Add initial 2023 Community Update

docs/blog/2023-community-update.rst

@@ -0,0 +1,114 @@
+.. post:: Aug 14, 2023
+   :tags: stats, newsletter
+   :author: Eric Holscher
+
+Write the Docs Community Update - August 2023
+=============================================
+
+Hey there documentarians!
+
+Eric Holscher here filling in for the Newsletter team as they take their normal August break.
+
+We're looking forward to seeing everyone online for our virtual `Atlantic <http://www.writethedocs.org/conf/atlantic/2023/>`_ on **September 10-12**. 
+The event is scheduled to be available for both folks in EDT and CEST timezones.
+Tickets are still on sale until a few days before the event, so grab yours now if you haven't yet.
+
+We're also getting excited about our upcoming `Australia <http://www.writethedocs.org/conf/australia/2023/>`_ conference on **December 7-8** in Melbourne.
+The `Australia conference CFP <https://www.writethedocs.org/conf/australia/2023/cfp/>`_ is open for a few more weeks if you have ideas, and can make it to Melbourne.
+
+We held our first in-person Portland conference since 2019 this May.
+It was lovely to see all the familiar faces,
+and explore our new venue in Portland.
+The `photos <https://www.flickr.com/photos/writethedocs/albums/72177720308088427>`_ and `videos <https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLZAeFn6dfHpneQPsDWa4OmEpgW4pNiaZ2>`_ from the conference are available if you haven't caught up with them yet.
+
+2024 Conferences
+----------------
+
+We are still in the planning phrase for our 2024 conferences.
+We expect Portland to return in-person,
+and we will make a decision about the other conferences after the 2023 editions happen later this year.
+Overall, we are trying to balance between the accessibility of virtual events and the human interaction value of in-person events.
+The other major factor is organizer energy and availability,
+given that running a conference is a lot of work across many members of our organizer teams.
+
+We're really grateful for the support that the community has given us throughout the past few years,
+and we're excited to see what the future holds for our events.
+
+Community Board Updates
+-----------------------
+
+Our Community Board has been meeting each quarter for all of 2023,
+and we have been posting `meeting notes <https://www.writethedocs.org/blog/archive/tag/community-board/>`_ for each meeting.
+
+The current structure of the board is to have each team lead from one of our teams, and each of our conference chairs, as a member.
+This allows us to get a good cross-section of the community,
+and share information between the teams.
+
+Meetup Updates
+--------------
+
+The Meetup team is focusing on updating organizer resources and streamlining communication.
+To support our efforts, the Meetup team lead Rose Williams created an organizer mailing list and distributed a meetup activity survey.
+The survey asked about meetup activity and collected ideas for evolving the local and regional meetup structure.
+The Meetup team is currently reviewing the survey results and deciding on next steps.
+
+We appreciate all of the hard work that meetup organizers do to keep their communities engaged, and will continue to work with the meetup teams to adapt to the current the global landscape.
+If you want to start a new meetup or join an existing meetup, check out the `Meetups page <https://www.writethedocs.org/meetups/>`_ on our website.
+
+Salary Survey
+-------------
+
+Our annual salary survey gathers data about salaries for people working in documentation and related fields around the world.
+`Results of the 2022 salary survey <https://www.writethedocs.org/surveys/salary-survey/2022/>`__ are available on our website.
+
+We're hoping to launch next year's survey here soon,
+but haven't put the finishing touches on it quite yet.
+Watch the newsletter for updates in the coming months.
+
+---------------- 
+From our sponsor
+----------------
+
+This month's newsletter is sponsored by `KnowledgeOwl <https://www.knowledgeowl.com/>`__:
+
+.. raw:: html
+
+
+    <hr>
+    <table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" style="width:100%; max-width: 600px;">
+      <tbody>
+        <tr>
+          <td width="75%">
+          <p>
+            As a documentarian, do you put your customers first in your sentences? Do you know how to write in a people-first way? Let WTD community member, Marcia Riefer Johnston, show you how it's done on our <a href="https://www.knowledgeowl.com/blog/posts/customer-first-in-your-sentences">blog</a>.
+        </p>
+
+          <p>
+            KnowledgeOwl helps documentarians build knowledge base websites. And we always put people first. Check out our <a href="https://www.knowledgeowl.com/video-demo/">5-minute demo</a> or book a 15- minute call with us to learn how we can help you put your customers first.
+        </p>
+
+          <p>
+            P.S. We love articles like Marcia's that deep dive into the craft of technical writing. Interested in sharing your ideas? We are always excited to feature WTD members and their ideas as <a href="https://www.knowledgeowl.com/opportunities/">paid guest blog writers</a>.
+        </p>
+          </td>
+          <td width="25%">
+            <a href="https://www.knowledgeowl.com/">
+              <img style="margin-left: 15px;" alt="SPONSOR" src="/_static/img/sponsors/knowledgeowl.png">
+            </a>
+          </td>
+        </tr>
+      </tbody>
+    </table>
+    <hr>
+
+*Interested in sponsoring the newsletter? Take a look at our* `sponsorship prospectus </sponsorship/newsletter/>`__.
+
+Thanks
+------
+
+Thanks again for subscribing to our newsletter and for being a member of our community.
+We hope to see you soon at one of our online events, on our Slack,
+or continue to see you here via this newsletter.
+
+You can always reply to this email if you have any questions or comments.
+Stay tuned for another newsletter update next month!