IPS Board Meeting in Tenerife, Canary Islands

[bgl]

Once a year the IPS has a Board Meeting. On those years when we have a Biennial ("even" years) the meeting always takes place on the day of the Welcome Dinner. Typically from about 9 am to 5 pm and then the Welcome Dinner for all the participants an hour later. On the "in between" years, the Board Meeting is generally just for the Directors and spouses & partners even though we usually do have a few guests as well. A Biennial is a big event with a couple of hundred people. The "in between" meetings are small and intimate and never with more than 35 people or so. Generally, the Board meeting is on a Friday, and then we spend the weekend visiting various gardens. In 2007 we met in San Francisco and in 2009 we met in Belize. Both were great locations. This year we will meet at Hotel Botanico in Puerto de la Cruz on the island of Tenerife in the Canary Islands. Toby Spanner, Vice President of the IPS, has been instrumental in organizing this event, with the help of Carlo Morici.

There are a total of 31 Directors, worldwide, and 20 are signed up to participate in the meeting in Tenerife. I am currently in the process of preparing the Agenda for the Board meeting and would like to invite anyone who may have something of interest to add it here in this thread. If it's an important issue, I will be happy to include it in the Agenda. And if there are questions in general about the Board Meeting, I will be happy to answer those!

Bo-Göran

[PALM MOD]

Once a year the IPS has a Board Meeting. On those years when we have a Biennial ("even" years) the meeting always takes place on the day of the Welcome Dinner. Typically from about 9 am to 5 pm and then the Welcome Dinner for all the participants an hour later. On the "in between" years, the Board Meeting is generally just for the Directors and spouses & partners even though we usually do have a few guests as well. A Biennial is a big event with a couple of hundred people. The "in between" meetings are small and intimate and never with more than 35 people or so. Generally, the Board meeting is on a Friday, and then we spend the weekend visiting various gardens. In 2007 we met in San Francisco and in 2009 we met in Belize. Both were great locations. This year we will meet at Hotel Botanico in Puerto de la Cruz on the island of Tenerife in the Canary Islands. Toby Spanner, Vice President of the IPS, has been instrumental in organizing this event, with the help of Carlo Morici.

There are a total of 31 Directors, worldwide, and 20 are signed up to participate in the meeting in Tenerife. I am currently in the process of preparing the Agenda for the Board meeting and would like to invite anyone who may have something of interest to add it here in this thread. If it's an important issue, I will be happy to include it in the Agenda. And if there are questions in general about the Board Meeting, I will be happy to answer those!

Bo-Göran

As Bo is aware, I have penned a "PalmTalk Report" to the Directors summarizing the status of PalmTalk. In it I have highlighted the 10 fold growth over the past four years, and what I feel I need to prepare PalmTalk for the ever accelerating growth and server/bandwidth demands of the very near future. The bottom line is PalmTalk will soon be requiring more resources, and I have appealed to the Directors to realize the value of PalmTalk to the IPS and the palm community, and requested those additional resources.

So if you value and wish to support PalmTalk, you can make that known to the Directors. Unfortunately, most do not visit here, or realize the importance I feel it deserves. So in other words, don't take it for granted. Let your thoughts be known to them.

[Cindy Adair]

Once a year the IPS has a Board Meeting. On those years when we have a Biennial ("even" years) the meeting always takes place on the day of the Welcome Dinner. Typically from about 9 am to 5 pm and then the Welcome Dinner for all the participants an hour later. On the "in between" years, the Board Meeting is generally just for the Directors and spouses & partners even though we usually do have a few guests as well. A Biennial is a big event with a couple of hundred people. The "in between" meetings are small and intimate and never with more than 35 people or so. Generally, the Board meeting is on a Friday, and then we spend the weekend visiting various gardens. In 2007 we met in San Francisco and in 2009 we met in Belize. Both were great locations. This year we will meet at Hotel Botanico in Puerto de la Cruz on the island of Tenerife in the Canary Islands. Toby Spanner, Vice President of the IPS, has been instrumental in organizing this event, with the help of Carlo Morici.

There are a total of 31 Directors, worldwide, and 20 are signed up to participate in the meeting in Tenerife. I am currently in the process of preparing the Agenda for the Board meeting and would like to invite anyone who may have something of interest to add it here in this thread. If it's an important issue, I will be happy to include it in the Agenda. And if there are questions in general about the Board Meeting, I will be happy to answer those!

