SAVE THE DATE!

Sunshine Fest 2025

March 19-20, 2025 • Washington, D.C.

What

As we celebrate the 20th anniversary of national Sunshine Week, we’re organizing an in-person conference to find solutions to pressing problems in freedom of information across all disciplinary and geographic boundaries.

We’ll bring together journalists, record custodians, policy makers, historians, librarians, academics, commercial data providers, and all other constituencies who care about transparency at the local, state, federal and global levels of government.

Attendees will produce an action plan to be implemented post-conference and beyond.

Why

We want to bring requesters and the government to the same table and identify solutions for improving the public’s ability to acquire information they need to self-govern. The goal: Strengthen democracy, communities, and individuals’ lives.

When

March 19-20, 2025.
Conference fee: $50 ($25 for students)
Registration will open in January. If the fee is a hardship, drop a note to us and we’ll waive it.

Where

Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg Center
555 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, D.C. 20001

Who

Limited to 175 registrants. Coordinated by the Joseph L. Brechner Freedom of Information Project at the University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications, the National Freedom of Information Coalition, and the Johns Hopkins University Communication Graduate Program.

How

Sessions will meet the following criteria:

  • Of interest and importance to both requesters and government agencies.
  • Foster understanding, empathy and constructive common-sense solutions.
  • Cross geographic boundaries – local, state, federal and global.
  • Cross disciplines – journalism, nonprofit, history, archives, public administration, academia, commercial sector, etc.
  • Break conventional boundaries – bring new ideas and new perspectives to inspire positive change through legislation, processes, research, and innovative initiatives.

Topic ideas might include the latest technologies to improve searches/redactions, how to handle voluminous requests, educating the public, effective dispute resolution outside of litigation, funding freedom of information, research needs, and improving the overall system.

Travel Tips

Airports:
  • You can take Metro rail from either Washington Dulles (about an hour on Metro) or Reagan National (about 20 minutes on Metro) into Washington, D.C.
  • A taxi/Lyft/Uber from Dulles to D.C. runs in the $75 range and from National to D.C. around $20.
Metro:

The stop closest to the Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg Center (555 Pennsylvania Ave., NW) is the Archives-Naval Memorial-Penn Quarter station (Green or Yellow lines), a four-minute walk.

Other Metro choices:

  • Gallery Place-Chinatown Station (Green, Yellow and Red Lines). A 12-minute walk.
  • Federal Triangle Station (Blue, Orange and Silver Lines). A 13-minute walk.
  • L’Enfant Plaza Station (Orange, Blue, Silver, Green and Yellow Lines). A 13-minute walk.
  • Judiciary Square Station (Red Line). A 14-minute walk.
Driving:

The nearest parking garages are:

  • 601 North Building Garage: 601 Pennsylvania Ave NW
  • Liberty Place Garage: 325 7th Street NW
Train:

Amtrak, Maryland Area Rail Commuter (MARC), and Virginia Railway Express (VRE) all go to Union Station. From there, it’s a 20 minute walk to the building. You can also transfer to a bus, Metro or take a taxi.  

Lodging:

D.C. hotels are expensive in the spring, especially as the cherry blossoms bloom.

Hotels within a half-mile walk to the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg Center are all pricey: Waldorf Astoria, Kimpton Hotel Monaco and Riggs Washington. If you’re a budget traveler like us, search elsewhere in the city or take Metro to Virginia. For slightly less sticker shock, search for hotels within walking distance to the following Virginia stations: Rosslyn (Blue, Orange, Silver lines), Court House (Orange, Silver), Clarendon (Orange, Silver), Pentagon City (Blue, Yellow).

Tentative schedule

Wednesday, March 19

Afternoon
Possible gatherings in collaboration with other organizations

4:30-6 p.m.
(Location to be announced soon)
Meeting of the D.C. Open Government Coalition (all are invited).
6-7:30 p.m. Reception for Sunshine Fest registrants and DCOGC meeting attendees.
These two events, to be held in the same venue, are free of charge. Pre-registration required so we can get an accurate head count.

Thursday, March 20

8-9 a.m.
Coffee and continental breakfast

9-9:30 a.m.
Kick-off

9:30-10 a.m.
Open boundaries for open government

10:15-11:30 a.m.
Breakouts: Topics TBD

11:30 a.m.-1 p.m.
Lunch

1:15-2:15 p.m.
Breakouts: Topics TBD

2:30-3 p.m.
Plenary: Next action steps   

3-4 p.m.
Networking reception

More information to come! 

Contact: Diana Mitsu Klos, Brechner FOI Project, consultdmk@gmail.com