With the intent to continually learn new information, stay up on new industry trends, laws and practices, I attend lots of seminars, workshops and continuing education courses. Most of the seminars have been informative and useful, and for the most part, the speakers have been entertaining in presenting their material.
Lets face it, learning new information is not always fascinating or interesting, especially when the topic is technical in nature. Or, the topic might be informative but the speaker might not have the best oratory skills to keep one fully involved and listening or absorbing the message.
When I attend an industry seminar, my intent is not only to learn new information, but to hopefully gain knowledge and facts that I can integrate into my consulting practice. Typically, I manage to come away with a tidbit or two that I might be able to incorporate into my practice, sometimes more, sometimes less. After all, when a seminar is advertised, it usually comes with a schedule of speakers throughout the day, and a brief line or two about what they will present during their allotted time slot. From that brief description, you make your decision whether the speaker and seminar is worth attending.
About a year ago, I got word of seminar about Eucalyptus tree identification, taught by Matt Ritter, Ph. D., a professor of Botany at California State Polytechnic University, San Luis Obispo. Colleagues told me to not miss the opportunity to attend the seminar because Matt was an incredible, knowledgeable, and entertaining speaker and I would learn a great deal of information.
So, I signed up and attended the seminar, it was in San Diego at Balboa Park. I was astounded, blown away and extremely impressed by Matt. He presented Eucalyptus tree history, biology and identification in an easy to understand, creative and entertaining manner. He provided handouts, identification keys and practical, useful information I incorporated into my practice immediately and continue to use frequently.
About a month ago, I received an email informing me Matt would be teaching a one day workshop in botanical skills and tree identification in San Diego at Palomar College in San Marcos. I signed up immediately and attended the seminar yesterday. WOW!! Once again Matt provided a powerful workshop discussing a wide range of topics including an introduction into the history of scientific and common plant names, botanical nomenclature, how plants get their names, why plant names change, plant morphology, keys, and identification. We had mini workshops and quizzes, worked outdoors practicing tree identification using keys designed by Matt, learned online resources for plant identification, names and inventories. It was an action packed, informative, practical seminar that was presented in simple, basic terminology we could all understand.
You can really get a sense of Matt’s love of botany, trees, and plants and his enjoyment at teaching and sharing his knowledge and experience. He provides manuals and handouts that are useful, practical documents that I put to use immediately in my consulting practice. He is accessible and willing to share his information rather that horde it and not allow others to use the information he teaches, a trait not often seen in other university educators. How many speakers do you know who encourage you to contact him or her concerning tree and plant issues or tell you it is okay to take his printed information and teach it to others?
In closing, just wanted to thank Matt for providing such a great learning environment. If you are interested in trees and plants, whether a student, consultant, arborist, horticulturist, landscape architect, agency or park representative, you owe it to yourself to attend one of his seminars. You won’t be disappointed. Visit his website at Matt Ritter Website
