A love letter to Heart of Clojure

Thoughts on the best conference I've been to

Watch the talks from Heart of Clojure 2024.

Alex Miller and Jordan Miller have a new book out called Clojure Brain Teasers. It’s really good. The teasers kept me engaged, and even as a Clojure programmer of over 15 years, I still found them challenging. The explanations illuminated corners of the language I hadn’t explored. It’s well worth the $15. It’s currently in Beta and is expected to be printed in April 2025.

And my next book, Runnable Specifications, already has eight sections published (five chapters, an introduction, and two supplements). Check them out! The next chapter I’m working on is all about modeling change over time.

---

A love letter to Heart of Clojure

I’ve been to a lot of conferences, but the best one, by far, has been Heart of Clojure. Over two days, hundreds of Clojurists convened on Leuven, near Brussels, for a fun and cathartic exchange of handshakes, hugs, and warm greetings.

It has been over a month since I went, and I thought it was the right time to write my experiences before they vanish into wherever old memories go.

People

I had never been to a European Clojure conference before. There are many people in the European Clojure scene that I have just never met. I got to meet so many of them, and of course they’re better in person. I don’t know if I can describe the European vibe, but somehow they come off as more social than their American counterparts. By that I mean they’re better at lubricating the conversation and less apt to judge. Higher EQ. Maybe higher IQ.

There were some people I only spoke to briefly in the wee hours of the after-conference. That I regret. But how can you fit deep conversations in with everyone?

Location

Arne picked a really great spot. Leuven is, as I learned, a University town, but a very old one. There’s a 550 year-old gothic building intricately adorned with statues right there. The streets are walkable. And it was a quick train ride from the airport.

Again, you can’t find this kind of living in the US. A small-scale city but with thousands of outdoor tables at restaurants a quick walk away? Public transport to the airport? Europe is even becoming friendly to vegans who don’t drink. Every trip to Europe makes me jealous.

There were two venues a quick walk apart. The main stage was right on the train station square. And although the coffee at the venue was not great, there were hundreds of tables just outside the venue where you could sit and get a decent cup. The weather was lovely. Sunny. And cool enough to sometimes want a sweater.

The second venue was a community center with a large outdoor patio and even larger lawn across from a bike path. That’s where the workshops were held, which I did not participate in. But lunch was also served there.

I like how the lunch was included and long. I would often be in a conversation with one person on the path to the lunch, then would join another conversation in the line, then sit down with yet others at the picnic style tables outside. We would eat our hummus and grape leaves, discussing some topic for an hour or more, removing sweaters as the sun warmed our bodies. When I looked around, there were ten other tables with similar conversations going. It was lovely.

Speakers

I watched quite a few talks at this conference, which is not normal for me. I usually want to talk to people and watch the talks later on YouTube. I think I was tired due to jet lag, mostly, and the talks gave me time to simply be passive. The talks I did see were good.

However, I’m not sure really if they met my expectations. They were good, but not really on theme. The theme of Heart of Clojure seemed to be set as a more humanistic conference. It was set well during the introduction that Arne gave. But the talks missed that mark. My expectations had been set by Madison Ruby, which surprised me by how human the talks were. Repeatedly during that conference, I was reminded that programmers are people, our coworkers are people, and our customers are people. We should acknowledge their humanity and get good at being with them. Although the vibe of “let’s be people together” was there, the talks—even my own—didn’t really add to that.

Organization

The conference felt very smooth. If there were hitches, I never experienced them. Even with two locations, I never felt lost or wondered what was next. I think the organizers did a great job.

Ambiance

Well, I’ve talked so much about it already, but there’s just one more thing to mention. The ambiance inside the venue was not great. It could have been a few notches better. They played the audio from the talks on the loudspeaker outside the stage, and it was kind of loud, which made talking difficult. There weren’t enough chairs. And it was rather dark. I think it could have been cozy with a tuning of the settings.

However, Arne invited us during the introduction to use the large open square outside as part of the conference—to sit at one of the many cafes and enjoy the outside. This would normally be great, but it makes for less serendipity. Having such an open space is great if you’re a group of four and you want to sit and enjoy a coffee together. But to bump into someone to talk to? Much more difficult.

Conclusion

Heart of Clojure is my favorite conference so far, and I’ve been to a lot. Europe offers something very special that is hard to find in the US—and I dare call it taste. The folks at Gaiwan and the other volunteers did an excellent job curating the entire experience. I came away full of hope and optimism for Clojure (there were several growing startups as sponsors). And I was super glad for the opportunity to bask in the European contingent. I can’t wait for the next one!