So you are getting ready to fly out to Cambridge, MA for the OCWC Global 2011 to celebrate 10 years of opencourseware. If you are wondering how to make the most out of the conference, join the OCWC Global 2011 group on the Communities of Interest site at http://communities.ocwconsortium.org/groups/ocwc-global-2011. You can easily log in using your Facebook or Twitter account. This is how you can use the communities website:

1. Get acquainted: Our conference has always had that family reunion type of feeling (only the good feelings, mind you) as the tight-knit community members come to share their stories, seek collaboration and be empowered by the many people who are working so hard to move the OCW movement forward. This year, we have close to 100 newcomers registered for the event. And of course, we want everyone to feel at home. Please introduce yourselves on the group forum, tell us about your project and interests, and how we can connect with you.

2. Propose a Birds of a Feather meeting: On Wednesday and Thursday, after the sessions are over, we will have some time for you to do demos of your project or connect with others with common interests. We invite you to initiate these meetings! Propose a meeting on the forum – others can sign up for that meeting by simply replying with their names and email addresses. If you are wondering what would be a good meeting topic, check out some of the topics that are already on the communities website: developing countries, primary and secondary education, community colleges, accessibility, pedagogy and technology. Discoverability, intellectual property, or a specific country would be also fun topics to have.

3. Post your needs: If you would like to look for someone to share a cab into the town, or simply have a question on what you should be doing while in Boston, post your question on the forum. You never know what kind of answer you might get.

See you all very soon!