Big Day Tomorrow
Two versions!
Long Story Short
We start our official projects with our clients tomorrow. After a weekend of unwelcome delays and best of welcomes; of hiking to amazing places for even better views; of meetings that were anticipated and looked forward to for weeks and a piece of culture being shared; of enjoying balmy Halifax weather and warmest conversations; of brilliant food and surprise of Celtic music that accompanied it — we start our projects tomorrow post the kick off ceremony. We are very excited!
Long Story
#CSCCAN1 has had a pretty interesting story so far with some amazing characters in it. It’s only fair that you know them all. We have had a brilliant first weekend in Canada and are gearing up for the big kick off tomorrow morning
The team: We are a group of sixteen people, from seven countries. From the first meeting we all got on like a house on fire, and that feeling only graduated to being feeling like one big family as we all met on Day 1 (for some Day 2) in Halifax.
The Clients: We are 4 sub teams of four members each working for four distinct clients on four very unique projects. I know the alliteration may have given a sense of repetition, but the projects we are working on are very distinct.
Institute of Ocean Research Enterprise (IORE): Re-branding Canada’s Marine Sector: Enhancing the Appeal to Youth
Nova Scotia Community College: Improving the Accessibility of Education Programming to Youth with Disabilities
Immigrant Services Association of Nova Scotia: Optimizing Organizational Processes for Immigrant Service
Nova Scotia Department of Education: Community Engagement Strategy to Scale the Homework Hub STEM Program
I will be working on project for the NS Community College, where the intent of the organization is to make its education programs more accessible and inclusive. We have had a couple of very engaging conversations with our clients where we worked to refine the ask and fine tune the statement of work in order to deliver on the most effective solutions to their current problems.
The Host NGO: IBM is working with Digital Opportunity Trust for facilitation of these projects here in Canada. Liesl, Andres and Alessandra from DOT have been very warm and welcoming, making sure we settle in well and have all that we need to feel at home in Halifax.
They whisked us on a boat for a day trip McNabs Island to see some amazing sights and history of the Halifax Harbour. This was followed by a sumptuous dinner at a local pub — also ironically called ‘The Local’ — that was peppered with stories, conversations and Celtic music.
Mentors and Facilitators: (Almost) Any new activity is learnt and adapted quicker when there’s efficient hand holding. I’d be remiss if I don’t mention the efficient and effervescent guidance and mentorship of Andrew MacDonald (thank you for coming all the way from Ottawa), Mark Campbell and Rick Power — their tips and lampposts-esque advice through this journey that we have been on since July has been invaluable and nothing short of guiding light. They have made sure that Halifax does feel like home; even if that means driving some of us to the grocery stores to get food supplies! :)
The team got together to prep for our assignments in a Design Thinking workshop this balmy Sunday morning; excitement haloed over every word uttered and every idea discussed. As we assemble our gear for the launch tomorrow, I am packing up the pieces of different cultures that made me richer today. We all got something from our home country to share with our team. My treasure looks like this.
