December 4, 2009
In this update
(A) A message from the conference team
(B) Important message for any delegate who has not registered for a working session
(C) Essential Information: Venue, Laptops and Breakfast on the Bus
(D) Conference Speakers
(E) Session Updates, Session Goals
(F) This is your conference- What you should be working on right now.
(G) What’s Next From the Conference Team
(A) A message from the chairs
This is being written on November 27: only 40 days until conference! November was an intense and exciting month for us. It began with a visit from George Roter- see George’s summary: http://my.ewb.ca/home/ShowPost/67291 .In mid-November we began registration for working sessions at conference and you have already started talking about them: http://conference2010.ewb.ca/en/preparing-for-conference/online-session-discussions.html. The conference team recently had a 5-hour meeting to make sure the conference runs as smooth as possible. To cap it all off, we can now confirm that more than 4400 high school students will be taking part in the Massive Outreach Event in January!
Amid all of this excitement and action, we thought it would be good to reflect on some questions about the purpose of NC2010. As organizers of the first conference since EWB burned its mission statement, we wanted to ask ourselves: What does this conference mean for EWB? When people reminisce and talk about the conference in 2012, what will they say? What will be different about us as an organization on January 10?
Of course, as the organizing team for conference, we hope that this is the best conference ever. We want to set the bar higher than it has ever been set. However, we also want future conference teams to take what we have learned and improve. What we have learned partly answers the question about what NC2010 means for EWB: the distributed model works. Fundraising, content, the MOE, communications: all of these aspects of conference organization relied on volunteers and leaders from coast-to-coast. We hope future conference teams take a similar approach, but find ways to create better results.
Of course, as a team of Newfoundlanders and Labradorians, we hope that conference leaves a lasting impact on the province. We hope that the thousands of youth we engage on January 8 wake up on January 9 seeing themselves as social change leaders. However, we also hope that the hundreds of EWBers that participate in conference gain a new appreciation of themselves as social change leaders. Our network of individual social change leaders is what makes EWB such a dynamic organization. We hope future reflections on NC2010 are about how this smaller, working conference allowed us to strengthen that network and better understand how each of us fit into it.
Finally, as with every conference, we want EWB to wake up on January 10 better equipped to work with Dororthy. Our incredible African speakers will help make that happen. Our in depth overseas session (facilitated by some incredible OVS) will help make that happen. And you, with every question and insight you bring to NC2010, will make that happen.
See you in a few weeks!
The Conference Team
(B) Important message for any delegate who has not registered for a working session
Please select a session from the seven found here: http://conference2010.ewb.ca/public/work_assignments.pdf
E-mail Content Team Lead Amy Sturge (amysturge@ewb.ca) with your selection as soon as possible.
(C) Essential Information: Venue, Laptops and Breakfast on the Bus
Conference Venue
The venue for the conference is the Delta Hotel in downtown St. John's. With a variety of meeting rooms and ballrooms available to us, it will be a great space to build connections and to “develop strategy, plan, dialogue and debate on the most important issues and questions facing us today.”
http://www.deltahotels.com/hotels/hotels.php?hotelId=7
The location of the Delta St. John’s will allow you to connect with the people and culture of St. John’s. It is next door to city hall, a two-minute walk from the infamous George Street, and a three-minute walk from Water Street- the oldest street in North America, and a four-minute walk from the St. John’s harbour.
Laptops, Internet Access and The Online Delegate Handbook
Internet access will be available to all delegates throughout the conference. This will allow you to access the delegate handbook, which will be available in website format. You may bring and use your own laptop throughout the conference. However, we ask that you do so respectfully (e.g. laptops are probably a bad idea during keynotes and working sessions).
Be prepared for breakfast on the bus!
On the morning of the Massive Outreach Event, delegates will be traveling to schools around St. John’s delivering workshops and empowering them to see themselves as social change leaders. To travel to these schools, we have to travel by bus. What’s more, to make sure our schedule runs on time, we will have to eat a meal during the bus ride! A conference experience you won’t soon forget.
