DrupalCon, the main conference focusing on the digital experience platform Drupal, took place this year in Barcelona, Spain, from September 24th to 27th. DrupalCon Barcelona brought together thousands of individuals from across the world who use, design and assist with the development of Drupal. Over 1,300 digital experts and Drupal professionals gathered to exchange ideas, work on a Drupal project, and push Drupal technology forward.

The OpenSense Labs team spent the last week of September in Barcelona, Spain attending DrupalCon Barcelona. Meeting familiar faces along with new ones, while collaborating to welcome new contributors to Drupal, was such a wonderful experience. 

In this post, we'll discuss everything that happened at the event, including the various sessions, the role of The Drupal Association at the event, the Dries Note, the contribution day and much more. 

And before moving ahead, if you want to transition from your current content management system to Drupal, we recommend exploring OpenSense Labs migration services.

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So, let's begin!

40th Dries Note At DrupalCon Barcelona 2024

During DrupalCon Barcelona 2024, Dries Buytaert, the mastermind behind Drupal, presented his 40th DriesNote. In it, he revealed an exhilarating future roadmap for the platform, particularly highlighting the Starshot Initiative's Drupal CMS, the product in development. The Starshot Initiative aims to make sure its product meets the needs of its main customers, like marketers, content creators, and web developers, as well as reviewers, designers, and programmers.

The Drupal Starshot Leadership team includes Dries Buytaert as the Product Lead, Tim Plunkett managing the technical parts, Pamela Barone as the Product Owner, Cristina Chumillas in charge of User Experience, Lenny Moskalyk handling Delivery Management, Gabor Hojsy as the Contrib Coordinator, and Suzanne Dergacheva as the Marketing Lead.

Dries talked about the focus on Drupal CMS, Experience Builder, AI progress, and ethical AI, explaining how the platform is becoming simpler for non-developers to use while keeping its innovation and flexibility.

The Drupal CMS is being developed to simplify the use of Drupal's capabilities, providing ready-to-use options that enable marketers, web designers, and organizations to effortlessly create and oversee their websites. It should be noted that Drupal CMS isn't an entry-level, stripped-down alternative—it's constructed on the solid base of Drupal Core. 

This implies that although it was created to simplify the process of beginning with Drupal for newcomers, it still provides all the strength, adaptability, and growth potential that seasoned developers depend on. Drupal CMS will pave the way for wider use, both by marketers and those without coding skills, making it easier to utilize without giving up any of the sophisticated features that give Drupal its strength for complex websites.

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DrupalCon Barcelona - A 3 Day Event With More Than 100 Sessions

DrupalCon Barcelona organized more than 100 workshops, sessions, and a variety of thrilling keynotes in a full-day schedule for 3 days. Following the commencement of the event, the Women in Drupal Awards took place, acknowledging the remarkable influence Drupal has on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. Pamela Barone, All Petrovska, and Esmeralda Tijhoff received the awards, recognizing their achievements within the Drupal community.

Along with that, for nearly a decade, the outcomes of the Drupal Business Survey have been showcased at DrupalCon. The Drupal Business Survey, conducted by the Drupal Business Network, has been gathering data from Drupal service providers and agencies worldwide. On the 26th of September, insights from the 2024 survey were presented. 

Although the digital sector is conscious of global occurrences that affect the economy and sales, numerous agencies were excited about Drupal CMS. More than 70 digital marketing agencies came together to assess and develop their approach for 2025 and beyond. 

Driving Drupal Advancements Via Teamwork At DrupalCon Barcelona

The Drupal Association works to help develop Drupal faster, grow the Drupal community, and support the aim of creating a safe and open web for everyone. It also manages Drupal.org on behalf of the Drupal community. The Drupal Association Board gathered the weekend before DrupalCon for their bi-annual face-to-face board meeting. Conversations covered topics such as Drupal CMS, its future plans, and its general strategy and goals. 

During DrupalCon on Wednesday, they conducted their public board meeting to reveal the new Board Members: Alejandro Moreno, Sachiko Muto, and Stella Power.

