The first WordCamp in Finland was held on May 8-9, 2015 in Tampere. This year WordCamp will return its roots as we are back in the same city. We reached out to the original organizers to get the story of the first WordCamp in Finland.
Here’s some thoughts a few of the original organizers: Tomi Mäenpää, Tuomas Lecklin and Viljami Kuosmanen. Photos are mostly by Jaana Björklund.
How did you come up with the idea of organizing WordCamp in Finland?
Tomi:
Some of the organisers had attended WordCamp Europe and other nordic WordCamp’s and the idea was circulating that we should have one in Finland as well.
Tuomas:
Organizing the first WordCamp in Finland was quite exciting, especially since we didn’t have any actual idea of the amount of interest in the event. Eventually of course it turned out we had plenty of interest, which was fantastic to see.
Viljami:
Wasn’t my idea. Was just glad to help any way I could!
What was the WordPress community in Finland like around 2015?
Tomi:
There was a rather active meet-up in Tampere at least, not sure if there was one in Helsinki at the time.
Viljami:
It was mostly local meetups in local bars. It was great, felt like a tightly knit little family of geeks, but nothing compared to how awesome it is today, I’m sure.
How did you gather the organizing team?
Tomi:
If I remember correctly most of the organisers were from Tampere so the team formed up pretty naturally from the meet-up members.
Viljami:
I was working on WP-Palvelu (Seravo) at the time and got involved through Otto & Daniel. I don’t quite remember, but I think Daniel was the main driver who brought all of us together, and we were happy to sponsor & help the community.
Tuomas:
Our biggest advantage was having Daniel Koskinen, an experienced WordPress community participant and WordPress Meetup Tampere organizer, so we were able to get lots of info quickly from the WordPress community in the initial phases of applying for our WordCamp. Thanks again Daniel!
Why was Tampere chosen as the location?
Tomi:
Most of the organisers were from Tampere so Tampere was natural choice (with the active meet-up group and it was logistically easier for organisers as well).
Viljami:
I mean Tampere is clearly the best location for anything, but I’d guess it was chosen as the main group of organizers all lived in / around Tampere.
Tuomas:
The choice of Tampere stemmed mainly from Daniel being our lead and being located in Tampere, as were pretty much all of us others too. We also thought that Tampere is quite central in Finland with good transportation connections, so not being in Helsinki wasn’t an issue.
Was it hard to get sponsors, speakers and volunteers?
Tomi:
Sponsors came pretty naturally form the organiser’s employers from what I can remember, can’t remember that speakers and volunteers were an issue either.
Viljami:
Initially of course it was a challenge, but I don’t remember it ended up being super hard. Even back then the community was eager to help out!
How was the event?
Tomi:
I think that it was a great success! The venue was nice and worked really great and we had great speakers. I believe that it was genuinely a high-quality event while being the first WordCamp in Finland (although I may be a bit biased since I was in the organising team :)).
Viljami:
It was small, hectic, but totally fun! I remember thinking it was so great to put faces next to all those online personalities. 🙂
Tuomas:
The choice of venue was a bit a head-scratcher for a while, but it ironed out alright in the end. Speakers and sponsors turned out surprisingly easy to lock in, which was really great and gave the most confidence in organizing. Overall the event was a great success and felt like a real awakening for the Finnish WordPress community.
What was the impact on the Finnish WordCamp community?
Tomi:
Being the first WordCamp in Finland it paved the way for future WordCamps in Finland. It also most likely eased up on the pressure for other WordCamps as well in a way that the event does not have to be for 1000 attendees, but smaller and more focused WordCamps can be just as successful and fun (while being easier to organise as well)
Viljami:
Don’t know how to answer this one but I’d say positive since WordCamps continued happening after the first one!
Any greetings to attendees of WordCamp Finland or WordPress community in general?
Tomi:
Have fun and remember to talk to the other attendees as well!
Viljami:
Keep on spreading the love with WordPress, GPL and Open Source with a strong Finnish community!
Tuomas:
I’m excited for the upcoming WordCamp Finland 2023, located once again in my hometown and WordCamp Finland origin. Looking forward to meeting the WP community once again in September, it’ll surely be a great event!
Thank you for past organizers once again for the interview. Secure your tickets now and you can meet the community and hear the speakers at WordCamp Finland 2023.