Over the years, Mahara users in New Zealand and also Australia have been asking us why there was no Mahara conference like the folks in the UK have with Mahara UK. I tried to mumble in my non-existent beard, but could not come up with a good explanation esp. since I was also in favor of having a conference in our corner of the world.

This year we put our money where our mouth is, or as I would say in German: Wir machten Nägel mit Köpfen, and decided to organize the first Mahara conference in New Zealand. We found a name by ‘companysourcing’ suggestions and then voting on them at Catalyst and came up with holding the conference in summer as that would be our best chance for good weather in Wellington.

Of course that doesn’t leave us with much time to organize the event, but we got some of the most important things sorted: Our venue will be Te Papa, the awesome National Museum of New Zealand. And today, we announced the call for proposals that will end on 24 January 2014. If you are thinking of attending Mahara Hui, we recommend you get your presentation proposal in before you head off to your summer vacation (or winter vacation) so that you don’t forget. 😉

We welcome presentation proposals from people using Mahara talking about their portfolio practice, researching academic questions, showcasing their portfolios and their portfolio journey etc. While we provide some broad themes as ideas, proposals are not limited to these themes.

If you are interested in coming to the coolest little capital in the world (or to the Middle of Middle-Earth if you prefer), then submit your presentation proposal today and save the date: 19-20 March 2014 and the optional Hackfest on 21 March 2014 if you want to work more closely with the core development team at Catalyst and other Mahara enthusiasts for a day.

See you in March!

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