[Sigia-l] The Future of Information Architecture, A Retreat

[Chiara Fox]

The Future of Information Architecture, A Retreat

Where: Asilomar Conference Grounds, Pacific Grove, CA
When: October 1-3, 2004

This weekend retreat is an opportunity for IAs from around the globe to 
come together in an informal and beautiful setting to discuss and share 
ideas about the future of Information Architecture. Where are we 
heading? What is the career path for an IA? What is on the horizon for 
the next 5 years and how do we plan to approach it?

Supported by IA organizations such as AIfIA and local companies like 
PeopleSoft, we will be gathering for a weekend to talk with one another, 
share ideas, peek into the future and see what it holds for us. If you 
want to help shape the direction our field is taking, get to know other 
Information Architects, and enjoy a beautiful place near the Pacific 
Ocean, this is the weekend for you. It will be a IA cocktail hour that 
goes for an entire weekend, sprinkled with a few presentations and 
occasional deer leaping across the grounds.

Rather than have everyone preach to each other, it should be a time to 
make connections, and problem solve together, as a true retreat should 
be. So far we have Margaret Hanley speaking on career opportunities for 
IAs, Jess McMullin unveiling trends that will shape the next five years 
in IA, Peter Merholz pondering the relationships of comics, urban 
planning and emergent phenomenon to IA and Victor Lombardi offering 
design patterns for design management.

This is a small gathering – only 40 slots are available! It’s an 
unprecedented opportunity to have real conversations in an intimate 
setting. To sign up now fax the completed Attendee Information form [ 
http://aifia.org/documents/future_of_ia_2004.pdf ](25kb PDF) to the 
Asilomar Conference Grounds.

Note: this registration takes care of all meals from Friday night to 
Sunday lunch, as well as accommodation. No extra fees are collected by 
the association-- this is by us, for us!

Want to do more than just attend?

Would you like to present? Lead a workshop? Please send us a short (1 
paragraph) description of the breakout session or workshop you would 
like to lead. The committee will review, and work toward putting 
together a program that will wow and titillate. Here are some ideas 
we’ve come up with, but don’t necessarily have leaders for that might 
stimulate your thoughts:

     * Collaboration models: How do we work better with our peer 
designers and developers? What is the IA’s role in the organization?
     * Cultural perspectives: How will information use be different in 
Africa vs. San Francisco in 5 years?
     * Is ROI really relevant?
     * How do you get access to the C-level folks? What do we have to 
say to them?
     * Is the web ready for a paradigm shift? Will it be social 
networks, new search techniques, or...?
     * How do we market our skills to the world? How do we communicate 
our business value?
     * IA Published magazine: Could AIfIA or Boxes and Arrows take this 
on? Would this be a good way to making us an “established” field? What 
other things could we do to push the next realm of marketing?

Descriptions are due August 16th, 2004. Send them to 
retreat at boxesandarrows.com.

More information is available at [ http://aifia.org/news/000374.php ].