by Mike Wilson
The last few weeks have been a flurry of activity as we prepare for the 2009 Congress to be held in Ft. Worth, Texas. Even with the global recession over 120 IFAJ guests are expected to be in Ft. Worth for our annual meeting July 30-Aug. 5.
They say everything seems bigger in Texas. That will ring true during this Congress. In all, over 600 agricultural media people will be there!
For those of you coming to Texas, you are probably checking the blog posts (www.ifaj2009.com) daily to find out what to pack, how to get to the hotel, or whether you should bring your laptops. Our colleagues in the states have set up a ‘buddy system’ to talk to every guest via email before the Congress begins. There are always so many questions when traveling to a Congress. I am tremendously proud of the way my colleagues here are doing everything they can to make sure the Congress goes smoothly.
This is going to be a special Congress for me. It will be my first as IFAJ President, but it will also be in my home country. Talking with Past President David Markey yesterday, we could not recall if that had ever happened before. And, it will be the first time in 14 years I’ll be attending a Congress with no jet lag!
This year the Congress takes place in conjunction with America’s Ag Media Summit, the largest gathering of crop and livestock professionals in the U.S. Thanks to this tie-in, the Congress will provide unique opportunities – tours, seminars, trade shows and interviewing opportunities that go beyond the usual scope of an IFAJ Congress. Sessions are open to all, with topics ranging from digital photography to ethics to electronic media.
Whenever I attend these professional development sessions I discover there are a lot of other journalists in the crowd who have the same questions I do. That is often the case no matter where you live or what kind of journalism you work in. You are likely to discover that your questions are shared by others. Here’s a chance to learn new ways to solve professional challenges.
The sun is rising on IFAJ right now, thanks to solid corporate sponsorship and dedicated individuals who volunteer to help the organization succeed. But we have so much more to do. If you are interested in helping IFAJ, let me know atmwilson(at)farmprogress.com. You can also find me on Facebook.com .
Next month I’ll tell you what the IFAJ is doing to help grow its membership around the world.
Mike Wilson, IFAJ President