Long Live Events Crafted with Love ❤️

I have a bit of history with events and conferences. Over the past 15 professional years, I’ve organized national and international gatherings like Material Fest, Lambda World (Seattle & Cádiz), Scala Days (Seattle & Madrid), and LX Scala (Lisbon); hosted online conferences such as Scala Days Online and ScalaBase; and managed countless meetups across various cities (Cádiz, Madrid, Seattle, and online).

‍Yet, I’ve never seen anything quite like what TRG achieves with every edition.

I’ve been an attendee for years now—back when it was still called Tarugo Conf. For a quick TL;DR, it’s a conference created by David Bonilla to channel the engagement sparked by his newsletter, La Bonilista. What started with a few hundred attendees has grown into a thousand-strong gathering.

But this article isn’t about the numbers. It’s about something I’ve noticed every single time I’ve attended—and this latest edition showcased it more clearly than ever: the love David and his team pour into every tiny detail of the event.

Let me tell you—organizing a conference is no walk in the park. I know all too well the back-and-forth, the endless stress, and the invisible strings you’re constantly pulling. And even with the best intentions, it’s rare to find the kind of emotional investment that makes the effort worthwhile from a purely business ROI perspective. To truly understand the value of such events, you need to apply an emotional framework—one that considers what you’re taking away from the experience beyond profit margins.

And that’s the heart of this piece: the emotional framework that transforms an event into something truly special.

Once you’ve covered your basic goal—breaking even—you’re left with two possible paths: the business route or the community route.

The business path maximizes returns and channels them into profit.
The community path reinvests those returns into the attendees in one way or another.

The community path is where my heart lies. Every conference I’ve organized under 47 Degrees has followed that philosophy. It’s immensely rewarding, emotionally speaking, but let me tell you—it’s no picnic. Each new element you add to an event feels like stacking another dish on a teetering Jenga tower. At any moment, it could all come crashing down.

That’s why, whenever I see something at a conference that goes above and beyond the essentials, I mentally stamp it with a “Respect” badge.

And jeez—TRG is covered in them. From the Galician food served in Madrid, to the welcome gifts (family board games, no less!), to the opening sequence featuring a cinematic trailer and a DeLorean, and finally, the rock band finale with David himself belting it out alongside the volunteers. From the animations made for interact with the attendees between talks, to the review of every single talk content, style, and flow to match the attendance expectations.

This, right here, is the beauty of the community path: the freedom to dream up and execute the most imaginative ideas. It’s not just about hosting an event—it’s about creating an experience.

So, here’s to events crafted with love. Here’s to the “unnecessary” details. Because if there’s one thing I’ve learned from this game, it’s that these details spark movements. They’re the dominoes that fall, setting off chains of inspiration and action that no one can predict.

Thank you to every single organizer who sacrifices sleep, shoulders stress, and pours their hearts into crafting these magical moments—not for the sake of profit, but for the joy of creating something extraordinary and bringing people together.