Eric Stewart: Running Off At The Mouth

We have something like 73 days to go – Cisco Live 2019 (the US edition, at least) is June 9 – 13 in San Diego, with the theme being “You make possible”. Seems like a lot of the things are still in flux, but I’ve been given a little bit of information to pass on …

Tweetups!

While the location hasn’t been 100% hammered out yet, the times have:

• Arrival Tweetup: Sunday, June 9, 5:45pm-7:15pm at the Social Media Hub (SMH – no hard location for that yet, but the abbreviation seems somewhat appropriate), with the arrival photo set for 6:10pm
• Departure Tweetup: Thursday, June 13, 4:25pm-5:25pm at the letters. Photo will be there as soon as the photographer is done with the closing keynote (no CK details yet)

The location of the SMH that I’ve seen … well, they can’t quite “stick us in a corner” (we’re too big for that!), but it sure seems like they’re trying the next best thing. Anyway, on to:

Big Idea talks

The “Big Idea” theater will be back and there are four speakers lined up for four different topics. Talks will be 9-10am. Only three are known at this time, so the fourth is TBA:

• Monday, June 10 – Janet Stovall – How to get serious about diversity and inclusion in the workplace
• Tuesday, June 11 – TBA
• Wednesday, June 12 – Kate Darling (Research Specialist, MIT) – The Future of Human-Robot Interaction
• Thursday, June 13 – Ben Nemtin (Producer/Author) – The Buried Life

If you’ve got nothing else going on one of the days between 9-10am, stop by and see what’s going on! If a topic interests you … perhaps you should clear that particular block on your schedule …

PHOTOS

So, want a personalized photo from Chuck Robbins? Have at it! I’m sure once the band for the Customer Appreciation Event announced, you might be able to get one from them. Same for the Closing Keynote speaker. No idea who those might be, but I’ll let you know when I do.

Helping Those In Need

One thing I try not to take for granted and protect as much as I can is the ability for me to have a roof over my head. Alas, there are those out there without that basic necessity (among others). Cisco is partnering with Give2Get (GV2GT) in an effort to provide assistance to the homeless of San Diego. The opportunities to help will be located not just in the Social Impact Zone, but also around the conference hotels. Attendees will be able to put together meal kits (individual and family), hygiene kits, art therapy kits, clothing packs, blankets, and even participate in furniture building activities that will benefit San Diego’s homeless shelters.

See You There!

I’m all set, with a Sunday class already booked, cert test scheduled for Monday morning, and hotel and flights all ready to go. It’s as much a social event for me as it is a learning experience, so I’m excited to see all my “once a year” friends again.

Oh … and maybe learn a few things. Yeah, that’d be good, too!