The 6th edition of JSConf Budapest 2024 happened on 27-28 June. I have ALL the feelings in me. Joy, relief, accomplishment and being proud of ourselves for having set up a decent international conference with an immense amount of positive feedback. But also sadness and loss, because there are various reasons we can’t keep the JSConf Budapest series running in its current format anymore. This makes us super sad. An event and a team I will dearly miss.

Extracts from my diary if I had one…

29 June 2024

”Alarm went off around 9AM. I’m overall tired but super-hyped. 'OK, what now?!' - I'm telling myself. We did it, the conf is done! We will have the community hike today. Beautiful weather, fun with some of my teammates, our speakers and some enthusiastic attendees in the Buda hills. Good - no time to dwell on my sadness!”

30 June 2024

”Really no more official programs. It’s over for 2024. If yesterday I asked myself: 'what now', what would I ask myself today?… 'Even more what nowwwwy now?!'' 😀🙄”

A week before the conference we already knew that JSConf Budapest 2024 would be our last edition. Ironically, this was the first year that I was not only volunteering specifically on event days, but also participated in the whole organizing process from the very start and I’ve also been a curator for talk selections (which was a super valuable experience on its own right).

I know it’s completely normal to have feelings of emptiness, ”now-what”s right after a large accomplishment. I absolutely expected it and was prepared for it. You can’t just burn at 100% all the time. Though when you know something that was meant to be a recurring event won’t be coming back, it’s just… sad, and you can’t just use your well-crafted rational explanations any more. Humans are weird, emotional creatures and I am no exception.

But… yeah, I can hear it with my inner ears:

“Kriszti, everyone can just say that the thing they had done was unique. Isn’t it just super-cheesy?!”

So… what made this event so special then?

I could talk about all the overwhelmingly positive feedback we got instantly, right on the spot. From attendees regarding the whole “vibe” of the conference and the quality of talks. From speakers about how they felt valued and privileged to stand on the JSConf Budapest stage. From attendees and speakers likewise, saying how much they learned from each other. But I want to be more specific than that, so… let’s see!

▸ What made it special #1 — our process for talk selection

Our talk selection process (anonymized as far in the multi-step process as possible) yielded superb results. We were a diverse team of curators regarding professional level and experiences. The process worked and we really had top notch speakers!

▸ What made it special #2 — our process for all the practical aspects

Building upon the immense preparation work compiling the experiences from earlier events into a huge knowledge base (well before the organization for the actual 2024 event started), we could really direct our energy to the issues that required special or immediate attention or to things that you just can’t manage beforehand. This super-valuable preparation work was done by our lead organizer and one of our team members (Szabi and Gergő).

I’m still amazed by the fact that we were just a handful of people (less than 10 of us), but we managed to provide a smooth experience to our audience. It is not an overstatement to say that we put our hearts and souls into this event. Safe to say we gave all we had to give.

▸ What made it special #3 — our attendees

First of all, as we only had workshop sponsors and community partners this year, the mere existence of the conference was made possible by our attendees and / or their employers. And - besides the speakers, of course - attendees are the people who fill the event with their energy and passion for this trade we call frontend development!

▸ What made it special #4 — our speakers and MCs, HELL YEAH!

Some speakers are well-known names within the industry, some of them are simply “everyday devs” like you and me, not so much in the spotlight - but all of them delivered insightful talks with valuable takeaways. Also irrespective of their previous recognition, they were all super-nice and super-approachable, ready to tell you more about their specific topic or just about their experiences in general. Or even give you general advice on how to become a speaker if you are interested (yes, I am 😊 - Ante, Kilian, if you guys are reading this: as a conf organizer, I obviously have some insight on this, but you selflessly gave your unique and fresh points of view to me, thank you once again!).

▸ What made it special #5 — our Team!

I can safely say all my peers in the team brought invaluable contributions!! Basically, I’ve been learning something from ALL of them throughout these months. Via the way we talked through issues, made decisions or just gave insights or advice to each other in the past half year. Always being respectful even when coming up with diverging opinions. The vibe was so constructive, the team was a safe space.

Szabi, Dorka, Freevo, Gergő, Norbi, Stefi and Tim, I can’t be grateful enough to know you, to have had the chance to work with you all on this event. ♥️ Like, REALLY, REALLY, REALLY. ♥️