2016 Call for Presentations
International Conference on Heritage Interpretation
Tihei Mauri Ora
The story begins …
Conference Dates: Sunday April 3 - Thursday April 7
Location: Amora Hotel and Conference Center
Wellington, Aotearoa New Zealand
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Whaowhia te kete mātauranga – fill your
basket of knowledge
Tihei Mauri Ora
The story begins …
I am the story, the story is me. The story
is us, the story is we.
In the local traditions of Aotearoa
New Zealand’s indigenous people -
Māori – ‘Tihei Mauri Ora’ is a claim to
the right to speak. It is used to
emphasize the importance of what is
about to be said. It also refers to new
life and new ideas, new beginnings,
the beginning of understanding and
of wisdom; the wisdom of you, the
wisdom of me, the wisdom of us, the
wisdom of we.
Interpretation should always aim to
have something important to say.
Interpreters seek to capture visitors’
attention, to reveal new meanings
about our people, our places,
objects, cultures and living things.
The National Association for
Interpretation (NAI), in partnership
with Interpretation Network New
Zealand (INNZ), is proud to offer an
international conference in 2016. We
invite you to explore and share new
ways of presenting our stories; through
new techniques and technology, research, and new approaches to
working with local communities. How
do we maintain the integrity of place
and people in an ever-changing
world?
The story begins here.
Collaborate and network with your
peers at the joint international
conference of NAI and INNZ in
Wellington, Aotearoa New Zealand,
April 3-7 2016.
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Welcome to Wellington
Centrally situated at the base of Aotearoa New Zealand’s North Island - Te Ika a Maui,
Wellington has a reputation as “the friendliest little capital of the world.” New
Zealand’s third largest city, Wellington is home to nearly 200,000 residents, New
Zealand’s parliament, Victoria University, the world-renowned Museum of New Zealand
– Te Papa Tongarewa, and numerous other museums, parks, islands, and offers
opportunities for exploration.
The 2016 conference will be held right in the heart of Wellington’s business and retail
district, at the Amora Hotel and Conference Center. Across the street, Te Papa Museum
and the Wellington waterfront beckon with endless opportunities to find a quiet place
to enjoy the harbor, watch entertaining buskers (street artists), or enjoy cafés, brew
pubs, art galleries, or nature. Wellington is a very compact city, and is serviced with
easy to access public transport including the airport just 6 km away from downtown.
In the evenings, enjoy easy access to a wide variety of cuisine from around the world,
wander the Cuba Street night market, or sample some of New Zealand’s award winning
wines and craft beers.
If you want to get away to explore in your free time, Zealandia (pictured top right)
awaits where you can explore miles of trails and a unique native bird sanctuary just ten
minutes by bus from downtown. In addition there are thousands of hectares of parks
and trails to explore all within easy reach by public transport around the city.
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Conference Tracks
In addition to the conference theme,
seven tracks or streams have been
identified to help both presenters and
attendees find an area of interest or
focus. You are invited to select a
track most relevant to your proposal
or abstract. Experts in each of the
areas will review all proposals or
abstracts to select the best to present
at the conference.
If you aren’t sure which track to
select, or your presentation fits in
more than one stream, select the one
that works best for you.
If you have any questions about your
proposal or abstract please don’t
hesitate to contact the program
team at [email protected]
and we will connect you with the
track chair.
The following pages provide
descriptions for each of the
conference tracks, and details on
how and where to submit your
proposal or abstract.
The program review committee looks
forward to hearing from you and
seeing your ideas!
Exploring Emerging Trends and
Technology
From social media and grassroots
efforts to incredible exhibits and
architectural structures at our sites,
emerging trends and technologies
are shaping the future of
interpretation. What examples can
you share of new technologies being
successfully used in planning and
design? How can interpretation be
used in non-traditional settings, or
what new theories and
developments could benefit the
interpretive profession?
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Illuminating Research
What research are you or your
organization undertaking to increase
knowledge and understanding in
interpretation? What are the results
and implications for the interpretive
profession? What research is still
needed to ensure the interpretive
profession remains relevant?
Contributions to the research track
will undergo a peer-review process
consistent with academic
conference protocol.