Bo-Göran

As Bo is aware, I have penned a "PalmTalk Report" to the Directors summarizing the status of PalmTalk. In it I have highlighted the 10 fold growth over the past four years, and what I feel I need to prepare PalmTalk for the ever accelerating growth and server/bandwidth demands of the very near future. The bottom line is PalmTalk will soon be requiring more resources, and I have appealed to the Directors to realize the value of PalmTalk to the IPS and the palm community, and requested those additional resources.

So if you value and wish to support PalmTalk, you can make that known to the Directors. Unfortunately, most do not visit here, or realize the importance I feel it deserves. So in other words, don't take it for granted. Let your thoughts be known to them.

As I am one of those palmtalk enthusiasts (who joined IPS as well) in the last four years, I'd be glad to write regarding my support for additional resources. If this note is sufficient for you to pass on to them, feel free. If not, please let me know if I should contact them electronically through the IPS website or snail mail. Thanks for all the work you do to make this online location my favorite plant site. Yes, I do support advertisers/members who sell plants from this site.---Cindy

[bgl]

Hi Cindy,

Thanks for taking the time! Much appreciated. Dean makes some excellent points and it's very important that all of this gets discussed at the Board Meeting, exactly two weeks from today. I will simply do a Copy of your comments above and include them with my presentation. If you want to add or change anything to what you mentioned above, simply send me a PM. Any time between now and Sunday evening (Oct 2nd).

Again, thanks a lot!

Bo-Göran

[Ken Johnson]

This is BIG news Bo. I will get the posse together and let everyone be aware. Do you realize that you may have to give the BOD many more comments about PalmTalk if this post goes viral?

I have spoken to Dean in depth about PalmTalk because I support him and the IPS presence on line. I see it as a part of our future. He has prepared a report to the BOD asking them to approve moving forward with a bigger and better PalmTalk.

This could only be a good thing!

[bgl]

Ken,

I'll be perfectly happy if this thread goes viral, and I have every intention of stressing the importance of PalmTalk when I make the presentation at the Board meeting. Dean's report and comments will be of great help. In addition to that, any kind of support, or words of support, will be greatly appreciated. Emphasizing the importance (to the IPS) of PalmTalk has always been one of my main objectives. Anything and everything that will help me do that is a step in the right direction!

Bo-Göran

[Lowey]

I may be to late comment Bo, but over the last three or four years I have spoken to many people on Palm Talk who only joined the IPS after lurking on Palm Talk for some time, I was one of them and I think the BOD needs to realize just how potentially important Palm Talk is to IPS membership growth.

[bgl]

Thanks Bruce! That is indeed one of the points I really stress at every Board meeting. The website is great and PALMS is great but PalmTalk is really our window to the world. The interactive and very social aspect of PalmTalk is unique and very valuable.

Bo-Göran

[ellidro]

I have been a member of palmtalk a little over the four year mark but I would definitely say palmtalk contributed directly to me joining the IPS. Palmtalk has also allowed me the opportunity to meet people and visit gardens in other parts of the worlds i would have otherwise never seen. This is a great site and needs the funding to keep it going.

[CardiffPalmNut]

Bo - I know this is a little late, but the reason I joined the IPS was because of my "lurking" on palmtalk. I can echo everything that others here have said, but bottom line, palmtalk is probably the best advertising that the IPS has.

[bgl]

Ellidro and CardiffPalmNut,

Those are excellent comments - thanks a lot! And it's not too late. I am not leaving until early next week and even though I won't be able to incorporate any additional comments in the printed Agenda, which will go the printer today, I can still make a note of them and read them at the Board Meeting.

Again, thanks!

Bo-Göran

[John in Andalucia]

For international members, I feel PalmTalk is a window to the IPS. For those living with their palm collections and little else, forum life is essential to feeling a part of the latest palm garden tour or biennial coverage. With fellow enthusiasts in Australia, Florida, Hawaii and SE Asia, members in less "palm-rich" locations receive not only an education, but advice and friendship along the way. PalmTalk is the Open University of palm cultivation, and it opens doors, it's as simple as that.

Dean, I fully support the notion of PalmTalk being cutting edge in terms of resources, including the latest features too!

[Cindy Adair]

For international members, I feel PalmTalk is a window to the IPS. For those living with their palm collections and little else, forum life is essential to feeling a part of the latest palm garden tour or biennial coverage. With fellow enthusiasts in Australia, Florida, Hawaii and SE Asia, members in less "palm-rich" locations receive not only an education, but advice and friendship along the way. PalmTalk is the Open University of palm cultivation, and it opens doors, it's as simple as that.

Dean, I fully support the notion of PalmTalk being cutting edge in terms of resources, including the latest features too!

