Learning from the global cloud native community
Before KCD Sri Lanka 2025, our organizing team received an incredible opportunity to attend and speak at KubeCon events for the very first time.
Our organizers Chamod Perera, Kemila De Silva, and Suresh attended KubeCon India 2024, experiencing firsthand the scale, energy, and community spirit of a global CNCF event.
In 2025, Chamod and Kemila, returned to the same event, this time as speakers at KubeCon India 2025, delivering a talk on lessons learned from lessons from running a Cloud Native community. Kaveesha also joined KubeCon India 2025, adding further perspectives to our growing pool of experience.
These experiences did more than inspire us. They reshaped how we thought about conference design, speaker diversity, networking spaces, and attendee experience.
Bringing KubeCon level energy to KCD Sri Lanka
Armed with global exposure and years of community-building experience, we returned to Sri Lanka determined to raise the bar. KCD Sri Lanka 2025 was not just another local conference. It was a carefully crafted experience that blended global best practices with local community culture.
We did not just bring insights back from KubeCon + CloudNativeCon. We brought people, speakers, and connections from those global events into KCD Sri Lanka. This resulted in a richer program, broader perspectives, and stronger networking opportunities for everyone who attended.
Introducing the breakout room concept
Our boldest experiments at KCD Sri Lanka 2025 was the introduction of breakout rooms. While the main hall hosted primary talks, a second hall ran deeper and more technical sessions in parallel.
Initially, we were unsure how the Sri Lankan audience would respond but several attendees told us that it felt very similar to the KubeCon experience.
That feedback alone made the risk worthwhile.
A strong CFP and an exceptional lineup
We received over 100 CFPs, which was a massive achievement of our community.
With such an overwhelming response, we faced the incredibly difficult task of shortlisting those submissions down to just 20 exceptional talks. Every selection required careful discussion, and the process itself showed how far the community has come in terms of depth and quality.
The final lineup was truly magnificent. We had leaders from local tech giants sharing real-world production experiences, and we were honored to host outstanding international speakers as well. Some of these speakers had recently presented at major global events such as KubeCon + CloudNativeCon, bringing global perspectives directly to the KCD Sri Lanka stage.
A lively and crowded booth area
The booth area was another highlight of the event. With nine booths set up, the space was constantly busy. Participants were networking, exploring technologies, and engaging with sponsors throughout the day. Some speakers even commented that the atmosphere felt like a mini KubeCon + CloudNativeCon, which was a proud moment for the entire organizing team.
Battle of DevOps: A first for the community
For the first time at a Sri Lankan conference, we organized a hackathon called Battle of DevOps.
What made it even more special was that our volunteers built the hackathon platform from scratch. We are now planning to donate this platform to CNCF so that other communities can reuse and benefit from it.
KCD arena and the Sri Lankan jam
We ended the event with KCD Arena. This created a relaxed environment for networking while enjoying live music and dinner. In a rare and joyful moment, members of the organizing committee joined the band and played instruments themselves.
It was less like a formal conference closing and more like a KCD Sri Lanka Jam, a celebration of community, collaboration, and shared passion.
Challenges and lessons learned
KCD Sri Lanka 2025 came with its own set of challenges. On the event day, the production setup was not delivered within the agreed timeline, and we also encountered issues with on-site event badge printing. These factors together caused a delay in the official start of the event.
While these situations were not ideal, they provided valuable lessons for future editions. For upcoming events, we plan to complete badge printing well in advance and introduce clearer contractual clauses with production vendors to ensure timely delivery of all setups.
Looking back
KCD Sri Lanka 2025 was the result of years of persistence, global learning, and local dedication. The lessons gained from KubeCon, and the willingness to experiment with new ideas all came together to shape the strongest KCD Sri Lanka we have organized so far.
We extend our sincere gratitude to Kanchana for his continued guidance, and to Audra, and the whole CNCF team for their constant support, trust, and encouragement throughout this journey.
What’s next for KCD Sri Lanka
While KCD Sri Lanka 2025 has concluded, the journey is far from over. The momentum, feedback, and learnings from this chapter have already sparked conversations within the organizing team about what the next edition could look like.
We have begun exploring ideas for the next KCD Sri Lanka, including expanding breakout sessions to allow for even more focused and deeply technical discussions, and continuing to experiment with interactive formats inspired by global Cloud Native events. These ideas are still evolving, and we are taking time to reflect carefully before applying for the next chapter.
For now, we will continue strengthening the Kubernetes Sri Lanka community through meetups, knowledge sharing, and collaboration, while quietly preparing for the next opportunity to bring everyone together again.