Adds 2024 IDEA blog post (#434)

* Adds 2024 IDEA blog post

* Rewritten blog post to reflect feedback from last year and further encourage participation this year

* Adds table for pronoun responses, reorders responses, rewords participation, and adds google sponsor promotion

* Update 2024-10-07-idea-feedback-and-participation.md

add link to code of conduct

* Rename 2024-10-07-idea-feedback-and-participation.md to 2024-10-08-idea-feedback-and-participation.md

rename file to match publishing date

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Co-authored-by: Wm Salt Hale <salt@altsalt.net>

_posts/2024-10-08-idea-feedback-and-participation.md

@@ -0,0 +1,36 @@
+---
+layout: post
+title: 'IDEA Feedback and Participation'
+status: publish
+type: post
+published: true
+categories: news
+tags: '2024'
+---
+
+Our twelfth annual conference is just a few weeks away! This year, we are continuing with the hybrid in-person/virtual format, offering remote participation options throughout the event.
+
+Last year, we reached out to our community through the post, [IDEA Sharing at SeaGL](/news/2023/10/23/IDEA-Sharing-at-SeaGL), seeking insights on how to make our event more inclusive, diverse, equitable, and accessible (IDEA). We extend our heartfelt thanks to all who responded, participated, and contributed to making the conference more welcoming to everyone.
+
+One significant change we have made this year is the promotion of pronoun visibility within our community. We have incorporated a pronoun field into our speaker proposals, which has been well-received. From the responses we discovered, 12.5% of our speakers identify as they/them, 15% as she/her, 37.5% as he/him and 35% preferred not to disclose. This is a small but meaningful step toward ensuring that all voices are heard and respected.
+
+|Pronoun | they/them | she/her | he/him | prefer not to say
+|--- | --- | --- | --- | ---
+| Percent | 12.5 % | 15% | 37.5% | 35% 
+
+We recognize that fostering an inclusive environment is an ongoing process. Your feedback is important in helping us make continuous improvements. If you have suggestions on how we can further enhance inclusivity and accessibility, especially for underrepresented groups, we encourage you to share your suggestions in our [anonymous feedback form](/IDEA_suggestions). If you would like to discuss your feedback in more detail, there is an option to provide your contact information, and we would be happy to follow up with you.
+
+Our goal is to make this event not only accommodating for those already established in the tech community, but to also welcome and provide space for those individuals who feel they are on the outside looking in. If you know someone who could benefit from attending or participating, we encourage you to share this opportunity with them. Personal invitations often have a profound impact, and can reach a wider audience.
+
+Some ways to get involved include:
+
+- Attend the conference on November 8th and 9th, either in-person or remotely.
+- Share the event with your networks and encourage others to participate.
+- Volunteer to help shape the event and its programming by signing up at [https://seagl.org/get_involved](/get_involved).
+
+For those attending in person, please be advised that our [Code of Conduct](/code_of_conduct) and [Health & Safety Policy](/health_and_safety_policy) will be in effect to ensure a safe environment for all.
+
+Last but certainly not least, cheers to Google for joining our IDEA sponsors this year, we're so grateful for your support!
+
+Regards,  
+The SeaGL 2024 IDEA committee