Vaccines + Masks for Safe In-Person Events - Read About All On-Site Safety Protocols

The Linux Foundation is ecstatic to return to in-person events next month; we know how important these face-to-face gatherings are to accelerating collaboration and innovation in the open source community. 

We know you have questions surrounding health and safety at in-person events and want to pause for a moment to address these. Rest assured – your health has been at the forefront of every move and decision we have made as we make a safe return back to in-person events.  

Let’s start here with some items from behind the scenes.

• The LF has a long-standing relationship with Dr. Joel Selanikio, a physician, former CDC epidemiologist and outbreak investigator, and consultant epidemiologist to the DC Department of Health and to FEMA for the COVID-19 response over 2020-21. Thanks to Dr. Selanikio’s council over the last two years, we have been able to take educated and well-thought out steps to ensure the safety of our community members as we navigate COVID-19. 
• We are working closely with local Departments of Health to ensure we are following all local requirements and recommendations. 
• We are continuing to monitor and follow all CDC, WHO and PHE/NHS (in the UK) guidelines, in addition to those of the local municipalities in which we are holding events.
• We are checking in with our venues and vendors multiple times a week to ensure we are staying up-to-date on best practices and regulations.
• Finally, The Linux Foundation Event Team have all been certified in handling Pandemic On-Site Protocols (by the Event Leadership Institute). The team is vaccinated, trained and equipped to handle safety protocols and procedures at our events and are more than happy to assist you onsite and ensure you are comfortable.  

Vaccines, masks and everyone’s new favorite phrase: social distancing.

• As announced previously, in-person attendees will be required to be fully vaccinated against the COVID-19 virus. A vaccine verification app will be used to confirm vaccination status.
• Additionally, masks will now be required for in-person attendance.
• All event participants will receive a daily temperature check in order to enter the event zone and will receive a sticker to be able to enter and exit as needed.
• Comfort level wristbands (in green, yellow, and red) will be provided for event participants to use if they choose to indicate their preference on social distancing comfort level. 

All of the above protocols are in place for LF and LF Project events (like KubeCon + CloudNativeCon) through November 2021.

We are working closely with each of our venues and their local jurisdictions to ensure we are following all local requirements and recommendations. Here are some items you can expect on-site at any of our events through November:

• Reduced conference room capacity: space between you and your neighbors.
• More physical space between speakers and attendees: so speakers can present without their masks (and you can hear them clearly!).
• Wider aisles and thoroughfares through event spaces.
• Sponsor booths spread further apart in the exhibit hall as well as wider aisles. 
• Socially distanced areas for eating/drinking and mask breaks
• Close organization with venues: to ensure rigorous onsite cleaning and sanitizing of all touch points, sneeze guards where necessary, and sanitation stations.
  

You can view a full list of onsite safety procedures on the Health and Safety page, under the “Attend” tab on all event microsites at events.linuxfoundation.org.

Quick Links

View Open Source Summit + ELC + OSPOCon Health and Safety page

View Open Networking + Edge Summit & Kubernetes on Edge Day Health and Safety page

View KubeCon + CloudNativeCon Health and Safety page

We are keeping our health and safety guidelines updated regularly, and adding to the FAQ as necessary.  If these resources do not answer a question you may have, reach out to us at events@linuxfoundation.org.

After much research and with guidance from Dr. Selanikio, we believe the combination of vaccination and mask requirements, along with the other protocols we are putting in place, provides a safe environment for our in-person event participants.

We understand that not everyone will be able to join us in-person due to a variety of factors, which is why we are delighted to offer attendees the ability to participate in our events virtually. To learn more about the different pass options, click on the “Register” tab on any of our event websites.

We hope this information brings you assurance that keeping you and all our event participants safe is top of mind – and will continue to be as we make each and every decision. A big THANK YOU to the entire open source community for your understanding during this fluid COVID-19 situation and this very challenging time in our history. We look forward to seeing you at our events this fall!