DjangoCon on Caktus Group

Supporting Django's Next Chapter

Wed, 24 Jun 2026 09:00:00 -0500

The path to hiring an Executive Director gained real momentum at DjangoCon US 2024, when Jacob Kaplan-Moss shared a vision for what dedicated resources could mean for the future of Django. In his blog post If We Had $1,000,000, he invited companies and supporters to help get the initiative off the ground. The response from the community was inspiring, and we’re proud to see that vision become reality.

DjangoCon 2025 The Attendee's Experience

Mon, 02 Mar 2026 09:00:00 -0600

This post is the second in a three-part series reflecting on DjangoCon US 2025. In this post, I’m reflecting on experiencing DjangoCon 2025 from the audience while serving as conference chair.

Behind the Curtain as a Conference Chair

Wed, 12 Nov 2025 00:00:00 -0600

This post is the first in a three-part series reflecting on DjangoCon US 2025 — In this post, I’m taking you behind the scenes of DjangoCon US 2025 to share what it taught me about leadership, community, and the power of holding space for others.

DjangoCon Europe 2025 Highlights

Tue, 27 May 2025 05:00:00 +0000

Three Cakti recently attended DjangoCon Europe 2025 in Dublin and it was a wonderful experience! It was great to see and chat with various Django community members we usually only see once or twice a year. Beyond that, we were most impressed by the consistently high quality of the talks throughout all three days of the conference. It was a pleasure to listen to so many excellent presentations, including the lightning talks at the end of each day. Here are some of our favorite talks.

Chicago Like a Local: Part 2

Thu, 24 Apr 2025 23:54:16 +0000

Chicago Like a Local: Hidden Gems & Unique Experiences (Part 2)

DjangoCon US 2025 is getting closer, and while we’ve covered some classic must-see spots in Part 1, there’s so much more to explore beyond the typical tourist attractions. If you’re looking for unique experiences, quirky hidden gems, and places where locals actually hang out, this guide is for you.

Chicago Like A Local

Thu, 06 Mar 2025 18:16:09 +0000

Chicago Like a Local: Things to Do During DjangoCon US 2025 (Part 1)

DjangoCon US 2025 is coming to Chicago, and while you’ll be busy soaking in all things Django, there’s no reason you can’t experience the city like a local while you’re here. Whether you’re looking for great food, cultural spots, or just a cool place to unwind, here are some top recommendations from a Chicago native.

Reflections on DjangoCon US 2024: Highlights, Takeaways, and Community Connections

Mon, 16 Dec 2024 23:00:00 +0000

DjangoCon 2024 was a resounding success for the community, with attendees from all over the world gathering to learn about the latest developments in Django and to connect with the Django community. Caktus was well-represented at the conference, with six of our team members attending. In this blog post, we share our experiences at DjangoCon 2024, including our favorite talks, the people we met, and the things we learned. We also offer some tips for future attendees on how to get the most out of DjangoCon.

Reflection on DjangoCon 2022

Fri, 06 Jan 2023 15:33:37 +0000

Ronard’s Recap

“It takes a village” the African proverb goes. Nowhere was this as apparent as in DjangoCon. It was my first technology conference and my experience could not have been better. People from the most senior developer to fellow juniors and even one of the co-creators of Django made the experience feel warm and inviting. Perhaps knowing that you are surrounded by introverts alleviates the social pressure, knowing that everyone has a common interest, or perhaps even love for programming also brought a soothing feeling to the experience.

DjangoCon is Back and Free of Charge

Fri, 08 Oct 2021 18:02:16 +0000

We’ve waited eagerly for DjangoCon 2021 since last year’s event was cancelled due to COVID-19. Not only is the event back, but it’s free to attend! DjangoCon will take place virtually on October 22 and 23 — it will be unprecedented since this is the first time the conference will be virtual.

Take Note of these Top Talks From DjangoCon Europe

Thu, 18 Feb 2021 20:28:03 +0000

Photo by The Climate Reality Project on Unsplash

Like many conferences in 2020, DjangoCon Europe was held virtually. I’m glad I had the opportunity to attend because the sessions provided insight and information that I’m still applying. In light of the pandemic and the social changes it’s caused, I’ve come to know that web development and the solutions it provides are at the heart of how we are navigating this challenging time. Here are three talks from DjangoCon Europe that I believe will help you protect, maintain, and develop projects.