Powerful Partnerships and
Collaborations
How do you forge partnerships or
collaborate with communities and
organizations? Sharing your successes
or challenges on engaging new
audiences or growing programs and
impacts can inspire others. How can
engaging in partnerships propel
interpretation forward?
Cultivating Leadership and
Development
Interpretation is sometimes seen as
that “feel good” element rather than
an important component to mission,
resulting in shrinking interpretation
budgets and elimination of positions,
while at other sites interpretation is
fully embraced and growing. In what
ways do you drive the role of
interpretation in your organization?
What stories of successes and
challenges can you share about
training, staff development, program
development, or managing
volunteers?
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Nurturing Guardianship
A fundamental goal of interpretation
is to encourage visitors to become
stewards of both natural and cultural
heritage and to extend conservation
ideals to their everyday lives. Does
your program make a difference?
How have you embraced something
new or adapted to grow new
audiences, or drive behavior
change? How do controversial issues
play a role at your site and how do
you seek to overcome them?
Engaging Living Collections
A large number of interpretive sites
have live plants, animals, birds, or fish.
How do you use your living collections
to tell a powerful story? In what new
and creative ways does your park,
garden, zoo, or aquarium engage
audiences?
Embracing Culture
Diversity and inclusion are playing a
growing role in how we engage
communities; decide who tells our
stories, and how those stories are told.
How do indigenous cultures choose
to tell interpretive stories? How are
sites and tourism engaging in
successful cross-cultural
communication and working to
increase diversity in programming
and visitation? What can be
improved in interpretation to engage
diverse and indigenous populations?
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Closing date for the Call for Presentations
will be
Midnight Central Daylight Time September
30, 2015
Call for Presentations Opens 12:01am Central Daylight time
Tuesday July 21, 2015
Apply online at http://www.interpnet.com/ic
or follow the link in the sidebar.
Instructions for Submitting your Proposal (For research abstracts – see pg 9) Session proposals will be submitted online.
You will be asked for a 40 word summary (to
be used in the program guide), a 300 word
description of the session (to be used by the
review committee), and contact information
for presenters. All abstracts should include:
- Type of presentation preferred (oral
presentation/poster or panel discussion)
- Title of the presentation
- Names, affiliations, and email addresses of
all authors/presenters/panelists, and
- Any specific equipment, facility, or timing
requests.
Presenter/Panelist Information Please identify all presenters in your proposal
and note that all presenters must register for
the conference by December 15 for your
session to be confirmed.
Major Points to be Covered Learning objectives must be identified for all
presentations that are measurable and
relevant to your presentation. Proposals that
do not include objectives will not be
accepted.
Please indicate what your audio-visual needs
will be. All rooms will be automatically
equipped with projectors, flipcharts, and
markers, however you will be required to
provide your own laptop. Anything additional
may come at an additional fee that needs to
be identified ahead of time.
Presentation Formats
Oral Presentations
Oral presentations will be scheduled throughout the conference program.
Presentations may take one of the following
formats:
25-minute presentation – structured discussion
or presentation based on a single, focused
topic.
60-minute presentation or panel discussion –
allowing for a deeper dive into a topic, this
time length is ideal for multi-speaker
presentations, this could also include ad
interactive round table discussion with a
moderator. Panel discussions are also being
accepted this year to encourage additional
ways for delegates to share new knowledge
or findings. Please note that the moderator of
the panel discussion will be responsible for
ensuring that all panelists (no more than
three) register for the conference and for all
details of the session.
90-minute mini-workshop – Do you have a
presentation that is interactive and involves
your audience, and could do with a little
extra time? Consider proposing your session
as a mini-workshop.
Posters
Poster presentations will be held in a separate
poster session. All presenters will be at this
session, and have the opportunity to discuss
their work with conference delegates. Posters
are an excellent way to present new
concepts, ideas, and programs. Full details
will be provided with the acceptance of a
paper as a poster presentation.
Submit your proposal/abstract
here
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Innovative, inspiring, motivating, and
educational – make your proposal stand
out!
Evaluation and Notification
How are proposals evaluated?
All proposals will be assessed by members of
the program selection committee using the
following criteria:
- Overall quality of the proposal (clearly
articulated and well presented)
- Focused and well-defined topic
- Important or timely topic
- Relevance to the interpretive profession
- Practical application of material
- Applicability to an international audience
- Effectiveness of learning objectives
When will I be notified about my submission?
