DrupalCollab: Initiative to Organize Meetups in 5 Cities

Earlier, we published an article that shared the distribution of the Drupal community across the 500 largest cities in the world. Most of these cities have been active by hosting meetups, while a few have seen larger events like DrupalCamp and DrupalCon. However, there are also a good number of cities where Drupal meetups have yet to happen or have remained dormant post-COVID. 

To achieve our goal of contributing to the growth of the Drupal Community, we at The DropTimes started an initiative to organize local Drupal meetups in cities with a sizable Drupal audience.

How can we organize?

We started by searching drupal.org and meetup.com and checked when the last meetup was organized in each of the listed 500 cities. For cities where no meetups were updated, we assumed that either the meetup never happened or it was not updated. 

As a next step, we selected 5 cities where we believe there is a possibility of mobilizing the community for a meetup in November or December. The chosen 5 cities are

1. São Paulo, Brazil
2. Dhaka, Bangladesh
3. Auckland, New Zealand
4. Warsaw, Poland
5. Casablanca, Morocco

These cities might have active meetups or be conducting meetups at least once in a blue moon. The best way to know is through community engagement. We urge the Drupal communities in these cities to initiate a discussion in their respective Slack group.

We couldn’t find a city-wise Slack group, and hence, we listed the country Slack to start the discussion
 

1. São Paulo, Brazil - #brazil 
2. Dhaka, Bangladesh - #drupal-bangladesh
3. Auckland, New Zealand - #australia-nz
4. Warsaw, Poland - #drupal-poland
5. Casablanca, Morocco - #drupal-morocco

Interested community members can join the Slack channel and start discussions around planning their next meetup. 

Why Local Meetups Matter

Drupal Local Meetups are essential for fostering collaboration and innovation. They provide an opportunity to:
 

• Build connections with local Drupal professionals.
• Share experiences, challenges, and solutions.
• Encourage newcomers to explore Drupal and contribute to the community.

• Celebrate the diversity and richness of Drupal's global presence.

  By restarting meetups in the chosen cities, we aim to rejuvenate community engagement and create thriving local hubs of Drupal activity.
   

Our Plan of Action

We are systematically approaching this initiative with clear steps:
 

• Engage Local Volunteers: We are reaching out to Drupal enthusiasts in these cities to lead and organize meetups.
• Promote Meetups: Events will be featured on The DropTimes, amplifying their reach and participation.
• Community Mobilization: We invite the global Drupal community to share this initiative widely and encourage participation.
   

Your active engagement is inevitable

Are you based in São Paulo, Dhaka, Auckland, Warsaw, or Casablanca? Or do you know someone passionate about Drupal in these cities? We need your help! Here’s how you can contribute:

• Volunteer to organize or host a meetup
• Spread the word in your professional networks
• Participate in meetups and share your expertise
• Use platforms like LinkedIn to tag Drupal enthusiasts from these cities and initiate discussions
• Join and discuss with other event organizers
   

How can you help?

As we work to reignite local meetups in these five cities, we aim to expand this effort globally. A stronger local presence means a stronger Drupal community overall.

We will be actively updating the progress of the initiative in these cities. 

We need your help in spreading the world by liking, sharing, commenting and also motivating the community members from your circle to participate in the meetup.