Placemaking isn’t ever just about design. It’s also about the more ephemeral ways we bring people together to create connections, memories, and meaning in a space—like events and programming. 

Over the past year, however, the pandemic has disrupted the organizations that usually enrich our public spaces with regular events, like libraries, museums, arts organizations, and others. Many had to learn to do their work using online platforms on the fly. Some had to stop programs altogether. But now, with multiple COVID vaccines in distribution and much more knowledge under our belts about how the virus spreads, many event planners may be considering how to take their first tentative steps back into “meatspace” this summer. 

Since Juliet Kahne joined Project for Public Spaces in 2015, she has been one of the key minds behind our events, from placemaking trainings to conferences like Placemaking Week. Last year, as Director of Events, she also led our shift to webinars and other virtual events in response to the pandemic.

After announcing that we would be bringing back our Walk/Bike/Places 2021 conference as a hybrid in-person and virtual event this June (early bird rate ends March 29th!), Co-Executive Director Nate Storring sat down with Juliet to talk about what she has learned from adapting to an all-online landscape in 2020, how she plans to bring together in-person and virtual experiences this year, and what she sees for the future of conferences and events at large. 

Nate Storring: Starting off a little philosophically, how do you think about the relationship between events, public space, and placemaking?

Juliet Kahne: I think all three are a natural match up. Events like the ones that Project for Public Spaces produces actually mirror the placemaking process—working with local partners to put something into action for the public to enjoy and for locals to benefit from. 

Events are the perfect way to feature a city, neighborhood, or destination to a group who wants to see places in action and learn more about them. Our attendees crave opportunities to learn from people who are putting ideas into action. They are always curious and inspired to get out and about in the city themselves. That’s why the public spaces of our host city—and the people who design and manage them—are always front and center in the program.

Obviously the move to an online format during the pandemic has challenged that model, but we are constantly learning new ways to share about the places we work and live in virtually. Pre-COVID, we were increasingly trying to select venues that went beyond traditional convention centers or hotels to help attendees get a taste of the city. That comes with challenges, like physical and logistical capacity, but the payoff is often positive for our attendees and the local community alike. Now, we have a new gathering place acting as both our public spaces and our meeting spaces—and it’s the internet. There’s a lot to learn about how online gatherings can continue to serve us better, but there are perks, such as being far more accessible for people both physically and financially to attend!

Nate: What have you learned over the past year about running virtual events?

Juliet: The past year has been intense for event planners, to say the least. We had such a quick turn around to bring our 50 session program that had been planned to an online format for Walk/Bike/Places last year. Many of our peer organizations were scrambling to do the same, so there was a lot of idea sharing going on. 

Cancelling was not an option for us, particularly during this important time for our field. With so much going on in public space throughout 2020, we wanted an opportunity to bring people together to discuss what had been happening in their work and in their communities. It was—and still is—truly a prime time for learning and innovation for anyone in our sphere.

Much like the pandemic in general, what we learned in 2020 was that certain issues that were present in the Before Times had become even more pressing. For example, making access for both attendees and speakers as seamless as possible became extremely important. For your sessions to run well, your speakers need to be prepared and looked after, so that they can feel confident and focus on their content. It’s not so different to in-person, really, it’s just that there’s a whole new way of making that happen. 

Likewise, we learned a lot about online schedule flow and Zoom fatigue. Even at in-person events, people tire out after a while and need a break to do other things. That is even more true with an online conference. We worked an hourlong buffer between sessions into the 2020 program so that even though we had a lot of sessions, people had time to go handle their daily personal and professional responsibilities, and return when they were ready. We also made all of the sessions available to people as recordings after the event to provide even more flexibility. 

I’d also say that people have been far more forgiving with all of the tech issues that can go wrong online. It’s far less forgiving running an in-person event, because it is so much more service-oriented. To a certain extent, the pandemic has made us all a little bit more flexible and understanding of each other. 

Nate: How do you keep a sense of place and community alive online?

Juliet: I won’t lie; it is tough to provide a sense of place and community during an online event. But you’d think if anyone can do that, we can, right? Creating a “sense of place” at an online event is not what one would think it is. Since you don’t have that physical space to feel or experience, it becomes more about how well people can connect with each other throughout the event, the networking piece. It doesn’t matter if it’s a simple Zoom session with lots of engagement going on in the chat, or if it’s a very well curated and facilitated online social hour where everyone has the opportunity to meet each other. 

One thing we did at Walk/Bike/Places last year was have a social hour where we invited public space managers around the country to show us their public spaces via Zoom, basically mini-tours from their phones. Our local partner Big Car Collaborative in Indianapolis organized this with us, and it was great to see and hear from people all around the country. We got to see where they work and what had been going on with their streets and public spaces since this time last year. As expected, we heard about a lot more walking, biking and moving.

One major benefit to a sense of place that comes with virtual events is that we usually bring everyone to the host city and learn all about that one specific place, But with the virtual format, we can flip that around and have a front row seat experience of everyone else’s spaces, communities, and cities. I really loved that. It felt much more personal and outward looking.

