Why I volunteer at Startup Weekend

I'm a Startup Weekend (SW) facilitator as a volunteer — but I think of myself as an advocate of the SW cause. Here's why.

In mid-2011, I got a call from someone I didn't know. He asked if I was Thiago Diniz. I said yes. He introduced himself as Leo Zeba and asked if I wanted to organize a Startup Weekend in Recife. I said yes again. He said it was settled, we'd talk later, and hung up.

A week later he showed up at my office, and we started organizing the first edition of Startup Weekend Recife. From the start, the lack of bureaucracy caught my attention — in a good way. Still, I was nervous about whether the event would come together.

We had a handful of sponsorships, just enough to cover catering, venue, and internet. By the second month I was genuinely worried: we had several mentors confirmed and no money for flights to northeastern Brazil, let alone accommodation. Leo kept telling me the spirit of the event was collaboration — if the mentors wanted to help, they would come. With everything set up, the two of us closed out ticket sales together.

The day came. I was excited and nervous. Every confirmed mentor showed up: Claudio Nasajon, Rafael Duton, Frederico Lacerda, Felipe Matos, Daniel Moreto, Edoardo Oliveira, Bruno Siffert, Cristiano Araujo, and Guilherme Cavalcanti.

The first Startup Weekend Recife was a success. We had over a hundred attendees, and afterward so many people were interested in startups that we ended up forming a community around them — Manguez.al.

After that, I wanted to facilitate other Startup Weekends, to help other cities the way SW had helped Recife.

What it taught me:

• SW is about action, not talking.
• SW is education through creation.
• SW is a global movement.
• SW builds or strengthens a local startup community.
• SW changes lives.

As Zeba used to tell me: don't worry, the event will be great.