Beautifully put and I agree with everything!I'm hoping to attend the Biennial and I NEVER would have considered it without Palmtalk.

[bgl]

John,

Like Cindy said, perfectly expressed! Thank you VERY MUCH! And Cindy, thank you again for those comments. They mean a lot. I intend to have all these positive comments available for the Directors at the Board meeting on Friday next week. So, more is definitely better! Anything posted here between now and Monday, October 10th, WILL be part of what I will make available to the Directors. I MAY be able to log on from the Business Center at Hotel Botanico next Thursday, but no guarantees of that.

Bo-Göran

[Alberto]

For international members, I feel PalmTalk is a window to the IPS. For those living with their palm collections and little else, forum life is essential to feeling a part of the latest palm garden tour or biennial coverage. With fellow enthusiasts in Australia, Florida, Hawaii and SE Asia, members in less "palm-rich" locations receive not only an education, but advice and friendship along the way. PalmTalk is the Open University of palm cultivation, and it opens doors, it's as simple as that.

Dean, I fully support the notion of PalmTalk being cutting edge in terms of resources, including the latest features too!

Beautifully put and I agree with everything!I'm hoping to attend the Biennial and I NEVER would have considered it without Palmtalk.

I´d never heard about IPS and Biennials if it wasn´t Palmtalk.

Palmtalk is a window to the palm world!

[Stevetoad]

I only joined the IPS because of palm talk. I felt guilty that I was getting so much enjoyment out of the site for free. I love palmtalk and I know that the IPS will get many more members because of it. Now that I have joined the IPS it great! Keep palmtalk going!!!!

[bgl]

Alberto and Steve,

Thanks a LOT! This is EXACTLY the kind of feedback that will be very useful! Please keep it coming! EVERYTHING will be part of my PalmTalk presentation. To emphasize how important PalmTalk is to the IPS. This is priceless! And thanks Ken for starting that thread in the main section!

Bo-Göran

[Walter John]

You all know me, I am a long term member of palmtalk. I cannot emphasize enough the importance that PT has on Palm tree information/knowledge sharing. I have read so many many times of how members are surprised at finding another palm to collect and grow on hearing about it the first time within Palmtalk threads.

Let's look at that analogy for a second, "PalmTalk threads" are what binds the whole International Palm community together in far more reaching means than any other method in this day and age, the age of technology. This should be, nay this must be embraced by IPS and promoted even further. I am preparing to go to the IPS biennial in Thailand next year and would never have discovered the benefits of attending without Palmtalk reports on previous biennials.

You won't find in text books or wikipedia, how palm trees look and are affected when planted in this climate or that climate, whether it can sustain this much cold or that much heat etc etc. But you will find out here in PT.

As to the friends I have made on Palmtalk, well maybe this is not really a matter for the IPS to be concerned about, but I can tell you with absolute truth and honesty that people from different countries and different backgrounds, from across the globe, have been joined in a common passion, and become an international family, which I am so very proud to be a part of. I haven't worded that correctly but basically for me personally, the world has become a warmer and happier place, thanks to Palmtalk. We are saving palm trees and saving humanity at the same time.

[DoomsDave]

Though my IPS membership pre-dates the website, the rise of the website also followed the rise of my interest in palms, the IPS and Palm Society of Southern California.

Many IPS members do not have the time or means to attend meetings in the wonderful locales that the IPS meets in (unless it happens to be a "home" meeting . . ) but PalmTalk renders that less of a concern.

Learning about the Biennials on Palmtalk -- the best place to learn -- makes me want to go when the time and funds do permit. Without PalmTalk, I feel safe saying that I would not care as much, nor would many other members. Getting to know people a bit on PalmTalk, I want to meet them in-person, at a Biennial or other IPS formal or informal function.

While the IPS is about education, science and knowledge relating to palms, those things are fostered more fully by the "real time" interaction that only an online community can provide. Whenever I have a question about palm taxonomy, culture, pests, diseases, etc., I can ask on Palmtalk and get a good answer, often nearly immediately. The best part is, everyone can participate, from kids to elders, and all in between.

On Palmtalk, I've become friends with people literally all over the world, from California, to FLorida, to England, Holland, Russia, Croatia, Greece, Italy, South Africa, Saudi Arabia, India, Thailand, Mexico, France, Germany, Peru, Brazil, the Phillipines, Australia, and Hawaii. AND! Oklahoma, Wisconsin, Washington, Louisiana, Maryland, Ohio, New York, South Carolina, Kansas, Poland, and many other places.

