My own limitations of chronic pain/fatigue force me to organize online and to use online communication platforms, and I’m gearing up now for several visibility projects associated with Feminist Advisory Board for Obama (on Facebook). But, my plan also involves being a connector/cross-pollinator with all other feminists/feminist orgz. People do not only what has been done, or what people expect, but also what matches their skill set. Maybe we need to talk about what our skill sets are and how we can best use them. What I’m saying is that maybe we are imitating a patriarchal structure and a patriarchal “Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval” by structuring our conferences into speakers and panels.

Anyway, online interactivity is where I’m headed, and that’s where my skill set takes me. And I hope that all feminists and feminist organizers will keep the dialogue going. I’m encouraging members of FAB to go to the conference and then to do interviews with me, either by phone or video, so that I can be a part of unifying the femisphere. It’s vitally important that we support one another, listen to one another, think together, and show a united power base. So, with that, go Fem2.0!!!!!!!!!!!!!

BR, thanks for the detailed comment. Yes, it’s many well-known people doing the talking, which I supposed translates into “too many of the same voices, same people always doing the talking,” but the exciting thing here is that they have not had many — if any — opportunities to interact WITH EACH OTHER. We totally aspire to reach out to new voices (including men), but it’s our inaugural conference, being put together by grassroots volunteers with no organizational funding behind it at all. We just didn’t have the bandwidth for the level of outreach it would have taken to create the conference of our dreams. We’ll do better next time! But, to be clear, from the beginning we have been very welcoming of men. There will be a few men at the conference. And check out this blog post from a dude, Loren Crippen, “Why Men Should Be Interested in Fem2.0.” http://www.fem2pt0.com/?p=291

Cynthia, you will absolutely be able to lunch with other attendees. Our space at the Marvin Center at GW is not really good for a contained catered lunch – people would have to stand on line and then go off and find a place to eat elsewhere. So to make it easier for everyone, we will be using a voucher system for the food court right outside the Betts theater, which means less time on lines, and people can just grab a table in the very nice public eating space.

Courtney, you are not the first to make the point about academics and feminism. While we do not have an entire session for this topic this time, there will be academics participating in general (including you?), though not as many as we’d like. Going forward, we’ll definitely put more focus on bringing more academics to the Fem2.0 table – just couldn’t manage it this time.

J/K. I’m for it so far. and starting at 9:30 instead of 9 is a minor blessing for those flying in from other time zones.

Or not, and have an event where the same people speak, few people are heard, little of what is discussed is new, and the learning and impact that the event sparks is limited.