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By Den Gardner, Executive Director
(A personal appeal from your “trusted” leader)
So, did the headline grab you? I was hoping it would. TOCA, my friends, is at a crossroads. And that’s a good thing. We have come through 2009’s recession. We are developing a new strategic plan for the organization. We expect another great list of entries for our 20th annual communications contest.
But there are also challenges. The recession took a large bite out of our membership. From a high of about 200 members a few years ago, we likely will settle for numbers around 150 by the time this year ends. That is significant. It’s in line with other organizations I’m familiar with, but nonetheless, we need to do something about this.
How do we start? By getting involved in the organization. There are literally dozens of you who have been members for a decade or even more. Take a moment to ask what you’ve given back to the organization during that time in terms of your time and talent.
- The new strategic plan mentioned earlier
- A re-make of our Web site
- An expanded TOCA Talk Newsletter
- The likelihood of webinars for professional development during 2010
- More relevant topics at our annual meeting, meaning more professional development than ever before.
And so that brings us to: “Desert Discoveries”—the theme of our 21st annual meeting, which is set for May 5-7 at the Tucson El Conquistador Golf & Tennis Resort. You can uncover all that this TOCA meeting has to offer by being part of this year’s educational and networking gathering.
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Bo Sacks (or Bob Sacks), a media “futurist,” who will enthrall audiences on the future of media “at the digital edge,” on Thursday morning. Sacks’ firm, Precision Media Group, does private consulting and publishes the daily e-newsletter: “Heard on the Web: Media Intelligence.” He says distribution of news in the next few years will be staggering. He believes what used to take 10 technologic years now takes less than five. Some of his recent newsletters have explored what digital advertising is doing to ad revenues, how a great realignment of publishing is facing readers the next four years, how there are articles and news that just fit a print format better, and how to change your business model to meet today’s readers. Sacks has spoken to major audiences everywhere—from the American Society of Business Publication Editors to The Digital Publishing and Advertising Conference. And, TOCA in May.
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Thursday afternoon features two great sessions on water and its importance to the Green Industry. First, David Kopec, University of Arizona, will speak on how to communicate the national water situation to the Green Industry and general public. He will be followed by Robert Glennon, author of Unquenchable: America’s Water Crisis and What To Do About It. This book, published last spring, has been called “both frightening and wickedly funny.” He reports on the tragedy and irony of water in America. Both presentations touch at the heart of many of the problems facing the Green Industry today.
A panel of social media experts from Arizona will discuss how they use their reporting skills within social media to reach audiences and influence popular opinion. We will put together industry experts, bloggers from our constituents and possibly some consumer online experts. This group will present on Wednesday afternoon. The tentative group panel includes: Jessica Hansen, integrated account executive with Mindspace and president of IABC Phoenix; Jimmy Fox, co-owner, Evergreen Turf, Chandler, AZ; Allie Bell, managing editor, AZ BIG Media (trade publisher); Tom Mentzer, owner, Mentzer PR Group; and Sam Brace, Caliber Group, Tucson, AZ, director of “Social Media Boot Camp.”
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TOCA attendees will break into roundtable discussions after the social media panel (each table will be multigenerational) to review tactics and effective tools used in their daily jobs to be effective spokespeople for the Green Industry and to their audiences.
“This is an aggressive agenda,” says Den Gardner, executive director of TOCA. “We’ve brought our members what they’ve asked for in our recent survey. Eric Schroder, our program committee chair, continues to fine tune the agenda. It should be a great meeting.”
The meeting starts Wednesday morning with its traditional tour. This year the group will be going on the Sonora Desert Museum Tour, with lunch at La Fuente restaurant. This tour is well regarded and known as “one of Tucson’s best-loved desert treasures.” The mission of the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum is to “inspire people to live in harmony with the natural world by fostering love, appreciation and understanding of the Sonora Desert.” The Sonora Desert Museum is a world-renowned zoo, natural history museum and botanical garden—all is one place. “Attendees will really appreciate this look at the desert environment,” says Jared Bodnar, TOCA president who’s based in nearby Mesa, Ariz., a suburb of Phoenix.
Meanwhile, golfers will enjoy the on-site El Conquistador golf courses. The panoramic views of the course, nestled on the foothills of the breathtaking Santa Catalina Mountains, are spectacular and the golf will, as usual, be up to par for TOCA members. Details will be available soon regarding pricing.
Wednesday night TOCA members will be entertained at the opening night reception at The Last Territory, a nearby private reception/dining area owned by the hotel. A great night to get reacquainted with your TOCA colleagues or make new friends. As usual, the TOCA meeting will end Thursday evening with our annual awards banquet. At that banquet, TOCA members will be honored for their writing, photography, design and marketing communications skills.
Our survey last fall of TOCA members showed a desire for fewer tours and more professional development. So this year’s meeting will not include an outside tour beyond Wednesday morning’s Sonora Desert Museum Tour. The business meeting will be held Thursday afternoon at 4 p.m. to conclude the educational sessions. Winners of the TOCA Environmental Communicator of the Year will also be announced, as well as the TOCA scholarship winner.
Please go to our Web site, www.TOCA.org, to register for the meeting. In the meantime, feel free to call the office at 952-758-6340 and talk to Den or Barb for more details. Or, feel free to email us as TOCA’s new email address, TOCA@gardnerandgardnercommunications.com. We look forward to seeing you in Tucson as we truly experience “Desert Discoveries.” |
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