Introduction

This article is aimed at hosts who want to hold and facilitate hybrid convenings/events, and is based on APC’s experience and learning from the last two years[1]. After the pandemic, new ways to allow people to participate in convenings have arisen, as a means of reducing travel and minimising contact.

We understand hybrid event as an event that has both on-site and online participants and/or speakers, and where participation and engagement are mediated through and by technology.

Hybrid events have the advantages of allowing more people to participate (especially people with limited resources or in remote locations, those caring for others, or those unable to travel for any other reason), reducing event costs related to travel, and reduced impact on the environment.

A hybrid event has elements of both on-site events and online events by design, forcing you to rethink the space as a combination of both worlds.

One of the key learnings that we have had is that for those participants who are together in a room, it is very easy to forget that there are remote participants, as the physical space is so compelling. Therefore, this new format requires a double effort to plan, run and support the event in such a way that all participants feel part of the event and not disconnected.

In this chapter we will share with you our learnings in designing and running hybrid events with different setups.

 

[1] For more relevant documents you can check the Closer than ever (CTE) section of the APC website