CONvergence 2023: All Dressed Up… is about to kick off! We can’t wait to see everyone this weekend!

Picking Up Your Badge

Your first stop at CONvergence 2023 will probably be picking up your badge.

• This year Badge Pick-up will be located on the 2nd Floor in the Greenway Promenade, just at the top of the escalators! Head over to the Badge Pick-up page for hours of operation.
• Masks will be required while waiting in line for Badge Pick-up.

For more information about what you will need to pick up CONvergence membership badges, head to the Badge Pick-up page.

Wait To Post Photos of Your Badge Online

When you get your CONvergence 2023 membership‬ badge, please DO NOT post a close-up photo of it online or share a close-up photo of it with your friends until AFTER the convention is over. If you see your friends doing this, please ask them to take their badge photo(s) down until Sunday. Convention badge counterfeiting is real and this is something you can do to help prevent it at CONvergence!

Be Aware of Changes for 2023

It is very normal for things to change from year-to-year at CONvergence due to a whole myriad of factors. Review this before you leave for CONvergence 2023: All Dressed Up… so you will know what to expect!

• Attendees 3 years of age and older will be required to wear a mask covering their nose and mouth in badged areas of the convention, including Registration, unless performing or presenting on a panel, with these exceptions: Parties Hallways (individual party rooms set their own mask policies); Dealers Room; Artists Alley. There will be N95 masks available at the entrance of the exhibition hall.
• Proof of Vaccination is not required to attend CONvergence 2023, but it is strongly recommended that all attendees be fully vaccinated The CDC site remains active for anyone who isn’t sure if they’re up-to-date.
• Connie’s Quantum Sandbox now offers a cosplay repair station!
• The Sensory Break Room will have expanded hours in 2023, and will once again be provided by the Autism Society of Minnesota.
• Art Show will again be accepting walk-in submissions on a first-come, first-served basis based on available space, and Art Show Awards will also return for 2023!
• Late Night Music Circle has moved to Hyatt 4 Lake Minnetonka.
• Costume Wars is back for 2023!
• The list of Safe Spaces has been updated for 2023.
• Volunteers Den is back for 2023!
• There are new Volunteer Thank-You Gifts for 2023!
• There is new CONvergence Merchandise for 2023!
• CVG-TV will stream live CONvergence 2023 events online throughout the convention, but due to a new Hyatt Regency corporate policy, can no longer broadcast live directly to a hotel TV channel. Subscribe or follow Facebook, YouTube, and Twitch to get notifications when CVG-TV goes live!
• CONvergence’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion department is hosting a BIPOC Meetup in Space Lounge Friday from 5:00pm – 7:00pm!
• CoF₂E₂ Free Coffee Shop remains on hiatus for 2023. (If you are interested in helping make CoF₂E₂ happen at CONvergence, please contact hospitality@convergenceevents.org. Previous experience in the caffeine-related industries is preferred, but not required!
• More restrooms during CONvergence 2023 will be designated as all-gender.
• Lastly, it is a very good idea to look over the CONvergence Member Conduct Policies before you arrive at the convention, as they are revised every year.

Recommended Apps

Deaf and Hard of Hearing members who usually rely on speech reading may not be able to understand you through your face mask. A great option is to write down what you want to say, or use a speech-to-text app to automatically transcribe what you say. Here are a few apps to check out!

• LiveTranscribe (Android)
• Ava (Android and iPhone)
• Wushi (iPhone)
• Speech to Text (Android)
• Voice to Text (Android)
• Cardzilla (Android and iPhone) is also a great app for typing what you want to say!

Please Volunteer!

It’s easy to schedule time to volunteer at CONvergence, and it is one of the best ways to meet new friends too!  There are lots of volunteer opportunities that you can sign up for online at CONvergence Volunteers SignUpGenius.

First time using SignUp Genius? Head over to the Signing Up for Volunteer Shifts page for video and text tutorials!