DjangoCon 2019 Delivered Again

Thu, 03 Oct 2019 21:05:01 +0000

Above: Django Fellow Carlton Gibson gives a talk on “Your Web Framework Needs You: An Update.”

Again this year, DjangoCon more than delivered on its promise of something for everyone. A keynote on burnout and balance? Thoroughly entertaining! Jessica Rose’s talk left us in stitches. Who knew a talk about occupational burnout could be so fun? It was one of a wide range of subjects covered in three days of talks, bookended by a day of tutorials and two days of sprints. The conference took place in San Diego and ran from September 22 - 26. What a great week of learning and networking!

DjangoCon, Here We Come!

Tue, 20 Aug 2019 18:13:01 +0000

We’re looking forward to the international gathering at DjangoCon 2019, in San Diego, CA. The six-day conference, from September 22 - 27, is focused on the Django web framework, and we’re proud to attend as sponsors for the tenth year! We’re also hosting the second annual Caktus Mini Golf event.

7 Conferences We’re Looking Forward To

Sat, 26 Jan 2019 18:01:22 +0000

Above: The Internet Summit in Raleigh is one of the local conferences we recommend attending. (Photo by Ian Huckabee.)

At Caktus, we strongly believe in professional development and continued learning. We encourage our talented team to stay up to date with industry trends and technologies. During 2018, Cakti attended a number of conferences around the country. Below is a list (in alphabetical order) of the ones we found the most helpful, practical, and interesting. We look forward to attending these conferences again, and if you get the chance, we highly recommend that you check them out as well.

Django Depends on You: A Takeaway from DjangoCon

Tue, 13 Nov 2018 13:00:00 +0000

Photo by Bartek Pawlik.

DjangoCon 2018 attracted attendees from around the world, including myself and several other Cakti (check out our DjangoCon recap post). Having attended a number of DjangoCons in the past, I looked forward to reconnecting with old colleagues and friends within the community, learning new things about our favorite framework, and exploring San Diego.

DjangoCon 2018 Recap

Thu, 25 Oct 2018 11:00:00 +0000

Above: Hundreds of happy Djangonauts at DjangoCon 2018. (Photo by Bartek Pawlik.)

That’s it, folks — another DjangoCon in the books! Caktus was thrilled to sponsor and attend this fantastic gathering of Djangonauts for the ninth year running. This year’s conference ran from October 14 - 19, in sunny San Diego. ☀️

Diverse Speaker Line-up for DjangoCon is Sharp

Thu, 20 Sep 2018 13:37:18 +0000

Above: Caktus Account Manager Tim Scales gears up for DjangoCon.

We’re looking forward to taking part in the international gathering of Django enthusiasts at DjangoCon 2018, in San Diego, CA. We’ll be there from October 14 - 19, and we’re proud to attend as sponsors for the ninth year! As such, we’re hosting a mini golf event for attendees (details below).

DjangoCon 2017 Recap

Wed, 23 Aug 2017 13:30:00 +0000

Mid-August brought travel to Spokane for several Caktus staff members attending DjangoCon 2017. As a Django shop, we were proud to sponsor and attend the event for the eighth year.

Caktus at DjangoCon2017

Mon, 17 Jul 2017 13:30:00 +0000

In less than a month we’ll be heading out to Spokane, WA for DjangoCon 2017. We’re proud to be attending as sponsors for the eighth year, and look forward to greeting everyone at our booth. On August 16th, we’ll be raffling off a GoPro Session action camera, so be sure to stop by and enter. We’ll also have our comfy new t-shirts and some limited-edition Caktus 10th Anniversary water bottles to give away. They went fast at PyCon, so don’t wait to get yours.

Introduction to Monte Carlo Tree Search

Thu, 24 Sep 2015 13:47:08 +0000

For DjangoCon 2015, Jeff Bradberry created an A.I. for our booth game, Ultimate Tic Tac Toe. Reprinted here from jeffbradberry.com is his explanation of the Monte Carlo Tree Search used to build the A.I.

Caktus at DjangoCon 2015

Fri, 04 Sep 2015 12:00:00 +0000

Django is kind of our thing, so we’ve been looking forward to DjangoCon 2015 for months! Now that it is finally here, we thought we would give a little preview of what Cakti will be up to at this year’s conference.

We've Won Two W3 Awards for Creative Excellence on the Web!