(D) Conference Speakers
Rober Fox – Executive Director of Oxfam Canada
Since his appointment as Executive Director in 2005, Robert Fox has led an ambitious process to renew and refocus Oxfam Canada's work on women's rights and gender justice. To increase its impact, all of Oxfam Canada's efforts are directed to empower women and promote equality among women and men, girls and boys. This has required changes not only to Oxfam programs but also to the policies and practices, structures and culture of Oxfam itself.
Robert has been involved with Oxfam for more than forty years, first as a high school student in the 60's, then again in the 80's as a volunteer and then a program officer for Central America, and then as the Representative for Central America and Mexico, based in Managua, Nicaragua in the early 1990's.
He has also worked as Director of Communications for the Canadian Union of Public Employees, and as a consultant for a wide range of anti-poverty groups and social justice organizations. Along the way, he has served as chair of the board of a community health centre, a community legal clinic and a group that advocates for people with disabilities, and he was active for many years in the Coalition for Aid to Nicaragua.
Robert travels extensively to visit Oxfam partners and allies in Africa, the Americas and Asia and to lecture and meet with supporters across Canada. Robert sits on the Board of Oxfam International and has lead Oxfam International delegations at global conferences on aid effectiveness and HIV and AIDS.
Alfred Mungamelo- CLTS Facilitator for Mazabuka, Zambia
Alfred Mungamelo was born and raised in Choma in the Southern Province of Zambia. He has worked with a number of different development organizations at a field level, delivering outreach and training programs in rural communities. Alfred’s strong facilitation skills and trust in communities earned him the opportunity to work as an outreach facilitator in 2007 with the UNICEF funded Community Led Total Sanitation (CLTS) program in Choma district. Alfred’s success in creating significant behaviour change across many villages and his understanding of the systems and structures involved landed him an opportunity to start a new CLTS program under Africare in the nearby Mazabuka district in late 2008. He is currently the CLTS Facilitator for the district, working hard to train new facilitators, identify natural leaders and improve the sanitation coverage in Mazabuka.
(E) Session Updates, Session Goals
Details for all the parts of the conference are coming together. Here are new details for some of the most exciting sessions. Especially important are the descriptions of goals for these sessions.
Thursday January 7th 2010
215 pm to 315pm Dao and Mungamelo Keynote
Mr. Bassiaka Dao and Mr. Alfred Mungamelo will speak to the conference delegates during this time. You will leave this keynote thinking deep about international development.
African Programs Sessions (formerly known as "Overseas Sector Sessions”)
Each delegate will choose which sector they want to learn about and contribute to in mid-December and will join that group on the morning of January 7th. Each group will have less than 20 people: an intimate atmosphere for a great discussion. Learning about our African Programs has never been more important. This is an opportunity to learn, to ask hard questions of the overseas volunteers and to contribute your perspectives on our overseas work.
Friday January 8th 2010
Massive Outreach Event
The Massive Outreach Event will take over the St. John's area. Our 400 delegates will be sent to high schools across the city to engage over 4000 youth. A keynote event will then be broadcast live to thousands of students throughout St. John's and across the province!
Victoria Anamoh Keynote
Have you ever been inspired? You will leave this keynote pumped to work hard for the next two days and beyond!
Board of Directors - My first year on the Board
A presentation by our Board of Directors will give you a glimpse into what it is like to be on the Board.
Saturday January 9th 2010
Networking Fair
Delegates will be able to interact with representatives from the conference’s main sponsors. Those looking for employment may wish to bring an up-to-date resume.
Gala
Celebration and the year ahead will be the focus of this year’s gala. We will celebrate the past year, the past four days and launch forth into the next year with passion and excitement.
(F) This is your conference- What you should be working on right now.
As we have said before, this conference belongs to you. As delegates, your contributions to conference will make it memorable and high impact. Your actions, ideas and discussions during conference will move our organization forward. You will be the ones that inspire a generation of young Newfoundlanders and Labradorians to become social change leaders.