Sign Up For Volunteer Shifts

You can exchange volunteer hours you earn for Volunteer Thank-You Gifts such as a CONvergence volunteer T-shirt, bike repair kit, zipped portfolio, travel bag, and more. (You must be a registered member of CONvergence 2023 to volunteer at CONvergence 2023.)

If you find yourself with down time during the convention and want to volunteer without having scheduled a shift, no problem! Just pop in to SignUpGenius and grab a shift from anywhere! Or, head over to the Volunteers Table (2nd floor in Greenway J, right across from Registration Badge Pick-up) and the volunteers there will connect you with a great way to help your fellow CONvergence members.

Free Vaccination Clinic at CONvergence

The Minnesota Immunization Networking Initiative (MINI) Clinic is offering free COVID-19 and mpox vaccinations during CONvergence! Head to the Vaccination Station near Badge Pick-up (in the gap next to the stairs leading to the parking ramp) from 2:00pm – 7:00pm on Saturday, July 8.

Any member under 18 will require the presence and permission of a parent or guardian to receive a vaccination. Safer sex supplies will also be available during the clinic!

Security at CONvergence

CONvergence is dedicated to keeping our membership safe. We know many of our members have a poor relationship with the police and do not want them in our spaces. As such, we are partnering with Sequeerity, a Minneapolis-based security team, for CONvergence.

Sequeerity is owned and operated by queer and POC womxn with a goal of creating and maintaining safe spaces for everyone, especially the LGBTQIA+ community.

CONvergence is attended by thousands of people, and it is inevitable that security issues will arise. While our volunteers in the Operations and First Advisors departments are trained to assist in many situations, they do not provide convention security services. Sequeerity is here to provide those services.

Be a CONvergence #CONfluencer

Make a video 30 seconds or longer of yourself and/or your friends explaining what you love about CONvergence, and get an exclusive CONvergence #CONfluencer badge ribbon when you submit it to CVG-TV!

Treat Everyone With Respect

CONvergence is serious about providing a safe environment for all members, and we enforce our Harassment Policy very seriously. Here are a few things to keep in mind to make sure you don’t harsh anyone’s squee.

• Ask permission before you take a photo of another CONvergence member. (Not only is this polite, but it almost always results in a much better photo!)
• Costumes are not consent to be hugged, touched, groped, grabbed, or sexually advanced upon. But this is also true for fancy dress, kilts, swimwear, or even just jeans and a t-shirt. It does not matter what gender a person is or what they are or aren’t wearing; harassment is harassment. If someone tells you they do not want to talk to you or do not want you to touch them, respect that and leave them alone.
• A good rule of thumb is to just explicitly ask for permission before touching any person in any way. Examples include:
  • “May I put my arm around you for a photo?”
  • “May I hug you?”
  • “That fabric on your costume is so interesting. May I feel the texture?”
• Volunteers are doing a job and it is important to recognize that. If someone is volunteering, it is definitely not an appropriate time to make sexual advances or try to touch them. Just let them do their job.
• If you’re not sure which pronouns to use for a new friend at CONvergence, check for a pronoun sticker on their membership badge. If they don’t have a sticker, it’s always OK to just ask. You do this by saying, “What pronouns do you use?” It really is just that simple! If you don’t have a good opportunity to find out a person’s preferred pronouns, you’re generally safe using the gender-neutral pronoun, “they”.
• Restroom policing is very uncool. People know which restroom they belong in. Trust them to do their business in the place most comfortable for them and leave it at that.

If You See Something, Say Something

Part of being a community is taking responsibility for protecting that community. We’ve all got to look out for each other, and it really is quite simple!

• If you spot someone who looks like they are in distress, ask them if they would like you to contact Operations or First Advisors for them.
• If you witness someone being harassed, do not stay silent. Speak up and defuse the situation. If that doesn’t help, please report the harassment.
• If you witness someone breaking the rules outlined in the CONvergence Policies, try to educate them. It’s possible they are just ignorant of the policy. If that doesn’t help, contact Operations via The Bridge.
• If you spot someone whose prop weapon has not yet been Peace Bonded, suggest that they head to The Bridge for “The Talk”. They get a badge ribbon for doing it!

