Happy Birthday #include

Making a welcoming, more diverse C++ community

Two years ago today, Guy Davidson tweeted a delightful and somewhat corny C++ joke:

So today is the perfect day to say a heart-felt “thank you” to the wonderful #include<C++> community that has evolved from that post, and from Kate Gregory’s swift reply “Let’s start it. First get-together at @CppCon; another at @meetingcpp”.

Kate today published an excellent summary of all that we have achieved in these two short years: Happy-One-of-our-birthdays, Include! - an amazing amount.

The C++ conferences I’ve been to in the last two years feel noticeably more friendly, with a wider variety of people present, and a healthier gender balance, than any of my previous C++ conference experiences.

It has been a huge honour to have played a small part in the evolution of this global, inclusive, and diverse community for developers interested in C++.

I’ve also benefited greatly from this lovely community - learning about other people’s experiences, gaining support in my journey speaking at C++ conferences, and getting answers to some thorny technical and non-technical questions too!

If you are interested in C++ in any way, I encourage you to say hello on Twitter, or better yet, join our friendly, supportive community on Discord.