EdNSW updates
by Paul Anderson and Robert Rowe
The Editors NSW branch committee met on 13 October 2020 for its monthly meeting, via Zoom, with three apologies.
Minutes of the September committee meeting were accepted with minor amendments, and outstanding/ongoing actions from previous meetings reviewed.
The NSW branch committee member reports were received, including the financial report for August 2020 with everything well within budget that month.
Our monthly member meeting on 6 October was a great success with more than 60 attendees — thank you all. Dr Radhiah Chowdhury from Penguin Random House Australia presented a timely and important talk: ‘The decolonised editor: unconscious bias, representative publishing, and a way forward for editorial best practice’. A recording of the meeting is available for online purchase (or free viewing for members who paid to attend) for a finite period. We will continue to include the Branch President’s introduction and the post-presentation Q&A in these recordings.
Provisional topics and presenters have been identified for our meetings in February, March and April next year. Ideas are always welcome from members, and suggestions for the rest of our 2021 meeting calendar can be sent to the Meetings Coordinator, Caroline Hunter, at ednsw.meetings@iped-editors.org.
Planning has also advanced for our Word workshop/webinar in February, to be delivered by Denise Tsagaris. There will be two workshop series, each comprising two sessions held over two days — one series for Windows users and the other for Mac. Due to a limit on numbers attending, these online workshops will initially be offered to NSW members first. Those interested will be encouraged to book early to avoid disappointment.
Feedback from members on workshops you would like to see is welcome and should be sent to the Professional Development Coordinator, Sara Kitaoji, at ednsw.profdev@iped-editors.org.
Our events may be held with or observed by other branches — such inter-branch collaboration and goodwill is supported by the IPEd Financial and Risk Management Committee and the organisation more broadly.
Committee member and News Editor, Elisabeth Thomas, is on the IPEd Communications Standing Committee. She reported on the work being done, including work on a unified IPEd style guide. Social media will be included, covering voice and tone instructions.
Six new members joined the branch in September, three professional and three associate — a warm welcome to you all. Member Liaison Officer, Kaaren Sutcliffe, hosted an informal Zoom breakout room for new members before the October member meeting.
Monthly reports were received from our Accreditation Board representative and IPEd Director (NSW).
The 2020 accreditation exam in Sydney will be held at an actual venue. Three branch members have volunteered to be invigilators and others to be remote invigilators for the online exam — thank you all. Final date for all registrations is 8 November.
The branch will reinstate our editors’ lunches (subject to COVID-19 safety plans) and there will be email communications about this and Christmas events soon.
Events
Given the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, member meetings will continue to be held via Zoom.
End of year social events
Date: one evening — or perhaps two — in December 2020
Location: to be determined
Details: Will we be able to get together at a real-world venue or will we BYO to a Zoom gathering? Perhaps both.
Keep an eye on your email for any decision or news as the time approaches.
No meeting in January 2021
The freelance editor’s toolkit
Date: Tuesday 2 February 2021, 7pm AEDT
Location: online via Zoom
Details: to come
Presenter: Peter Riches