Adventist communication, technology conference set for Feb 11-15

January 23, 2015 | Silver Spring, Maryland, United States | ANN staff

Seventh-day Adventists participating in this year’s Global Adventist Internet Network will meet in a new location—online.

The annual conference in which participants examine emerging trends of ministry and technology will be held February 11 to 15 at gain.adventist.org. Each presentation, followed by live discussions, will be broadcast three times a day in order to accommodate participants in time zones worldwide.

Organizers said the move to the online format—which is expected to draw the conference’s highest-ever attendance—came about because of the denomination’s General Conference Session, a 10-day global spiritual gathering and business meeting scheduled for July.

“Many people will use their resources to travel to San Antonio in the U.S. state of Texas for General Conference Session, so it was reasonable for us to think of other options for the GAiN meeting,” said Williams Costa Jr., Communication director for the Adventist world church. “This is a new way to engage people in the conversation about technology, ministry and evangelism.”

This year’s conference will be offered in English and live translated into French, Portuguese and Spanish.

Costa said participants are encouraged to participate in groups hosted at churches, offices or homes.

Scheduled presentation topics include cyber security, cryptocurrency, app development, distance education, branding, using games to spread the gospel, and operating an information technology department on a budget.

Several Church Communication and Information Technology leaders said the annual GAiN conference is a key meeting for collaborating on projects and sharing tips for ministry.

“The sharing of ideas, projects and news has always galvanized those working in the field of communication and tech, a field in continuous development,” said Corrado Cozzi, Communication director for the Adventist Church’s Inter-European Division, based in Berne, Switzerland. “I personally have benefited from each annual conference I attended, especially in terms of innovations shared with the intent to create synergy and networking.”

Tech specialist Kirk Nugent said, “GAiN is one of the highlights of my year because in order for IT to be truly relevant we must find a way to directly tie into the overall mission of the Church. Nugent, who serves as Information Technology director for the denomination’s Southern Africa-Indian Ocean Division, based in Pretoria, South Africa, said, “Our goals are the same, and it’s only by getting everyone involved can we truly be effective for the cause of Christ.”

To register for free and see the conference schedule, visit gain.adventist.org.

The event hashtag is #GAiN15.