Talk LouderDrupalCon Rotterdam 2026 · Keynote

The Story

01No Blabbing, But Scrubbing02Magical Thinking & the Reputation Gap03Go Where the People Are

The Tutorials

04I · Multilingual with Drupal CMS 2.2 & Canvas05II · JavaScript Frontends & Code Components06III · Drupal Canvas Headless07IV · Drupal AI08V · AI Agents & the MCP Endpoint09VI · The Advocacy Program

Encore

10The Cast00Overview
Chapter 09 · Tutorial VI

Talk louder:
the Advocacy Program

The keynote comes full circle. The reputation gap named in Chapter 02 gets its fix: an official Drupal Association program that pays contribution credits for telling modern Drupal’s story.

drupal.org/advocacyContribution creditsQuarterly focus = double creditsThe Rotterdam Pilots
Why now

“Is Drupal dead?” — the search results that frustrate Dries

LIVE FROM THE STAGE

“Now you’ve seen what Drupal can do and where I think we should invest more. The challenge is that we need other people to see what Drupal can do. I believe the reputation gap is our number one challenge — so we’re going to launch a program to help with that.”

“We’ve all been guilty of our own version of magical thinking. I’ve sometimes assumed that if you build great products, they will explain themselves to the market. The truth is: they don’t.”

“Look what happens when I search ‘is Drupal’: ‘Is Drupal still relevant?’ ‘Is Drupal dead?’ I mean — look at us. We’re not dead! And that frustrates me.”

“Fun fact: while I was getting miked up, the audio guy told me he used to use Drupal — Drupal 7 — and he hasn’t looked at Drupal since. That’s what happens: people have an outdated perception based on the Drupal they used ten years ago.”

“And I think AI will make that worse — AI can repeat and amplify outdated perceptions of Drupal. We can’t expect people or AI to know when Drupal is better than competitors if we are not willing to say it. It’s on us to give people and AI a better story to draw on, because no one else is going to do it for us.”

“I love this post by Heineck, who puts it quite directly: ‘Drupal people — talk louder, tell the stories, fight for Drupal.’ Drupal doesn’t need hype — we’re not asking you to become salespeople or cheerleaders; that’s not who we are. It’s certainly not who I am; I often feel uncomfortable promoting my own work. But what Drupal does need is a better public record. We do need to set the facts straight.”

Dries Buytaert

Tutorial: Participating in the Drupal Advocacy Program & Earning Contribution Credits

1. Executive Summary & Overview

At the DrupalCon keynote, Dries Buytaert announced the launch of the Drupal Advocacy Program, an official initiative led by the Drupal Association.

The goal of this program is to expand the existing Drupal credit system beyond traditional technical and financial contributions. While the community excels at tracking code and financial sponsorship, advocacy work—telling the story of modern Drupal, creating content, speaking at non-Drupal events, and amplifying others—has historically been harder to track and recognize.

The Drupal Advocacy Program formalizes credit recognition for advocates, providing individuals and organizations with direct incentives, marketplace visibility, and standing within the ecosystem.

View source diagram
       =========================================================
                      DRUPAL ADVOCACY PROGRAM
              Contribution Credit for Advocacy Work
                 Led by the Drupal Association
       =========================================================

2. Understanding the Drupal Credit System Cycle

The Drupal credit system directly links contribution activity to business and organizational growth. Recognizing advocacy within this cycle gives businesses a direct commercial incentive to support advocacy work.

The Contribution Feedback Loop

View source diagram
                 +--------------------------------+
                 |          CONTRIBUTE            |
                 |  (Code, Financial, Advocacy)   |
                 +---------------+----------------+
                                 |
                                 v
                 +--------------------------------+
                 |      CONTRIBUTION CREDITS      |
                 |  (Earned on Drupal.org profiles|
                 |   and organization pages)      |
                 +---------------+----------------+
                                 |
                                 v
                 +--------------------------------+
                 |     MARKETPLACE VISIBILITY     |
                 |   (Ranking in Drupal Marketplace|
                 |    & Certified Partner status) |
                 +---------------+----------------+
                                 |
                                 v
                 +--------------------------------+
                 |     BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES     |
                 |  (Inbound leads, client trust, |
                 |   ecosystem prominence)        |
                 +---------------+----------------+
                                 |
                                 +----------+
                                            |
                                            v
                                   (Cycle repeats)
Core Value: "Help people discover Drupal. Help them discover your business."

