More than beaches and piña coladas: The story behind the State of Now #140confPR meetup

Does Puerto Rico and the Caribbean region have fabulous beaches and amazing resorts? Absolutely!

But I wanted to let you in on a little secret…this region is holding a resource that’s even better than a vacation paradise—it’s home to incredible people who are living in the State of Now! From resourceful and creative entrepreneurs, to educators, and everyone in between, social media and the instant global connection it offers has changed everyday life.

##### Register FREE – State of Now #140confPR meetup http://sanjuan140meetup1.eventbrite.com/ #####

About two years ago I was in Boston visiting my parents when I noticed that Jeff Pulver was holding a State of Now #140conf in the city during the time that I’d be there. After a few DM’s back and forth, I wound up attending the Boston event as a volunteer.

Jeff’s Boston #140conf took place right around the time that the first Bar Camp was held in San Juan. The whole time I was volunteering at the #140conf (and watching the speakers), I kept thinking, “…this would be such a great destination event for Puerto Rico and the Caribbean region” due to the tremendous social media energy, enthusiasm, and expertise here!

At the time, I mentioned as much to Jeff and he seemed generally interested, but the topic didn’t really come up again…

Fast-forward another year, and I found myself flying up to attend the New York City #140conf last July and while attending the NYC event, the same thoughts as above continued in my mind:

“Yes, social media is having an impact in cities—NYC, London, LA, etc.—but it’s REALLY having an impact in places where folks feel like they never had a voice before, such as developing nations and remote island states.”

Again, I mentioned to Jeff that he should seriously consider a destination event in Puerto Rico that could cover the Caribbean, Central America, and even Miami (they haven’t held a #140conf there yet). To be sure, all you have to do is to look at the success of Bar Camp, Startup Weekend, TedxSanJuan, Word Camp and I’m sure numerous other events that I don’t hear about being stuck out in Culebra. ;-)

##########

Jeff Pulver and Alan Weinkrantz are coming to Puerto Rico to hold a State of Now #140conf meetup on the evening of March 27th. While here, they will also be doing a “site visit” to have a look at the San Juan Marriott to see if their conference venue will work and to get a feel for the social media/tech/blogging scene. And to ultimately determine if there’s enough participant interest and sponsorship support to go ahead and hold a full blown State of Now #140conf event (perhaps in May).

The March 27th Tweetup at the San Juan Marriott is almost a “barometer” if you will, thus it would be great to get as many people who are interested in seeing this event come to Puerto Rico to attend as possible.

In order to hold a full #140conf event corporate sponsorship is critical and while in Puerto Rico, Jeff and Alan would like to meet with interested brands or organizations to discuss opportunities. You can either let me know via email, or feel free to connect directly with Jeff (@jeffpulver) & Alan (@alanweinkrantz) via Twitter.

#####

State of Now #140confPR tentative meetup agenda:

When – March 27 7:00 – 9:30pm
Where – San Juan Marriott, Red Coral Lounge

7:00 – 8:00 Complimentary hors d’ouvres & drink specials.
8:00 – 8:30 Q&A with Jeff Pulver and if you have questions about the #140conf event, startups, seed funding or social media now would be a great time to ask.
8:30 – 10:00 Networking, connecting, and sharing.

##### Register FREE – State of Now #140confPR meetup http://sanjuan140meetup1.eventbrite.com/ #####