Wed, 12 Nov 2014 14:00:00 +0000

We’re honored to announce that we’ve won two W3 Silver Awards for Creative Excellence on the Web. The awards were given in recognition of our homepage redesign and DjangonCon 2014. Many thanks to Open Bastion and, by extension, the Django Software Foundation for selecting us to build the DjangoCon website. Also many thanks to our hardworking team of designers, developers and project managers that worked on these projects: Dan, Daryl, David, Michael, Rebecca, and Trevor!

DjangoCon 2014: Recap

Mon, 08 Sep 2014 17:44:43 +0000

Caktus had a great time at DjangoCon in Portland this year! We met up with old friends and new. The following staff gave talks (we’ll update this post with videos as soon as they’re available):

DjangoCon Ticket Giveaway!

Thu, 14 Aug 2014 18:00:00 +0000

Update: Congratulations to @dmpayton for winning this giveaway!

Caktus is giving away a DjangoCon ticket valued at $850! DjangoCon is the main US Django conference and it’s returning to Portland this year, August 30 - September 4th. Meet fellow Django developers, learn what others are doing, and have a good time!

Caktus Participates in DjangoCon 2013

Mon, 02 Sep 2013 13:00:00 +0000

Caktus is happy to be involved in this year’s DjangoCon hosted in Chicago. We are pumped about the great lineup of speakers and can’t wait to see some of our old friends as well as meet some new folks. Beyond going to see the wonderful talks, Caktus is participating as a sponsor and Tobias McNulty will be speaking on scaling Django web apps. Come stop by our booth or see Tobias’ talk to connect with us.

Thoughts after attending Djangocon

Tue, 11 Sep 2012 13:50:02 +0000

The Caktus team attending and having a great time at Djangocon!

It’s been one week since I posted my wrap-up of the first day at Djangocon, and although I didn’t get the chance to cover each day individually I wanted to post a quick conference wrap up.

Djangocon 2012 First Day

Wed, 05 Sep 2012 15:24:10 +0000

The Caktus team arrived in DC for Djangocon on Monday evening, 9/3 and I've been keeping notes about what the presenters have been discussing and generally what the mood and experience have been like. I am taking a few minutes out of my Tuesday schedule to share with everyone how Djangocon 2012 is shaping up! I stayed in Track 1 throughout the day, so I can only report on talks given there.

Caktus Team Members Presenting at DjangoCon 2012

Mon, 03 Sep 2012 14:00:13 +0000

Caktus is proud to announce that four of our developers will be presenting at this year’s DjangoCon. We are also happy to announce that we will be sponsors of DjangoCon, taking place in Washington D.C. on September 4th through the 7th. In addition to the four Caktus team members who will be presenting this year, our entire development staff will be in attendance enjoying the conference and city.

Karen Tracey to Deliver Keynote at DjangoCon Europe 2012

Thu, 31 May 2012 19:47:14 +0000

I am very proud to announce that Karen Tracey, Lead Developer at Caktus and Django Core Developer, will be delivering a keynote address at DjangoCon Europe next week. This will be Karen's first speech to the Django community, of which she has been an exemplary member since 2006.

Caktus Consulting Group Sponsors DjangoCon 2011

Wed, 31 Aug 2011 14:13:49 +0000

DjangoCon 2011 is coming up next week and I’m excited to announce that Caktus is sponsoring the conference again this year! It is being held once again in beautiful Portland, Oregon from September 5th through the 10th. We’ve grown quite a bit from last year, there will be 9 team members-Colin, Tobias, Karen, Mark, Dan, Scott, George, Caleb and myself-attending the conference this year.

Caktus Consulting Group Seeks Two Python/Django Web Developers

Fri, 03 Sep 2010 15:13:03 +0000

I'm delighted to announce that Caktus is looking for two Python and/or Django web developers to join our team on a contract or part-time basis, with the potential for full-time work in the future.

Caktus Consulting Group Sponsors DjangoCon 2010

Thu, 26 Aug 2010 17:50:45 +0000

DjangoCon 2010 is just around the corner, and I'm proud to announce that Caktus is sponsoring the conference again this year!

Caktus Consulting Group, LLC sponsors DjangoCon 2009

Sun, 06 Sep 2009 03:58:29 +0000

Django is a tool we use on a daily basis to build fantastic web apps here at Caktus, and DjangoCon is the annual conference for Django developers and other community members. We are proud to announce that Caktus Consulting Group, LLC is sponsoring DjangoCon 2009!