You will receive notification by mid-October
on the status of your proposal. If your
acceptance is contingent on revisions, you
will have two weeks to make those changes
and send the amended proposal back to the
committee. The program committee will
identify specific timeslots for presentations.
Developing a Strong Proposal
NAI’s international conference draws a
diverse audience from around the world, and
from many facets of the interpretive
profession. Attendees are likely to include
front line interpreters, planners, trainers,
managers and personnel from private or
public organizations. Ensuring your
presentation is relevant to a wide audience is
key.
Feedback received from previous
conference attendees have indicated that
they are less interested in “show and tell”
presentations and find more engagement
with presentations that share information on
the “how” and “why” that they can take
back to their job or organization and
implement.
The 2016 international conferences seeks to
identify the most inspiring, motivating, and
innovative educational content possible.
Ensuring your proposal addresses all of the
criteria, matches the audience and includes
appropriate objectives will help your proposal
succeed.
Questions?
Who should present at the NAI/INNZ
International Conference?
Anyone with an interest in presenting or
providing any form of interpretation for their
organization or industry niche. Educators and
researchers are also encouraged to submit
an abstract which describe studies related to
the field of interpretation. Attendees come
from a range of interpretation contexts
including from zoos, aquaria, museums, tour
operators, science centers, natural and
cultural heritage sites and more. You need
not be a member of NAI or INNZ in order to
submit a proposal, however, you will be given
the opportunity to purchase an annual
membership as part of your registration fee.
Where do I submit my proposal/abstract?
You can find the submission portal at
www.interpnet.com/ic and click on the link.
Can I make changes to my submissions?
Yes – you can alter, or withdraw your
submission any time up until midnight (CDT)
September 30, 2015.
Should you have any difficulty with the
proposal submission site, or have any
questions – please email us at
Submit your proposal/abstract
here
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If you are planning to present academic or
organization-based research, please read
this section.
Information for Illuminating Research Track
Delegates wishing to present academic or
research papers (or poster) will need to
submit an abstract by September 15 2015.
These abstracts will undergo a double blind
peer-review process to ensure high-quality
contributions to the conference. A book of
abstracts will be available to delegates prior
to the conference.
After the conference, contributors will be
invited to submit full papers to a special issue
of the “Journal of Interpretation Research”,
the proposed deadline for which is June 2016.
All papers submitted will be subject to the
Journal’s peer-review process.
Presentation Options
Oral Presentations
Oral presentations will be scheduled
throughout the conference program and can
include results from applied projects/case
studies as well as papers of a theoretical
nature. Abstracts should include the focus or
goals of the research, methods, summary of
key results, outcomes and lessons learned,
and potential implications of the research
presented. Oral presentations can be up to
20 minutes plus 5 minutes for questions.
Poster Presentations
Poster presentations should outline research
activities including the purpose or objectives
of the research, methods, summary of key
results, and potential implications of the
research presented. When printed, posters
can be A1 in size (594mm x 841mm) or 30” x
40”. Full details will be provided with the
acceptance of a paper as a poster
presentation.
Submission of Abstracts:
All abstracts should identify:
- Preferred presentation format (oral or poster
presentation)
- Title of the presentation/program
description
- Names, affiliations, and email addresses of
all authors/presenters, and
- Any specific equipment, facility, or timing
requests.
Abstracts should be no more than 500 words
and should be submitted electronically (as a
Microsoft Word document with no author
information) through the submission portal by
15 September 2015. Authors will be notified of
the outcome of the peer review process by
the end of October 2015.
Research Track Co-chairs
Contact the co-chairs for the research track
should you have any questions.
Dr. Stephen Espiner
Senior Lecturer in Parks, Recreation and
Tourism
Lincoln University, New Zealand
Dr. Philip Smartt
Professor of Park Management and Heritage
Interpretation
University of Tennessee – Martin, USA
Submit your proposal/abstract
here
National Association for Interpretation PO Box 2246
Fort Collins, CO 80522 USA
www.interpnet.com
Photos displayed have been provided courtesy of Flikr Creative Commons image license, Wellington Tourism, and
Zealandia.