Connections 2025: A Personal Chronicle of Discovery and Legacy
My Journey to Eight Mile Plains
March 18: Connecting with Conference Companions
Like selecting which family artefacts to preserve first, today marks the careful assembly of my conference companions – both physical and digital – for the journey to Connections 2025. It’s been quite a while since my last physical conference—way before COVID.
Step 1: Check the weather forecast for Brisbane for the next seven days. Hmmm, 20-25 degrees celsius, repack my suitcase with more appropriate clothing.
Step 2: Prepare my new conference Notebook. I added some notes on the front page about ‘who’ I want to meet up with and which sessions I want in my schedule. Then allocated some space on the back page for those all-important passwords to AI sites that I might need to showcase at the conference. Each page represents potential—the possibility of discovering new methodologies that might illuminate shadowed corners of my family's narrative.
Step 3: Pack the notebook, along with my digital devices (and chargers), USB, business cards, and conference program in my carry-on luggage. Check the weight'; 7kg limit on domestic flights.
Step 4: My digital preparation feels equally sacred. Setting up Claude 3.7 Sonnet as my AI assistant, I ask the question: “Preparing for Conference: Connections 2025 I am working on a blog post to share my plans and reflections for this conference. Please create an outline for that post to include the following segments …”
Where once I would have used a spreadsheet or index cards, I now have digital allies to help process and preserve the potential information awaiting at the conference. My workflow with Claude enables me to create a series of posts in advance—to get started on content for my reflections on each day. Here are the topics and post titles that I have planned:
March 18: Connecting with Conference Companions
March 19: Final Preparation for my Presentation
March 20: Travel to Eight Mile Plains, Brisbane, Qld.
March 21: Day 1: From Registration to Book Launch
March 22: Day 2: From Masterclass to Dinner
March 23: Day 3: From Masterclass to Closing Ceremony
March 24: Day 4: Reflections and Lessons Learned
March 25: Travel home to Wodonga, Vic.
Step 5: Select the sessions I want to attend and highlight each one on my printed program. Easy to see at a glance! Later I spend time crafting thoughtful questions for presenters, and in particular for my presentation ‘Beyond the Pen’ on March 22, I think about what questions attendees may have of me. Each question is shaped not just by intellectual curiosity but by the specific needs of my ancestors' stories—what would help illuminate the migration patterns of my maternal line from Wales? What techniques might breathe life into the sparse records of my paternal great-grandfather's early years in England?
Step 6: At the end of the day, I find myself reflecting on my recent experiences at RootsTech 2025, tracing how those days of learning have become interwoven with my approach to this upcoming conference. RootsTech's sessions on AI-assisted research opened pathways I'm still exploring, while its community connections reminded me that we are all stewards of memory across generations.
These experiences have layered themselves like the careful notations in a family register, each adding depth and context to my understanding. I can trace how my approach to Winifred Edith Allery's migration story has evolved since hearing perspectives on post-war movement patterns. I can dig deeper into ‘ancestral trails’ by generating ‘Locality Guides’ since learning how AI can help with that task. I can refine my collections of documents for ancestors, since improving my digital preservation techniques. I can now create a compelling, engaging ancestral story; my narrative writing style has strengthened since attending workshops on ancestral storytelling.
As the growth rings in a tree, each conference experience expands outward from the same core purpose—to honour those whose lives created the possibility for our own. These concentric circles of knowledge widen my research perspective and deepen my emotional connection to the stories I seek to preserve.
Ready for Travel
Trying to figure out how I can edit a Post from my iPad app? Answer open Substack in browser.
I aim to add a little detail for my Journey to Eight Mile Plains, QLD over the next week.
For now I will just add my thoughts for each day in this Note.
March 19: Final Preparation for presentation
Run through my slides and check my timing, pacing, volume and style.
Added a few updates to my shared handouts for participants in my Google Drive.
Checked that all new video tutorials for WeAre.xyz now feature on YouTube. Thanks Simon Davies!
Those genealogists who are new to WeAre, will find these useful in getting started in creating their ancestral ‘articles’.
March 20: Travel to Eight Mile Plains, Qld.
The morning finds me carefully arranging my digital archives on my iPad and laptop that have guided much of my research. These essentials connect me to the purpose behind the journey, tangible reminders of the stories I seek to preserve and understand.