The Drupal Association held several sessions covering different subjects, like Bridging the Gap: Unlocking Non-Code Contributions, the Drupal.org Engineering Panel, the Local Drupal Regions & Associations Round Table, and Supply Chain Security in Drupal and Composer.

The attendees also inquired about the Drupal CMS (also known as Drupal Starshot) during their visit to the Drupal Association booth, to discover more about this project. The following information was provided at their booth:

• News updates on Drupal CMS
• Outlooks for the advancement of Drupal CMS, particularly the initial market-available edition, and
• How to participate in contributing to this fantastic product

In the Expo Hall, participants of DrupalCon Barcelona gained further insight into the Ripple Makers membership and Drupal Certified Partners at the booth of the Drupal Association. Ripple Makers is the updated Drupal Association Membership, aimed at promoting innovation and the widespread use of Drupal as a significant digital resource. 

The Drupal Certified Partner program honours and bestows awards upon organizations that show marked creativity, leadership philanthropy, and overall impact on the Drupal initiative. 

Apart from this, in the public meeting, CEO Tim Doyle also revealed the initiation of a fresh initiative - Adopt-a-Document.

And before moving forward, if you're in search of smooth Drupal Migration services, then should explore OpenSense Labs' Drupal Migration services today. 

Migrate To Drupal Now!

The Contribution Day At DrupalCon Barcelona

The Drupal community united to work together and help shape the future of Drupal throughout the event, especially on the last day - The Contribution Day!

Participation in Contribution Events was a key element of the DrupalCon Barcelona 2024 experience, taking place throughout the event and extending up to the final day. On the final day of the conference, Drupal specialists remained for Contribution Day, where they collaborated on the development of Drupal's upcoming thrilling projects. 

The contribution day was an opportunity for the attendees to team up with those who share the same interests, exchange talents, and collaborate towards shared objectives. 

Whether one was enthusiastic about planning events, creating user interfaces, translating documents, writing manuals, assessing contributions, locating errors, or coding, there was an opportunity for everyone to make a difference. No matter how skilled or experienced one was, everyone was invited to join in and contribute. 

People from diverse profiles like project leaders, bug reporters, designers, quality assurance testers, and developers skilled in both the front-end and back-end contributed. For those who were feeling uncertain about where to start, there were dedicated mentors on standby for them, to lead them through the process. Inclusion makes the Drupal community richer, and by embracing it, DrupalCon Barcelona created the best Drupal experience for everyone.

Fun Fact: The Drupal community boasts more than 100,000 dedicated members working tirelessly to innovate among one of the globe's biggest open-source initiatives. 

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4. DrupalCon Highlights: Bidding Adieu To DrupalCon Euro 2017

Trivia Night At DrupalCon Barcelona

A variety of social gatherings took place in the late hours at DrupalCon, including Drupal's pub quiz known as Trivia Night on Thursday evening. The Drupal community prepared for an enjoyable and challenging night with the pub quiz. People participated in 6 rounds, each consisting of 10 questions, that encompassed all aspects of Drupal as well as several broader topics related to web development.

Participants formed groups of 5 people each and competed for the title of being Drupal trivia champions, with small rewards up for grabs. People enjoyed themselves and challenged each other's understanding of Drupal. The night was filled with humour, healthy competition, and numerous witty responses.

And during the closing ceremony, it was revealed that the city hosting DrupalCon Europe 2025 would be Vienna. 

Key Takeaways

1. In his 40th Dries Note, Dries Buytaert highlighted the importance of Drupal CMS, Experience Builder, AI progress, and the commitment to ethical AI.
2. DrupalCon Barcelona organized over 100 workshops, sessions, and an array of exciting keynote speeches including events like the Women in Drupal Awards.
3. The Drupal Association Board held their annual in-person meeting prior to DrupalCon Barcelona and discussed topics like Drupal CMS, its upcoming initiatives, and its overarching strategy.
4. On the last day of the conference, Drupal experts stayed for Contribution Day, working together on the creation of Drupal's exciting future projects.
5. Different kinds of social events took place on the last day at DrupalCon Barcelona, such as Drupal's pub quiz called Trivia Night and the Closing Ceremony.