The GNOME Foundation invites proposals to host GUADEC 2013. GUADEC is the biggest gathering of GNOME users and developers and includes a three-day conference, the annual general meeting of the members of the GNOME Foundation, and a week of coding, meeting, and discussion. Those who would like to host the next GUADEC are hereby invited to write a formal proposal to the board of the GNOME Foundation at board-list@gnome.org. Deadline for the proposals is July 20, 2012 and bidders are invited to present in person to the board of directors at this year’s GUADEC on July 24 or on another day during the conference.

Do you think your city would be a great place for GUADEC? Key criteria for a large GNOME event like GUADEC are:

• Cost and ease of travel from major European cities and airline hubs
• Local GNOME community with strong leadership and support for hosting the conference
• Venue, cheap housing and nice hotels, and the distance between them
• The budget for infrastructure and facilities required to hold the conference
• The availability of restaurants or the organization of catering on-site, cost of food and drinks
• Spaces for “hallway” tracks and social activities
• Local industry and government support

The conference will require availability of facilities for one week, including a weekend, during summer. Dates should avoid other key free software conferences. See the GUADEC check list and How To for an overview of the kinds of things you should include in the proposal, and check out the bids from previous GUADECs for more information.

Organizing a conference of this size is a lot of hard work, but there are people in the community with experience who can help you. Feel free to contact board-list@gnome.org for more information or guidance.