge sharing in ways that traditional conferences rarely achieve. From technical discussions about LibreCube to casual conversations about global cultures, every interaction added value to my experience.
The summit challenged my initial apprehensions and reinforced the welcoming nature of the open source community. It demonstrated that regardless of background, experience level, or appearance, there’s room for everyone to contribute and make an impact. The connections made and lessons learned will undoubtedly influence my approach to mentoring and community engagement in the future.
As I reflect on these three days, I’m reminded that the strength of open source lies not just in its code, but in its people – their diverse perspectives, shared passion for innovation, and willingness to learn from one another. For future attendees, I would encourage active participation from day one; the community is as welcoming as the morning emails promised.