Through Palmtalk, I've been able to easily share the bounty of some of my seeding palms, especially Sabal minor and Chamadorea radicalis. I'm glad to say I've sent little packets of joy worldwide, all thanks to PalmTalk.

AND! I've gotten some exquisite packets of joy from all over the world myself, also thanks to Palmtalk. Mule palms from Florida, Cocothrinax seeds from Cuba, Florida, etc., and many many others. Many of these plants grace my garden today, too many to list.

AND! When people from up the street become members, they come to visit you.

As a member of numerous online communities, this is far and away the best I know.

David Paul Bleistein, La Habra, California, USA

[Jeff in St Pete]

Bo, if PalmTalk ever shuts down, I would not renew my IPS membership. PalmTalk keeps us connected with the IPS on a daily basis and makes us feel "part of" something. Just about everything I learned about palms (including botanical names) I learned here on PT. This is the most valuable resource that the IPS provides and it would be a real shame if the board of directors do not realize that.

[sarasota alex]

Palmtalk has become an important part of my life. I also understand that maintaining it costs money. If that becomes an issue I would personally support increasing the annual IPS membership fee to save this forum.

[DoomsDave]

Palmtalk has become an important part of my life. I also understand that maintaining it costs money. If that becomes an issue I would personally support increasing the annual IPS membership fee to save this forum.

I agree!

[bgl]

Wow, what a response! I love it! This is what we need! Wal, Dave, Jeff and Alex, thanks a LOT! Wal and Dave - lots to think about in your posts, I really appreciate it. And Dave, I believe that's the longest post I have ever seen from you! That's meant in a good way!

Again, thanks a lot, and I would love to see more. And again, thanks Ken for getting the ball rolling. I know you were very instrumental!

Bo-Göran

[Tassie_Troy1971]

Palmtalk is a VITAL tool for worldwide knowledge, conservation and appreciation of palms .

If it wasn't for palm talk i would only have 5 species in my garden and would not have joined the IPS ! It is one of the best mediums around for the International palm society .

One thing for sure is i have hade some lifelong friends and mentors from this forum , the 2 Tassie members Sol and Jonathan , Colin Wilson , and all the wonderful people i met in California . Not to mention the Aussies i have traded with online . Wal , Peachy , Pedro , Tyrone . etc

Troy

[The Silent Seed]

Everybody has made great comments, and basically I would say the same thing. I found PalmTalk/IPS because I was looking for a forum to discuss Palms, and where else, other than Palmtalk could I do this, and share information, and learn, and teach? I've been car-shopping this week, and that made me think of an analogy - Think of the IPS as a showroom, and without Palmtalk, that showroom would have no cars in it, no salespeople, no customers. Palmtalk is what puts "SOCIETY" in the Int'l Palm Society.

Jude

[bgl]

Troy and Jude,

Thanks a lot for your thoughts and comments. And great analogy, Jude! I like it!

Bo-Göran

[CharlieM]

Troy and Jude,

Thanks a lot for your thoughts and comments. And great analogy, Jude! I like it!

Bo-Göran

Bo:

I support all the comments made by all the respondents for the continued support of Palmtalk. I would add that Palmtalk is a live book of knowledge that can be instantly recalled by anyone on almost any issue. Perhaps as money may be the basic issue at hand maybe it is time to discuss that the quarterly publication Palms becomes strictly a electronic publication, this would save considerable amount of money in printing and postage and allow for directing some funds to Palmtalk.

Charlie Maas

[Daryl]

I know it's an old cliche' but the Internet is the future Palmtalk is part of that future. As future generations of young palm enthusiasts (or anybody who is a young, keen gardener or collector) look for information or a place to exchange ideas and knowledge, they will look to the Internet, and Palmtalk in particular. This site is so full of palm knowledge it is fantastic! We all love our gardens and also the enjoyment of face to face contact at our local meetings and outings, but for our daily fix of 'what's happening in the palm world' we all come to Palmtalk. There are many palmtalk participants that have become sucked into this wonderful collective of knowledge and friendship. The existence of Palmtalk will be the best form of promotion of the IPS and its values for future generations of palm enthusiasts. It is essential that the IPS Board of Directors and members value and promote this site, add more functionality and continuously improve its features, to attract new members and keep existing members informed. I also agree with previous comments that it is a great community forum and promotes palms and their culture more widely than any other medium.

