You’ve more than likely experienced it before. You attend what promises to be an interesting seminar and end up listening to a speaker with a power point presentation that goes on too long.
Natural women’s health educator Lisa Leger believes it is important to keep her audience engaged so she’s trying out a new format for her next Women’s Health Gathering at Parksville Pharmasave.
The format is officially called Pecha Kucha and has been sweeping the world with its originality and entertainment value ever since it was devised in Tokyo in 2003 as an event for young designers to network and show their work to the public.
Drawing its name from the Japanese term for the sound of “chit chat” Pecha Kucha can be described as a grown-up show and tell.
It’s a simple formula: 20 slides for 20 seconds each.
The objective of the simple but tight restraints is to keep the presentations brief and focused and to give more people a chance to present in a single night.
“People will get information but not a huge lecture and there will be a Q and A afterwards.”
Leger said it’s a format that delivers on all levels. She said it allows the audience to learn, expand their perspectives and leave with something new on their mind.
Leger said her guest speakers will have the spotlight for six minutes and 40 seconds to share and show off their work before the program moves on to the next presentation.
“The format really caught my eye when I attended a fundraiser for the biosphere. It’s a format for presenting a lot of information quickly.”
Leger invited local healers and educators each with a women’s health theme to participate in what she hopes will be an educational and entertaining afternoon.
“They will talk about what women’s health means for them and how they contribute to healthy women in the community through their practice.”
She said aside from the educational component it will touch on art and creative outlets.
“We will be blending health with creativity. I think the art aspect of it is appealing and it won’t be same person droning on and on.”
She says a holistic approach to health encompasses all the different components of a person not just the physical, but the spiritual and social.
The speakers on the agenda include: Clinical Counsellor Diane Hancox; Colon Hydrotherapist Tamara Harrison; Thermography Technician Glenda Neufeld; Empowerment Collaborator Sherry Konigsberg, and much more.
Leger said it will be fast paced and fun with breaks for appetizers and opportunities for social networking.
She added the gathering is scheduled so that people can drop in after work. The free event is Wednesday, August 17 from 4 to 6:30 p.m. at the Parksville Pharmasave meeting room.
To register call Parksville Pharmasave at 250-951-0243.
— Brenda Gough lives in Errington.