3. The Three Contribution Pillars

Historically, Drupal contribution recognition has been unevenly balanced:

View source diagram
 Contribution Pillars in the Credit System:

 [ HIGHLY RECOGNIZED ]
 +-----------------------+
 |       TECHNICAL       |  Role: MAKERS (Core, Contrib, Maintenance)
 +-----------------------+
 |       FINANCIAL       |  Role: PATRONS (Sponsors, Partners, Donations)
 +-----------------------+
 |       ADVOCACY        |  Role: ADVOCATES (Promoting, Localizing, Outreach)
 +-----------------------+
 [ PREVIOUSLY UNDER-TRACKED ]

Strategic Objectives for Advocacy Credit:

  1. Easier to Submit: Reducing submission friction via simple intake forms and future automated APIs.
  2. Better Tracked: Transparently recording advocacy contributions to recognize people and companies.
  3. Strategic Credit Allocation: Weighting credits based on impact—awarding higher points for work that "moves the needle" (e.g., reaching audiences outside the Drupal bubble).
Credit Weighting Examples:
  • DrupalCamp Talk: 1 Credit (Example baseline)
  • Non-Drupal Event Talk: 3 Credits (Higher strategic value: reaches new audiences outside the Drupal community)
  • Personal Blog Post: 1 Credit
  • External Publication (e.g., Smashing Magazine): Higher weighted credit tier

4. Program Mechanics: How the Program Works

The initiative operates around the principle that:

"Drupal is light-years ahead of its reputation."
Drupal is the best platform for an AI-led open web. Modern Drupal is a marketer's dream. The pace of innovation is off the charts. But the market's picture of Drupal hasn't kept pace. The community must use authentic stories to align market perception with reality.

Key Operational Rules:

  • Tell the Story: Create, share, and boost content about modern Drupal (blog posts, videos, non-Drupal talks, localized case studies, and thoughtful amplification).
  • Quarterly Focus Counts Double: Each quarter, Drupal leadership establishes a focus theme with a curated sourcelist (proof points, statistics, reference materials). Content aligned with the quarterly theme earns double credits to concentrate community momentum.
  • Credits Flow Back: Advocacy credits feed directly into the central Drupal contribution credit system, counting toward individual contributor profiles and organization marketplace rankings (including Drupal Certified Partner tier visibility).

5. Pathways to Participate: What Counts as Advocacy?

There are two primary tracks for participating: Creating Something New and Amplifying Existing Work.

View source diagram
+------------------------------------+------------------------------------+
|       CREATE SOMETHING NEW         |   HELP AMPLIFY SOMEONE ELSE'S WORK  |
+------------------------------------+------------------------------------+
| * Write a tutorial or customer     | * Translate an article for your    |
|   story.                           |   community / local market.        |
| * Record a demo or screencast.     | * Turn someone's talk into a       |
| * Host a podcast or teach a        |   written guide or walkthrough.    |
|   workshop.                        | * Share useful work with a new     |
|                                    |   audience or channel.             |
+------------------------------------+------------------------------------+

The 8 Recognized Activity Formats

FormatAction TypePractical Description
PostSocial OutreachA thoughtful LinkedIn article or thread in your own words.
WriteArticles / BlogsA blog post tailored to your specific audience, region, or vertical industry.
RecordVideo ProductionAn explainer tutorial, reaction video, or recorded customer story.
AdaptLocalizationTranslating and adapting existing Drupal stories for your local market and native language.
SpeakPublic SpeakingPresenting a session or lightning talk, particularly at non-Drupal events and industry meetups.
PodAudio / DiscussionHosting an episode or appearing as a guest on relevant podcasts.
Show your workCase StudiesPublishing a customer or project story demonstrating modern Drupal solving real business problems.
TeachEducationDelivering tutorials, live demos, or code walkthroughs illustrating platform capabilities in action.

6. Practical Walkthrough: Amplifying Keynotes & Sessions

A core emphasis of the program is ensuring high-value conference content is not delivered once and forgotten. Instead, advocates should repurpose and extend keynote materials.

View source diagram
 [ Conference Keynote / Session ]
               |
               +---> Clip short video moments (e.g., YouTube Shorts, Reels)
               |
               +---> Write a technical summary or blog article
               |
               +---> Localize into regional languages
               |
               +---> Present as a lightning talk at local tech meetups

Best Practice Rules for Amplification:

  1. Pass it on: Share the insight with an audience that didn't attend the conference.
  2. Name the speaker: Always attribute the original speaker and project team (e.g., attributing Pamela Barone's talk on Drupal CMS).
  3. Link to the original: Provide a direct link to the recorded keynote or source repository.