Daryl

[peachy]

Well I guess it's my turn to speak up. Palmtalk has enabled me to get seeds from palms previously not in this country to my knowledge or very very rare if they were. I have traded palms with people from one end of Australia to the other, giving and receiving palms that we would normally not be able to obtain. One would presume that the main objective of the International Palm Society is to promote the distribution and breeding of rare palms, and enable further education of the enthusiast and professional alike. Palmtalk is invaluable for me as one who lives in a non optimal palm growing enviroment. I have learnt so much from this forum and what I have learned enables me to grow successfully more species than I ever thought possible. It is for this reason alone that I became an IPS member, to help with the funding for Palmtalk and keep it going. As a non american member I dont get the magazine sent to me so without the forum I wouldnt even get the IPS logo beside my name on things I post online. I really cant see the value in that. Attending biennials etc is fine for those with the time, energy and money available to do so, beyond me on all three counts. Palmtalk is the forum for palm enthusiasts and others like myself who hadn't even heard of the IPS before we joined. The IPS has a responsibility to fund the forum adequately so it can be utilised to its full extent. Without it, the IPS would become an elitist organisation with only a few privileged people involved with it. The board of directors should note that we dont all have bags of money, dont all reside in the USA and arent always living in ideal climatic regions for our palm obsession.

Peachy

[tank]

Bo,

I did not know that the IPS existed until I started frequenting this forum. I've been a member now for 5 years. Also, the majority of the palms that I now own were purchased using connections made on this forum. It has been invaluable for me, both to satisfy my collecting bug and to greatly expand my knowledge on the family Arecaceae. THANKS

[Patricia-CR]

I cannot imagine IPS existing without PT. It is the place to learn through others opinions and experiences with palms. It is the hands-on palms place from around the world that even the best books will miss. It's an international 24/7 learning place, but as learning should be done: with interest, fun, sharing, counseling. As I see it, PT is the core to the IPS.

[Mandrew968]

With the way modern society is, Palmtalk has much more exposure than the IPS does. If you look up anything palm related, on google, then you know what first pops up. After seeing Palmtalk so many times on my palm knowledge searching, I eventually signed up and then signed up for the IPS. The friends that I have made on this site are certainly priceless!

[bgl]

Charlie, Daryl, Peachy, Jason, Patricia and Andy - thank you VERY much for taking the time to post your thoughts! Again, very much appreciated, and the Directors will be able to read all these comments a week from today in Tenerife. I am doing a Copy and Paste of all comments, and will have enough copies printed up to hand out to everyone present. Will make for excellent reading, as well as understanding how many of you see PalmTalk!

Again, many thanks!

Bo-Göran

[Texeltropics]

hello everyone

I realy want to say something about this too..

since 2007 I visit Palmtalk. In my opinion palmtalk is THE forum with the best knownledge from palms all over the world. I read every day on palmtalk. I talk almost every day on the chat with people from all over the world.

We all share the same passion. Because of palmtalk I became a member of IPS....

So...i think palmtalk is for many of us part of life...and i hope i can keep visiting Palmtalk for years and years...

esther from holland...

[bgl]

Hi Esther,

Thanks a lot for your comments! They are much appreciated!

Aloha,

Bo-Göran

[PalmatierMeg]

I joined PalmTalk in Jan. 2008 after doing the "lurking" thing for several months during which I was amazed at the wealth of knowledge about palms and their care I found here. Shortly thereafter I joined IPS because, I figured, if I was serious about growing, saving and promoting palms I had to give them and the organization named for them more support than hot air. But I may never have learned of IPS if I hadn't stumbled across PT while doing an internet search. Ultimately we're all here for the palms, cycads and other endangered plants. That's the word I'd like to get to the BOD. And PT provides a vital cyberspace forum for bringing together people worldwide who also care. If that mission requires more resources, so be it.

[bgl]

Meg,

Great comments! Thanks a lot!

Bo-Göran

[DoomsDave]

Hmm

Palmtalk is the IPS

[DoomsDave]

Okay.

One more thing.

PalmTalk has also been a catalyst for altruism.

Some of our posters have had troubles, some non-palm-related, and our members have helped, with money, or at least sympathy.

Without PT, no one would have had a clue, till it was too late to do anything.

Had a crazed housemate who cut down my prize trunking Dypsis letpocheilos, and PT members pitched in for a new one. I've still got it, and I will keep it till either it dies or I do.

Maybe if we all acted like we do on PalmTalk, the world might be a better place . . . .

[bgl]

Dave,

In the big scheme of things those are all excellent points but they are not going to be the determining factor when the Board decides how much money to allocate for PalmTalk. But you are are correct - this aspect is extraordinary and something we don't want to lose.

Bo-Göran