Re: handouts at GWA talks

**M* D* <m*@gmail.com>**

While I don't attend GWA conferences any more (too many people in one
place for my temperament), I do attend small events/conferences with and
without handouts.
It's a cost issue, too. Paper and toner are not free.

 If given the choice I would always want the paper handouts and would be
willing
to express that preference at registration and pay an extra bit to get them.
Martha
http://allthedirtongardening.blogspot.com/

On Tue, Jan 3, 2012 at 8:30 AM, Judy Lowe <hardbackwryter@yahoo.com> wrote:

> Thanks, Lois, for your calm, reasonable response. Having been active in
> GWA since 1977 (!!), I know only too well how people gripe to and about HQ.
> But if Bob is the one who decided that (and here I'm quoting from the
> application form for speakers at the 2012 symposium)  "Handouts are a
> valuable reference for most presentations, and session handouts will be
> posted 'online only' in order to support the GWA sustainability policy,"
> I'll mention my reservations to him.
>
> I see both sides of this issue, but if many attendees count on printouts
> for one reason or another, handouts are not going to be sustainable no
> matter who prints them out -- GWA, the speaker, or members, so putting them
> online either means that GWA passes the sustainability question on to
> others (a cop-out), or handouts don't get used as people are used to using
> them. (Maybe we'll come up with a better way, but, as Nancy says, we're not
> there yet.) If people don't use them, that's a loss to speakers.
>
> I don't want to belittle the idea of sustainability, which is important to
> all of us on the planet, but I'm not sure implementing this idea was
> balanced against the advantages of having paper handouts for people paying
> a fair amount of money to attend a symposium.
>
> I think (I hope) I'm not just being a curmudgeon about this. I had one of
> the first IBM PCs made and ordered an iPhone the minute Apple made them
> available. I was one of the original members of the CompuServe garden
> writers forum back before there was a public Internet. I'm all in favor of
> the Q&T, the Directory, and communication from GWA being electronic. (I'm
> sure that saves us a lot of money, as well as being handy and susainable.)
> And if this "policy" of online-only handouts by speakers is upheld by the
> Board, I won't continue to gripe. But I'd love for the advantages (for
> sustainability) and disadvantages (to the members) to be discussed and
> weighed.
>
> Best,
> Judy Lowe
>
>
>
> ________________________________
>
>
> Message: 5
> Date: Sun, 1 Jan 2012 10:47:24 -0500
> From: loisdan@juno.com
> Subject: Re: [GWL] No handouts at GWA talks?
> To: hardbackwryter@yahoo.com,gardenwriters@lists.ibiblio.org
> Message-ID: <20120101.104724.3352.0.loisdan@juno.com>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
>
> Dear Judy,
>
> To clarify, the subject of the symposium handouts has never been
> discussed by the Sustainability Task Force, nor does the STF establish
> policies, which originate at a higher level. I think your comments would
> best be directed to Bob Lagasse and the National Board. Unfortunately
> Headquarters is in a no-win situation, criticized by some for not being
> sensitive enough to sustainability issues and by others for being "too
> sustainable."
>
> It may be of value to try to measure how the discontinuance of of paper
> handouts, Q&T, the Directory, etc. has impacted the membership, but I
> suspect we'll also run into cost issues.
>
> Personally, and not speaking for the STF, I share your frustration and
> feel that sometimes paper is better.
>
> Regards,
> Lois J. de Vries, Chair
> GWA Sustainability Task Force
> _______________________________________________
> gardenwriters mailing list
> gardenwriters@lists.ibiblio.org
> http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/gardenwriters
>
> Post gardening questions/threads to
> "Gardenwriters on Gardening" <gwl-g@lists.ibiblio.org>
>
> For GWL website and Wiki, go to
> http://www.ibiblio.org/gardenwriters
>
_______________________________________________
gardenwriters mailing list
gardenwriters@lists.ibiblio.org
http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/gardenwriters

Post gardening questions/threads to
"Gardenwriters on Gardening" <gwl-g@lists.ibiblio.org>

For GWL website and Wiki, go to
http://www.ibiblio.org/gardenwriters