Pilot Asset Materials (from Rotterdam / Con Keynotes):

You can extract talking points and case studies from the official source kits, including:

  • Metis / World Cancer Day case study video
  • Drupal Canvas case study
  • Drupal 11 / Modern Drupal AI capabilities

7. Submission Guidelines & Quality Standards

To maintain integrity and prevent astroturfing, all submissions must satisfy two core criteria:

Rule 1: Good Content vs. Self-Promotion

  • Mention Limits: You may mention your own organization once.
  • Logo Restrictions: Company logos can appear for a maximum of 1.5 seconds.
  • Contextual Role: Your company's work may appear only as evidence supporting the overarching Drupal theme, not as the primary pitch.
    • Eligible: A customer story demonstrating Drupal managing AI agents in production.
    • Ineligible: A general commercial services pitch with a promotional hashtag appended.
  • Licensing & Branding: Attribute all source material accurately and comply with the Dries Use and brand guidelines.

Rule 2: Proof vs. Claim

  • Verifiability: Claims must be supported by verifiable proof:
    • A deployed real-world case study.
    • An article published in an established external publication.
    • A verifiable, functioning code demo.
    • A recorded conference presentation.
  • Accuracy: Content must reflect real platform experience. If a source kit claim conflicts with direct experience, community members are encouraged to flag discrepancies rather than publish unverified assertions.

8. Where to Distribute Advocacy Content

Contributions are eligible across a broad range of distribution channels:

View source diagram
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------+
|                       ELIGIBLE DISTRIBUTION CHANNELS                     |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| * Professional Social: LinkedIn, Bluesky, Mastodon, X, Reddit            |
| * Video & Audio Platforms: YouTube, Podcasts                             |
| * Developer Communities: dev.to, Hashnode, Medium                        |
| * Self-Hosted: Personal blogs, Agency / Company blogs                    |
| * External Publications: Regional tech media, industry verticals        |
| * Events: Meetup stages, non-Drupal tech conferences, lightning talks    |
| * Localized Forums: Non-English Drupal community sites and forums        |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------+

9. Step-by-Step: Submitting Advocacy Work for Credit

Follow this procedure to claim contribution credits for your advocacy activities:

Step 1: Navigate to the Official Intake Portal

Visit:

Diagram
https://drupal.org/advocacy

(Also accessible via links distributed in the official Drupal Slack)

Step 2: Prepare Submission Data

Ensure you have the following information ready before opening the submission form:

  1. Full Name
  2. Drupal.org Username
  3. URL Link directly to the published work (article, video, social thread, meetup schedule)
  4. Guideline Confirmation: Affirmation that the content follows the Good Content vs. Self-Promotion and Proof vs. Claim rules.
  5. Impact Summary (1–2 sentences): Clearly articulate:
    • Who is the target audience for this piece?
    • What original value or localization did you add to the material?

Step 3: Complete Evaluation

  • Submissions are reviewed against program guidelines.
  • Upon validation, contribution credits are credited to your personal Drupal.org profile and associated organization.
  • Note on Future Roadmap: The Drupal Association plans to automate more of this workflow over time, including direct API-based credit submissions to eliminate friction.

10. Community Call to Action

View source diagram
===========================================================================
                                TALK LOUDER!
===========================================================================
  "If you find it interesting, somebody else will find it interesting too.
   Help somebody else's work reach the people who need it.
   Start today at drupal.org/advocacy."
===========================================================================
The Rotterdam Pilots

“Let’s start right now — and I mean right now, in this room”

LIVE FROM THE STAGE

“Turn to your neighbor for thirty seconds and ask the question: what should we amplify from this Driesnotes? I’ll give you thirty seconds — go!”

… (a wave of chatter rolls through the room) …

“All right, I’m going to pull you back in. That was pretty amazing, the wave of chatter that came over this room. We’re going to call this the Rotterdam Pilots — because we’re in Rotterdam.”

“Let’s see if we can get maximal reputational benefit from this DrupalCon — from my keynote, from other people’s amazing presentations. Share your takeaways on social media or with one person in your network who could benefit. Do some YouTube Shorts, blog about it — all the things.”

“Tomorrow we have amazing keynotes and users telling their success stories — World Cancer Day and Mars. Let’s all be there, and let’s amplify them, because these are stories so many people need to know.”

Dries Buytaert
The new motto

If Rotterdam says “stop talking, start working”,
Drupal now says: start talking louder
about what is working.

“A few years ago I was worried we weren’t moving fast enough. But Drupal CMS re-ignited our innovation — we’re back. Our innovation energy is very, very high. Drupal is now light-years ahead of its own reputation. It’s a lovely problem to have — but now we need more people to see how far Drupal has come.”

“We know we can innovate — now we need to inspire others. We know we can create — now we must get the credit for it. We know we can deliver — now we need the reputation we deserve. I want people outside this room to be as excited about Drupal as we are in this room. Talk louder. Help fix our reputation gap. There’s so much here to be proud of — and I can’t wait to hear your stories. Thank you very much.”

Start today at drupal.org/advocacy ↗ Play with Drupal AI ↗