Rethinking the Participatory Design Conference Experience

In this article, I reflect on the approach taken to develop the Participatory Design Conference in 2022 to encourage more inclusive and sustainable attendance model. I read an article recently that suggested with the growth of online and hybrid conferences in response to Covid-19, there were more opportunities for everyone. The focus of the article was on celebrating the enabling potential of technology to make this happen. But after spending the past two years attending online conferences and now serving as general cochair for the 2022 Participatory Design Conference (PDC), I think it’s a mistake to focus on what technology can or cannot bring to the table in trying to make conferences more equitable.