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I’m excited to announce that I am part of OrcaCon staff as the Programming Coordinator as of OrcaCon 2018!

What does this mean exactly? Well, I’m helping to review programming in order to make sure that panels have a diverse range of speakers, and also that the convention’s programming is good, diverse and doesn’t turn into marginalized folks only talking about race, queerness and identity in tabletop.

Mission Statement:

OrcaCon is a tabletop games convention, which includes board and card games, role-playing games, and miniature games. OrcaCon is focused on creating a safe and welcoming space for promoting the tabletop games hobby, supporting diversity in tabletop games, and building a community of both novice and experience game players.

So how can you contact me if there’s a problem/concern/question about diversity and the convention?

You can email tanya@orcacon.org and I’ll get it. I’ll do my best to respond within 1-3 business days. If it is urgent please note that in the body of your message so I can try to get back to you on the same day if possible.

I’ll be at the convention in Everett, January 12-14, 2018 roaming around, go to and doing paneling. If you need me for anything at-con, I’ll let folks know how to find me there.

Last of all, don’t forget panel and workshop submission is open until September 30th, 2017

OrcaCon is excited to offer a wide variety of panels and workshops. We have a great line up of Guests of Honor and Special Guests, and we are looking for more folks to talk about their gaming passions. We’re looking for game industry professionals, community leaders, and other smart folks who love to talk about games.

In particular, we’re interested in talks and workshops about the game industry, inclusive design, game development, and more. We have limited space so the process can be very competitive. We’re always looking for a good balance of skills and specialties, and therefore might turn down impressively qualified people if their skill set overlaps too much with other people we’ve already invited.

Questions? Have a suggestion for a panel or Special Guest? Email panels@orcacon.org

We’re accepting Panel & Workshop Submissions until Sept 30, 2017.

Looking forward to seeing you all next January!

Cheers,

Tanya DePass

 

Published by cypheroftyr

Tanya DePass is the founder and Director of I Need Diverse Games, a non-profit organization based in Chicago, which is dedicated to better diversification of all aspects of gaming. I Need Diverse Games serves the community by supporting marginalized developers attend the Game Developer Conference by participating in the GDC Scholarship program, helps assist attendance at other industry events, and is seeking partnership with organizations and initiatives. Tanya is a lifelong Chicagoan who loves everything about gaming, #INeedDiverseGames spawn point, and wants to make it better and more inclusive for everyone. She founded and was the EIC of Fresh Out of Tokens podcast where games culture was discussed and viewed through a lense of feminism, intersectionality and diversity. Now she’s a co-host on Spawn on Me Podcast. Along with all of that, she’s the Programming Coordinator for OrcaCon, she often speaks on issues of diversity, feminism, race, intersectionality & other topics at multiple conventions throughout the year. Her writing about games and games critique appears in Uncanny Magazine, Polygon, Wiscon Chronicles, Vice Gaming, Paste Games, Mic, and other publications.