Some of the delegates who attended the conference have written blogs. Not all were entirely complimentary, though the criticism was about content and not organisation.
Since I am the finance guy and not a geographer, I cannot really comment on content or direction of the conference. Except perhaps to say that with nearly 600 delegates, the content will not reflect everyone´s views on every occasion. And some of the quality of presentation was in my view a bit disappointing. But if the sessions have stimulated debate, then surely that is a good thing.
Yes the final session was a bit flat, and we will have to look at that for next year. How to conclude a conference on a high note is a difficult issue for us - especially as many delegates are keen to catch trains or to get home before dark. Keeping a buzz right up to the last minute is not easy.
From a personal viewpoint, I thought the conference went well. I had to come out of my confort zone as an accountant. I had to run the Icebreaker evening, attend a number of sessions, deliver the finance report and generally keep a profile that is a bit higher than I am used to. I was pleased at how well I acheived that.
I thought the AGI team and volunteers were exceptional. All took their responsibilities very seriously.
We will of course have a debrief. Next year we will strive to make the conference bigger and better. But to bring 600 delegates to Stratford, manage all of their arrangements, produce a conference of a high standard, and have many of them intending to return next year, is a considerable achievement.
I am happy with that as a reflection on the past three days.
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