Re: handouts at GWA talks

**"* R* B* <k*@gardendesigninc.com>**

I was not going to weigh in on this issue.  But it has continued.

I am an unabashed curmudgeon.  And it is with some pressure from me that GWA
has tried (up 'til now unsuccessfully!) to navigate the rocky shoals of
lecture handouts.

The "NEW" policy was drawn up based on the migraine-inducing trend at
national conferences for many speakers to expect the venue/hosts to
reproduce 20 double-sided pages of bulleted power point slides spit out by
their presentation.  There is no editing involved and there is definitely no
obvious use for the wasted materials.  I also resent any presenter that
telegraphs his/her presentation by reproducing all of the lecture slides as
a handout.  But that hasn't stopped them.  Nothing seems to be stopping
them--and the numbers are growing exponentially as this winter conference
season approaches.  

Everyone who has spoken to the need for handouts is not remembering the
number of handouts received that have gone straight to the land fill.  It's
the wastefulness of the concept that is the issue GWA is trying to address.
If you could limit any one speaker to only one page of content-driven,
edited, pithy copy, we would not be having this debate.

As much as I hate to say it, Powerpoint slide presentations have made this
an ugly situation.  There is no sense to the wasted reams of handouts I've
seen at conferences because it was easy for the speaker to push the
"Handout" button and easier yet for the promoters to reproduce it.  No one
is exercising sustainable practices in the thought process leading up to the
product.

If you can help me overcome my mental image of thousands of throw-away
pages, then we can continue to refine the process.

Kirk

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