BAM 2024 conference survival guide
Venue information
The conference venue is the Hilton Orrington Hotel, 1710 Orrington Avenue, Evanston, Illinois, 60201, USA.
We have four meeting rooms. Two will host conventional presentations. One will be set up for roundtable discussions. And one will be set up for presentations on Saturday and roundtables on Sunday. All the rooms will be in the 9th floor conference center.
A light breakfast and coffee will be served in the meeting-center foyer on Saturday and Sunday from 8:00 to 10:00, covered by your registration.
There’s a map of the meeting rooms at the end of this message.
Conference schedule
The conference schedule is online, with links to more detailed write-ups and speaker bios.
There will be a printed program, but any last-minute changes will be online only.
We have a pretty full agenda, and you may regret missing the sessions you can’t attend. The conference organizers will not be recording the sessions, but individuals can record them they have permission from everyone in the room. If you’re coming with colleagues from your home burn, be strategic about covering as many sessions as possible so you can compare notes after.
Area transport
Chicago-area public transit uses Ventra prepaid cards that can be dispensed/refilled at El stations and drugstores; the system also accepts payments directly from wallet apps. You can buy a prepaid day pass for $5, a three-day pass for $15, and a 7-day pass for $20. Obviously there are all the ride-sharing services as well.
From Midway
The hotel is a couple of blocks away from an El stop, but getting there from Midway will involve a transfer downtown and another transfer at the Chicago/Evanston border (Orange Line > Red Line > Purple Line). During rush hour, there is an express Purple Line train from downtown to Evanston (Orange Line > Purple Line).
From O’Hare
It is possible to take the El from O’Hare to Evanston, but it’s an indirect route that takes you downtown and then back out. A more direct route is to take the airport train to the transit center and board the Pulse (aka Pace) system’s Dempster bus.
Conference check-in
You will be able to pick up your name badge and program in the conference center foyer before the sessions begin on Saturday morning.
Evanston weather forecast
https://forecast.weather.gov/MapClick.php?lat=42.0522&lon=-87.6916
Discussion
We have a Discord server for BAM 2024 participants and you’re invited:
https://discord.gg/CCBUdyKSnU
This is the forum for participant interaction pre/post event.
Directory
There is a member directory here
You can update your profile here
Saturday night dine arounds
On Saturday night, some volunteers will be organizing groups of 8 or so people to have dinner at nearby restaurants, each with a specific topic of discussion. We’ll have sign-up sheets at the conference.
If you’d like to be one of these “table captains,” get in touch. We can give you a list of topics to choose from or you can bring your own.
Swag swap
Have any extra patches/stickers/T-shirts from your event lying around? Bring some. We’ll have a swag swap table at BAM.
Covid
We won’t be checking your vaccine cards at the door or anything like that, but seriously, be cool. There’s an updated vaccination and I urge everyone to get it before coming to the conference. If you’re feeling under the weather, I will happily refund your registration to the conference.
Homework
No, not really. But you might be interested in reading Burning Man’s Regional Event Afterburn deck and 25 to Thrive deck to get your gears turning ahead of the conference.