And contacting Operations at The Bridge is easier than ever with their text number: 651.800.1.OPS (651-800-1677)

Getting From Floor to Floor

At the Hyatt, CONvergence takes over the first six floors of the hotel. To get from floor to floor, you have to know what goes where. Here is a quick overview!

There are two banks of elevators and one set of escalators. There will also be one set of stairs open to floors with convention spaces. If you are able, please use either escalators or stairs to access floors 1–6.

• The Conference Elevators (two elevators near the escalators) serve convention spaces on floors 1–6.
  • The 6th floor can only be reached via the Conference Elevators or the Open Stairwell.
• The Guest Elevators (five elevators near the front desk, and in various locations on upper floors) serve guest rooms on all floors, with indirect access to convention spaces on floors 1–5
• The Escalators (centrally located) serve convention spaces on floors 1-5
  • When boarding the escalators, please leave a gap of 1-2 steps between riders.
  • Cosplayers or members with long articles of clothing should take care to avoid becoming entangled in the equipment.
  • When exiting escalators, step off promptly, and immediately move clear of the escalator exit area. Do not stop to talk or look around. Other passengers may be behind you.
• The Open Stairwell (near the escalators and conference elevators, on the Nicollet Mall side of the hotel) provides access to all floors, but not the lobby; it exits onto the street.
  • The 6th floor can only be reached via the Conference Elevators or the Open Stairwell.

Note that other stairwells will provide egress to the ground floor but will not allow access to intermediary floors.

Remember the 6-2-1 Rule

The 6-2-1 Rule is:

• 6 hours of sleep per night
• 2 meals per day
• 1 shower per day

Practice self care while at CONvergence, and try to remind your friends to do the same. Also, remember to wash your hands often to prevent the spread of COVID-19 and con crud! If you’d like regular reminders to self-care, try following Professor Max on Twitter. He’ll be tweeting self care tips all weekend.

Be aware of Members with Disabilities

There are many CONvergence members with both visible and invisible disabilities. Here are a few simple things you can do to help make their CONvergence 2023 as awesome as yours!

• Keep paths clear. Don’t stand in the middle of a hallway or doorway. Always ask yourself, is there room for a wheelchair to get through? If not, make some. If everyone does this, it makes a big difference!
• Never assume ability. Many, many disabilities are “invisible”. This means that you can’t tell a person has the disability just by looking at them. It’s a good idea to never assume a person you don’t know is able-bodied. Don’t criticize them for their elevator, escalator, or chair use; they know their limitations much better than you do!
• Bathroom policing is never ok! You cannot determine a person’s disability or gender just by looking at them.
• Treat mobility aids as extensions of a person’s body. Never touch a person’s wheelchair, scooter, walker, crutches, or cane without their permission.
• Use a speech-to-text app to help you communicate with Deaf and Hard of Hearing members. There is a list of apps earlier in this post!

If you want more information about accessibility at CONvergence, check out the Accessibility & Inclusion page.

Have Props? Make sure to have “The Talk”

If you have a prop of any kind—even a fictional weapon—please bring it to The Bridge to be peace bound. An Operations volunteer will have “The Talk” with you, and you’ll walk out with a snazzy badge ribbon! Even if your prop weapon is just plastic and foam, getting it peace bound is a great signal to everyone around you that your weapon is safe. Your prop will not be damaged in the peace binding process!

Check out the CONvergence Props policies by clicking here.

Lost & Found

Did you know CONvergence has an at-con Lost and Found? If you find something or if you lose something during CONvergence 2023, head over to The Bridge!

Have Fun!

CONvergence 2023: All Dressed Up… promises to be a celebration of fun and fashionable proportions, and it is our hope that we all help one and other stay safe and have fun! CONvergence IS IMMINENT!