Nate: What are you most looking forward to about our upcoming hybrid Walk/Bike/Places conference?

Juliet: I am looking forward to two things in particular. Firstly, the 2021 program is going to be our best yet. It’s an understatement to say that people went through a lot in 2020, and the submissions to our call for proposals revealed so much about what folks have learned in their work and their communities. There is also a refined sense of urgency to address many of the challenges and injustices that existed long before 2020 in urban planning, both physically on the ground and structurally in the field. 

Last year’s program was mainly sessions developed pre-COVID. This year’s program meets our current moment, and I think it will be energizing and help people make sense of how to move forward. I’m particularly excited for the general session content that we’re putting together, which we’ll be able to share more about soon!

I’m also excited about our cautious return to a partially in-person format. As event organizers, connecting with real people and places are a big part of what makes events so fulfilling for us. For our audience, we know the opportunity to meet others in their field casually and learn with their whole bodies is a big draw. And last year our host city of Indianapolis missed the opportunity to really show people everything they have to offer, and where they are in their own route to recovery.

Now, we feel confident that we can organize a safe and intimate event, and one that will be more experiential than ever. Our local partner Big Car Collaborative and the local host committee, which consists of many City staff, have helped pull together some fantastic mobile workshops that will get attendees out and about the city throughout their visit. We have no doubt that attendees will have a good time while learning from the local workshop leaders and their projects. Attendees will also have time to relax and watch some of the online content in their spare time, and use our virtual conference platform to connect with attendees around the world while sharing their own experiences.

While we’re looking forward to the in-person component, we’re also taking COVID safety very seriously. Staff will be required to go through health screening procedures, and social distancing and mask wearing will be mandatory at all times for staff and attendees. The activities being organized will take place mostly outside and with small groups of people, which includes everything from workshops to social events. Our basecamp will be the Indianapolis Convention Center where they have been diligent with their pandemic safety protocols, achieving a GBAC Star facility accreditation, but the rest of the conference will be out and about in Indy. In short, we will be avoiding the “the three C’s”—closed spaces, crowded places, and close contact-settings—as much as possible.

Nate: How will the virtual and in-person aspects of the conference work together?

Juliet: The virtual portion of the conference will be available to everyone who registers, whether they are attending online or in-person. The in-person general session will also be available online to everyone. Some of our mobile workshops in Indianapolis will also provide online content so that attendees can learn more about their work. The real connective tissue between the online and in-person event, though, will be our virtual platform which will allow all attendees to connect with each other no matter where they are.

Nate: How do you think hybrid events will evolve as the pandemic winds down and we’re able to gather in person again? 

Juliet: I’m a little biased, but I think that attendees will always have a more memorable, special experience at an in-person event. That is good news for the event industry, as we know people want to return to in-person and actually experience the places where conferences are held, and be physically present alongside their peers. But I also don’t think the virtual side of event is going anywhere—I think it’s going to become an expected option at events. 

Hopefully, the technology will morph into something that is a little easier for event planners to manage once they return to their main focus being in-person logistics. A lot of virtual event management platforms try to be everything to everyone. But in reality, most of them do a good job of thinking about the attendee experience, but really miss the boat when it comes to the needs of the event planner and even speakers.

Like with all of our technology, everything is changing so fast. It’s hard to keep up or have foresight about potential risks because the platforms are so new that you don’t know what to look for. This kind of learning and experience takes time, and we simply haven’t had enough of it yet. But technological challenges are always a challenge with events, whether online or in-person. I for one did not miss dealing with the AV equipment in meeting rooms this year!

Nate: Do you have any other advice for people planning to organize a hybrid event? 

Juliet: Hybrid events are tough, because you’re essentially planning two totally different events at once, yet they still need to fit together. Be prepared to seek out lots of skilled help and the support of people who are flexible and strong problem solvers. 

Plan out your program well in advance so that you know that activities at both sides of the event fit together in terms of timing and content, and make sure to develop content that takes the nature of both events in mind! For example, for both social distancing purposes as well as content quality, we definitely did not want our in-person attendees inside all day watching sessions online or even in-person. So our in-person program focuses mostly on outdoor mobile workshops, when in past years, that has been just one small part of the program. Meanwhile, the online program is heavier on interactive sessions that people can participate in from wherever they are. 

"Take a deep breath and remember that this time is a learning experience for everyone.  Hybrid events will not be perfected for years, so focus on progress, not perfection."

My final piece of advice: Take a deep breath and remember that this time is a learning experience for everyone.  Hybrid events will not be perfected for years, so focus on progress, not perfection. You have to get into the mindset of the lighter, quicker, cheaper approach to public space projects—and there you can see once again how events tie in so well with the placemaking approach.

Just like a placemaking project, start with a user-focused vision. There are lots of events out there right now. What are you doing differently? What does your audience care about? What would you like to do at a conference? Focus your time, money, and energy on making those things happen.