Optionality. The power available to any one person to do anything in society is directly proportional to their genuine connections to others, even if brief.
Meetups in person with real connections happening (even if brief) create so many new possibilities for those in attendance.
The disappearance of in-person meetups (especially among developers) in the US after Covid is a tragedy - so much could be happening that is not.
The Manifesto for Agile Software Development only happened because a group of developers met up in person. They disagreed about nearly everything, but what they agreed about changed the industry.
Meetups in person with real connections happening (even if brief) create so many new possibilities for those in attendance.
The disappearance of in-person meetups (especially among developers) in the US after Covid is a tragedy - so much could be happening that is not.
The Manifesto for Agile Software Development only happened because a group of developers met up in person. They disagreed about nearly everything, but what they agreed about changed the industry.