It is very difficult to know where to draw the line about speaking at conferences. Do I decline to speak at American Academy of Pediatrics conferences, knowing that they take money from the formula companies? What about LLL conferences, knowing that they cooperate with the AAP (by doing joint sponsorship of conferences) and the AAP takes formula company money? What about hospitals? Do I decline to speak at any hospital-sponsored conference that is not a Baby-Friendly Hospital? How far do I have to go to check out the credentials and credibility of people who invite me to speak at conferences? How can I possibly know ahead of time if any of the people involved in the organization have any affiliations whatsoever with formula companies? I am not very fond of one particular breast pump company because I think their advertising is misleading and equates breastfeeding with bottle-feeding. Do I also decline to speak at conferences where this pump company has an exhibit? How will I know, when invited to speak, if the group is planning to allow this pump company to exhibit? What it the bottom line, if they write back and say "Yes, company X will be allowed to exhibit"? If I say "Well then, I'm not coming," -- then my message doesn't get out, and I also don't make any money (and believe me, I need to make money from speaking engagements in order to subsidize all the many different ways that I support breastfeeding for free). What about local health fairs? If I know that the formula companies will have a booth, does that mean that the local breastfeeding coalition or LLL group or whatever should NOT be there, providing information to mothers? Who wins in that case? There are no easy answers. I certainly want to state up front, however, that just because I speak at someone's conference, people should not think either better or worse* of the conference organization simply because I am speaking at their conference. * depending on how people view me! :) Ask yourself whether, in any particular instance, the health of mothers and babies is best served by you speaking, or by you not speaking. It may be the case that the formula company gains credibility, yet net good for mothers and babies *can* come out of speaking, even at a conference directly sponsored by a formula company. Kathy Dettwyler _________________________________________________________________ Get your FREE download of MSN Explorer at http://explorer.msn.com/intl.asp. *********************************************** The LACTNET mailing list is powered by L-Soft's renowned LISTSERV(R) list management software together with L-Soft's LSMTP(TM) mailer for lightning fast mail delivery. For more information, go to: http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html