Attending a global tech conference had been on my to-do list for years. I considered attending either DjangoCon Europe 2026 or PyCon US 2026. Finally, I decided to go to Athens because I recently became an individual member of the Django Software Foundation and participated in Djangonaut Space. Now, I'll share my process for applying for a volunteer position and a travel grant.

Applying for Volunteer

During the past 2 years, I've attended PyCon KR but usually as a PyLadies Seoul booth organizer. So I wanted to do something a bit different. I thought volunteering in a foreign country would be really cool. It might be a challenge for me, but I have no doubts it will be meaningful. Another reason was the free ticket — volunteers get their conference fee waived. So I applied right away.

After a month, I received an invite to a Zulip group chat. Checking the conference timetable, I chose 3 slots in a day. There are some roles such as Reception manager, Room manager and Session host.

How to receive a grant for traveling to Athens

All potential attendees seeking financial support had to submit a grant request by March 2nd. I applied at the end of February. I explained why I should receive the grant, covering:

• DjangoCon Europe 2026 being my first global tech conference.
• Recent nomination for the Outstanding PyLady Award 2026.
• Django Open Source contribution journey during Djangonaut Space session 4.
• Desire to volunteer and join sprints.
• Plans to run a Django Open Source contribution workshop at PyLadies Seoul in April.
• The round-trip airfare from Seoul to Athens — there are no direct flights.

As a result, I got a response on March 24th that my application has been accepted :)

Since I had already booked my flights and accommodations, I got some of my expenses refunded. I tried using WISE but couldn't issue a WISE card in Korea. Instead, I chose TOSS BANK, a Korean online banking service. I asked the TOSS BANK customer service team about overseas payment. So I submitted an invoice PDF file including my account info, and ended up receiving some money. I came to know that a SWIFT code is needed for overseas payment and that the company name (sender) is essential in the invoice.

Thanks to DjangoCon Europe 2026 organizing team!

Yep, I hope this post will be helpful in the future.

Check your email frequently. And be patient. We live in different timezones.

You know what? I'm writing this on the plane ✈️
I'm so looking forward to meeting a lot of Django folks! Next, I'll share my experiences at DjangoCon Europe 2026.