Checking my AI tools and which conversations, threads, and Projects to share live with those interested - after the presentation.
As the landscape shifts outside my window during transit, I find myself drawing parallels between my journey and the migrations documented in our family history. My two-hour journey by air and one-hour shuttle seems momentary compared to the weeks-long ocean voyages my ancestors undertook, yet there's a similar sense of pilgrimage, of moving toward knowledge and connection.
March 21-23: Three Days of Genie Bliss
Oh, my brain was full, as was my heart, with all the learning and connectivity at the Connections 2025 Convention. (conference, congress). I met up with Genies, whom I had only ever seen on a Zoom screen, and made new friends and colleagues—a wonderful experience.
I recorded my daily session notes on iPad and then exported to Google docs. Then I headed over to Chat GPT, uploaded the notes and asked for an Action Plan, for swift follow-up.
Action Plan
Connections 2025 Action Plan
This action plan summarises key takeaways from the first three days of Connections 2025 and outlines actionable steps to implement new ideas in genealogy, storytelling, and AI integration.
1. Convict & Migration Research
Key Insights:
- Convict transportation records (Judy Russell) and migration factors (Jenny Harrison, Jenny Joyce).
- Researching ship lists and crew deserters (Fiona Brooker).
- Irish Workhouse Orphan Scheme and famine migration (Dr. Perry McIntyre).
Resources:
- Records: Old Bailey, National Archives, FamilySearch, Papers Past, Crewlist.org.uk.
- Research methods: Global keyword searches, archival records, migration documents.
Action Steps:
1. Research convict ancestors using transportation records and Old Bailey archives (Q2 2025).
2. Identify potential crew deserters in family history via Papers Past and Crewlist.org.uk (Q2 2025).
3. Explore Irish Workhouse migration records for possible family connections (Q3 2025).
2. Storytelling & Writing Techniques
Key Insights:
- Using layered narratives and plot twists to enhance genealogy storytelling (Nick Barratt).
- Applying historical context for richer ancestor stories (Nick referred to Angela Buckley).
- Different formats: Biographical essays, social history, or fictionalized narratives.
Resources:
- Memoirs, war diaries, newspapers, attestation papers.
- Tools for structuring research into compelling narratives.
Action Steps:
1. Select an ancestor and write a short biographical essay using historical context (Q2 2025).
2. Use ChatGPT to create a mind map for structuring a family story (Q2 2025).
3. Experiment with different storytelling formats (Q3 2025).
3. Digitization & AI in Genealogy
Key Insights:
- AI-assisted transcription of war diaries and records (Greg Carlill, Ian James).
- Building a digital repository for genealogy research (Sally Romano).
- Applying AI for data mining historical texts and image processing.
Resources:
- AI tools: ChatGPT, ElevenLabs (for voice cloning), FamilySearch AI tools.
- Digital archiving: Scanpro, metadata tagging, 3-2-1 backup strategy.
Action Steps:
1. Digitize and tag key documents using best archival practices (Q2 2025).
2. Test AI transcription tools for handwritten records (Q2 2025).
3. Explore AI genealogy tools on FamilySearch and integrate them into research (Q3 2025).
Next Steps
This action plan provides a structured approach to implementing key ideas from Connections 2025. Prioritise tasks based on research goals and continue engaging with new technologies and methodologies.
AI was a theme threaded through each day of the conference and I was especially inspired by Nick Barratt (UK), Fiona Brooker (NZ), Ian James (US), Andrew Redfern (AU), Judy Russell (US), and Hamish Maxwell-Stewart (AU), for their perspectives on the impact of AI.
Beyond the Pen
My Beyond the Pen session on Saturday, March 22 was successful in inspiring more Genies to trial AI tools and the WeAre.xyz family archive. I focussed on how to use ChatGPT and Claude to assist the writing process. I then showcased my family archive from WeAre.xyz to explore its capacity as your family history legacy.
My next course, Beyond the Pen, in May/June 2025 includes modules on building your AI skills for ancestral research and storytelling, plus building your skills in publishing your ancestral stories on WeAre.xyz.
Let me know if you have attended this conference! I would love to find out what you learned or were inspired by.
I look forward to hearing all about the conference.