September 26, 2007
Should Nonprofit Conferences Go Virtual?
Despite the many advances in communications technology, the traditional conference isn’t in danger of being replaced anytime soon, according to one nonprofit technology expert.
In the days before a large nonprofit technology gathering was held this year, a participant on a technology discussion list took the Nonprofit Technology Network, the organization holding the event, to task for being “so ‘20th century’ as to hold a conference people actually attended,” Gavin Clabaugh, vice president for information services at the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation, writes on his blog,
called Gavin’s Digital Diner.
“To put it personally — and curmudgeonly — there was no way in hell I’d be willing to attend a conference where I really wanted to be, with a virtual substitute,” he writes. “There are just some things you can’t do in WebEx. Those things are the reasons I actually go to conferences.”
Mr. Clabaugh says that tools like video conferencing and Second Life have value, but they can’t replace face-to-face interaction: “It’s the subtleties in interpersonal communications that make a conference a conference, and a meeting more than talking heads on an LCD screen.”
What do you think? Has your organization been able to use information technology to cut down on travel, or was there something missing?
— Nicole Wallace
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I’d like to see a blended strategy. There are lots of meetings and events that I go to with several hundred people. Few people get to ask questions. Few of the people actually meet each other. There could be someone sitting a couple of rows from you who you’d really like to meet, but you don’t know that because you don’t know who they are.
Thus, for the conference I host in Chicago I’ve created an attendee list which people can choose to be listed on as they register. This enables people to see who else is going to be at the conference, and even to send them a message, if they want to try to arrange a meeting. We keep it live after the event, so people can continue to network and put the ideas of the event, or conference to work. I’d like to see more people do this. You can see our list at http://www.tutormentorconference.org/RegistrationList/
I’ve also created on-line forums and blogs to try to engage people who attend the conference with each other, and to enable people who can’t come to my conference to connect with some of the people who did attend.
The goal is to build a community of people who work together to achieve long term goals. I think using the technology as part of this strategy is an advantage.
— Dan Bassill Sep 26, 10:55 PM #
Nicole, nice summary. While technology may have lots of advantages, it does not replace entirely the value of face-to-face interactions, a requisite for trusted collaborations and community. Nor, according to this post, does it cut down on impact on the environment: http://lmighton.wordpress.com/2007/09/26/carbon-offsets-for-second-life-avatars-or-internet-use/. It states that “ The Web 2.0 that connects so nicely people all over the world in an allegedly environmental friendly way seems to have a downside as well.
According to a newsletter of a Swiss IT magazine, the amount of data in the Internet doubles every four months. YouTube alone produces obviously as much traffic as the whole Internet two years ago. Not only all the home and office PC but also server farms need huge amounts of electricity. For Second Life alone 4000 servers are needed, and according to Nicolas Carr each avatar in Second Life needs more power than a real human being in Brasil. The production of electricity for the Internet produces reportedly more CO2 than the whole air traffic…”We here at NTEN do a lot online in our highly active online community, via webinars and online trainings, but in the end we do meet once a year to solidify our online ties. We believe that is, in part, why we have as strong as network as we do.
Best,
Katrin Verclas
NTEN: The Nonprofit Technology Network
— Katrin Verclas Sep 26, 11:16 PM #
Nicole,
Often, it is just not possible to meet in person, especially for those organizations that provide support on a global level. We have a number of nonprofit clients, like the Pan American Health Organization, who use live eLearning/web collaboration technology successfully for online/blended events and meetings. Here’s just one example:
http://www.elluminate.com/sales/casestudies/healthelearning.jsp.
Also, we have been working on some figures to determine the environmental impact of our technology. To do so, we deducted the carbon footprint of our data center and still came up with a significant net reduction for just three months of use.
You should also know that we offer Elluminate vRoom, a free, 3-seat version of our product. You can use as many rooms as you like for as long as you like. For more info, visit http://www.getvroom.com.
- Beth, Elluminate Goddess of Communication
— Beth Gallob Sep 27, 12:49 PM #