Lost in translation

I spent most of this 2.5-day conference feeling sorry for those of my Asian colleagues who wouldn't have been able to follow thick German accents or American drawl. This was a rare moment of concentration with my colleague Nith.

I generally think that huge, expensive conferences are not always good value for money for the conservation impact they lead to, unless proper attention is paid to translation and making presentations simple, actionable and engaging.

If you manage to set up interesting side meetings with fellow participants, or do some useful networking that will lead to collaboration, then on balance these events can be just about worth it.

Shambhu is studiously reading some notes in the foreground in preparation for his talk.