Lots to choose from

There will be two big issues for genealogists who want to attend the big virtual RootsTech Connect 2021, this year’s all-free, all-virtual, all-global online event which gets underway this week and runs 25–27 February 2021.

One of those issues will be figuring out the time for events in our own time zones. If it’s 3 p.m. in Sydney, Australia, it’s 9 p.m. in Salt Lake City, but not on the same day. (As I write this, it’s 2 a.m. Monday, February 22, in Sydney, even though it’s 10 a.m. Sunday, February 21, on the east coast of the United States.)

Fortunately, that only impacts the “main stage” events like keynotes — everything else is recorded and will be available on demand.

So the biggest issue? That will be choosing sessions to view in the recorded format for this year’s talks.

Because there are just so many to choose from — including, at last count, more than 60 focusing on DNA and its uses and implications for genealogy.

Now there’s no way The Legal Genealogist can give you a complete rundown on all the RootsTech Connect sessions — or even all the sessions focusing just on DNA. You’ll need to do that yourself when the website officially opens mid-week.

What I can do is tell you which ones I personally regard as don’t-miss DNA-related sessions. That doesn’t mean there won’t be others that you’ll want to add to your own don’t-miss list. But considering where I am in my own genealogical research journey, here are the DNA sessions I have at the top of my list:

• Advanced DNA Tools to Analyze MyHeritage DNA Matches, presented by Daniel Horowitz
• Big Y: What Is It? Why Do I Need It?, presented by Janine Cloud
• Ethical Considerations Using DNA Results, presented by Lynn Broderick
• Ruling Out Instead of Ruling In: DNA & the GPS in Action, presented by Karen Stanbary, CG
• Secrets and Surprises: Uncovering Family History Mysteries through DNA, presented by Debbie Kennett
• The Case for DNA: A Three-Part Series, presented by Renate Yarborough Sanders
• The Importance and Benefits of YDNA Testing, presented by Mags Gaulden
• Understanding X-Chromosome DNA Matching, presented by Michelle Leonard
• The Genetic Consequences of the Transatlantic Slave Trade, presented by Steven Micheletti and Joanna Mountain
• Helping African Americans Trace to Slaveholding Ancestors Using DNA, presented by Andre Kearns
• Using DNA to Find Ancestors Lost in Slavery, presented by Sherman McRae

And that’s just what’s at the top of my list.

There’s lots to choose from.

So come on out, this week, 25-27 February (and watch those time zones!!) for RootsTech Connect 2021. It’s free, but registration is required for many of the events and conference benefits so…

“See” you at RootsTech Connect 2021 where — have I mentioned this yet? — there’s lots to choose from.

Cite/link to this post: Judy G. Russell, “DNA at RootsTech Connect 2021,” The Legal Genealogist (https://www.legalgenealogist.com/blog : posted 21 Feb 2021).