Action required: should TPAC 2021 be virtual or physical?

Dear WebApps WG Members and Participants,

Tl;dr: how would you feel about attending TPAC *in person* this year? We need your input to help us plan TPAC 2022. Please express your opinion by the 15th of March at: https://github.com/w3c/webappswg/issues/82 

The W3C is in the early planning phase for TPAC 2022: After two years of virtual meetings, the W3C is trying to organize a hybrid edition. The physical meetings would be held in Vancouver from 12 to 16 September 2022. The W3C is seeking input from the WebApps Working Group about our willingness to attend physically (or if we would prefer to keep meeting virtually instead!). 

We understand and are respectful that everyone's health risk profile is different, and there are significant financial implications to traveling that are new because of Covid.   

From my own personal recent international travel experience, some new things to consider:

 * What will you do if you test positive for covid, or some other illness, in Canada and can't or are not allowed to travel home? Even if you have mild symptoms, you may be barred from boarding a plane until you test negative.  
 * Does your travel insurance cover hospital, travel changes, hotels in case of Covid? (This insurance can cost extra, so check!) 
 * Will you meet the Canadian vaccination requirements? (i.e., as required by Canada, you will need to be double or triple vaccinated)
 * Can you get a PCR in a timely manner to travel to/from Canada? (Required to enter Canada, can cost +US$300-500!) 
 * Are flight reasonably priced for you? (Please check! Prices have changed a lot since we last got together and you may be surprised) 

What would be the minimal acceptable requirements for you to attend the meeting, for example:

 * Irrespective of the local country laws/mask-mandates, would you like to see a mask mandate at TPAC? (Noting that it would have to be community enforced if it's not illegal)  
 * must all participants be vaccinated in order to attend? (This is true to enter Canada irrespective, but wouldn't necessarily apply to Canadians already in Vancouver)
 * will you be comfortable being with lots of people in a shared space? (Think lunch rooms, meeting rooms, dinners, etc.) 
 * Anything else you might be concerned about....

You can email Leonie and I if you have private concerns that you would like us to raise with the W3C. 

We invite everyone to head over to Github and give a 👍 if "YES" willing to attend physically or 👎 if not, at: 
https://github.com/w3c/webappswg/issues/82 

Please leave comments in the GitHub issue - and please be respectful of others personal positions. 

Kind regards,
Marcos, Leonie, and Xiaoqian
WebAppsWG Chairs/Team

Received on Friday, 25 February 2022 06:35:03 UTC