In the past month, we have sent delegates and non-delegates a variety of assignments designed to help you prepare for conference. Here is a summary of these assignments.
(1) Working session assignments
(2) Online session discussions
(3) The MOE Workshop
(4) Showcase Your Chapter
(1) Working session assignments
All delegates have registered for one of seven working sessions. Descriptions of these sessions and the work you need to do to prepare for them can be found here:
Working Session #1 - The Global Engineer: http://conference2010.ewb.ca/public/wa_globalengineer.pdf
Working Session #2 - Getting Creative With Youth Engagement: http://conference2010.ewb.ca/public/wa_youthengagement.pdf
Working Session #3 - Re-Shaping Your Relationship With Overseas Staff: http://conference2010.ewb.ca/public/wa_overseas.pdf
Working Session #4 - Old Time Issues Through New Time Media: http://conference2010.ewb.ca/public/wa_newtimemedia.pdf
Working Session #5 - Hop on the Fair Trade Train: http://conference2010.ewb.ca/public/wa_fairtradetrain.pdf
Working Session #6 - Becoming an Outreach Powerhouse: http://conference2010.ewb.ca/public/wa_outreach.pdf
Working Session #7 - Watchdogs Unite!: Strategizing to make EWB a consistently respected CIDA critic: http://conference2010.ewb.ca/public/wa_cidawatchdogs.pdf
(2) Online session discussions
Online discussions specific to each session have been started on myewb. Please use these discussions to connect with other participants and share ideas in the weeks and days leading up to conference -
Working Session #1 - The Global Engineer: http://my.ewb.ca/home/ShowPost/68318
Working Session #2 - Getting Creative With Youth Engagement: http://my.ewb.ca/home/ShowPost/68321
Working Session #3 - Re-Shaping Your Relationship With Overseas Staff: http://my.ewb.ca/home/ShowPost/68328
Working Session #4 - Old Time Issues Through New Time Media: http://my.ewb.ca/home/ShowPost/68323
Working Session #5 - Hop on the Fair Trade Train: http://my.ewb.ca/home/ShowPost/68322
Working Session #6 - Becoming an Outreach Powerhouse: http://my.ewb.ca/home/ShowPost/68319
Working Session #7 - Watchdogs Unite!: Strategizing to make EWB a consistently respected CIDA critic: http://my.ewb.ca/home/ShowPost/68325
(3) The MOE Workshop
All delegates coming to conference will be delivering presentations to over 4000 youth in the St. John’s area. As you may have heard, students will be giving feedback on the sessions. The chapter that receives the most positive feedback will receive $1000. We hope this inspires you to prepare the highest quality youth engagement presentations possible.
On the same day of the MOE in St. John’s, we want EWBers to take the MOE national by doing school outreach presentations across the country.
The MOE Workshop can be found here: http://conference2010.ewb.ca/public/preppkg_EN_Delegates.pdf
A video to help you prepare for the MOE can be found here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vk7VjR8M7oE
All other information on the MOE can be found here: http://conference2010.ewb.ca/en/moe.html
(4) Showcase Your Chapter
Every year for conference we “himmmmed” and “hawwwwwed” about the content and the look of the conference opening. This year, to help us Build People to People Connections and promote the idea that we are a distributed network, the opening will highlight all chapters and city networks that are participating!!
But how you may ask???
Each chapter/city network is asked to create a 30 second chant, dance or song to be performed during the opening. You will be called upon while you are sitting with your chapter/city network. You won’t have to run to the stage or anything, we just want chapters to showcase themselves to the rest of the delegation before things get underway! Even if your chapter/city network is only sending 1 person, this is still achievable!
(G) What’s Next From the Conference Team
Website Updates- Available Now! The website has been updated to include: the prep package, expanded info on the MOE and the MOE workshop, updates on the conference speaker page, and more.
Prep Package Part 2- Available mid-December. This will feature info on overseas sessions and how you can prepare for them. It will also include CSR information on our top five sponsors.
The Delegate Handbook- Will be available online by January 4. Everything that usually goes in a delegates handbook, plus a few extra surprises.