The level of intellectual stimulation and dialogue is unparalleled. There is always someone nearby or at your table who can help process new ideas or help you think about how what you’re hearing applies to your work. The balance of research and application is really nice. Getting to hear from top authors about their current projects helps me feel very informed so that I can feel abreast of current trends in the professional learning field. At the same time, the balance of topics that are “oldies but goodies” is nice because there are always new practitioners joining the conference.