I think the costs of using a different word seem very low, and the potential benefits of slightly better PR seem high, so I think things like this are worth thinking about.
I also think retreats / summits are probably towards the extreme end of “things in EA which seem culty”, so are particularly worth thinking about.
I suspect that we’re overthinking things if we’re avoiding the word “retreats”. Public perceptions matter to a degree, but we shouldn’t overdo it.
I think the costs of using a different word seem very low, and the potential benefits of slightly better PR seem high, so I think things like this are worth thinking about.
I also think retreats / summits are probably towards the extreme end of “things in EA which seem culty”, so are particularly worth thinking about.