Year in Review - a whirl of magical moments and memories

Looking at all the things I don't want to forget to remember. It's been another eventful year :-)

January

‘Your voice is one, but it matters’ - Highlights from An African Nova Scotian Community Calling In article by Sophia King Gillis. 

February

Black Power Panel: Shifting Power & Narrative at the Black Leadership in Social Impact summit by Foundation for Black Communities and Future of Good hosted hundreds of changemakers from across the country to celebrate the achievements of Black leaders in social impact and build an anti-racist social impact sector.

Voted in as co-chair of SETSI's  Solidarity Working Group with Peter Frampton and began an amazing adventure in the world of social finance, community impact and solidarity economy.

March

·      Recognition as one of Atlantic Canada’s 25 most powerful women in 2022. Alongside mentors, peers and friends. Also had amazing conversations with Dawn Chafe <3

·      Met the incredible Surrana Sandy, Nidhi Khanna and now Christelle F. and spoke at Diverse Women of Canada - stories of Resilience, Skills for Change,

·      Participated in Tamarack Institute’s "Cities and communities across Canada taking a whole-community approach to climate action. "

April

·      Some down time and #writing

·     Also spoke on a panel of incredible women on "Gender Inclusive Recovery" as part of the #BuildUpWomen Series hosted by Sowmya Rajasekaran

May

·      Joined the NPower Canada board : “Welcome to the NPower Canada Board. We held a vote over the past few days and your election was unanimous. Congratulations!! We are very fortunate and excited to have you join us. […]” Board Chair extraordinaire Stephen Gardiner.

·      Also joined excellent HR-Diversity & Inclusion- committee with Shannon Pestun and Jeffrey Maddox (chair)

June

·      Inspiring Communities Spotlight Interview by Dartmouth’s own Madeson Darcy!

·     I discoverd and read Arantzazulab blog posts on what it would take to reimagine the future of collaborative governance with great interest and relief about what we were learning and experiencing in the journey of Inspiring Communities.

July

·      More downtime and #boardrecruitment 😉

August

·      Worked with Kylie Adair to create this resonant article from my random musings - "Have you thought about the harm your social R&D project might cause? Some reflection questions to consider as you experiment, iterate, and ‘fail forward.’" - Thanks Kylie.

September

·      Art of City Building 2022: This year’s conference took place on Monday, September 19th, 2022, the day Queen Elizabeth was laid to rest.

·      The conference focused on the theme of “Re(dis)covery”. We wanted to draw on the lessons that have been learned over the last few years consider how planning has shifted (or needs to shift) in response to the crises, and opportunities, before us. These conversations were rooted in reconciliation and centering the histories and current contexts of Indigenous peoples. We heard from speakers from around the globe and our own local experts and heard about what they are seeing, hearing, and doing to build happier, healthier, more inclusive, and vibrant cities.

·      CBC Black changemakers in Atlantic Canada launches nominations for Feb 2023 awards.

October

·      Good news that my poetry will be  published! Dr. Andrea O’Reilly, informed all the contributors to “ African, Caribbean and Black People’s Resilience During COVID-19” . My heartfelt gratitude to Dr. Delores Mullings for the opportunity.

November

·      Possibility Project discussion on failing forward in Social Innovation, attuning to possible harm and embracing radical accountability – ICYMI, here is the recording of a great conversation with Mojdeh Cox and Tanya Chung-Tiam-Fook, PhD moderated by the incomparable Heather Hiscox *buy her book!!

·      How Mentorship Can Help Narrow the Gender Gap in Entrepreneurship. A rich conversation with my fellow NPower Canada board member, Wendy Cukier, along with Kim Brooks, dean of the Faculty of Management at Dalhousie University; Amy Grant, BPR, project manager at Origin Leadership Consulting Inc. and lead storyteller at Pink Lnu; and Dawn Umlah (she / her), a consultant working with high growth technology startups, venture capital funds and diverse founder pipeline building organizations. Thanks Isaac Cook for the invite :-)

·      Spoke at ‘Communities Taking Climate Action’ . with Andrew Cotterell from Canmore and Kate MacNaughton from Canmore and Prince Edward County hosted by Tamarack ICYMI recordings of all the wonderful plenaries.

·      #CBC Black Changemakers selection and review panel – what a wonderful experience!

December

REST, RESET, REFRESH

And looking forward to what next year brings such as the

·      Atlantic Black Policy Conference (PEI) April 27th into the weekend (more to follow), see Black Policy Atlantic Canada for more details as they are made available.

·      Sustainable Communities Conference 2023 which brings together municipal staff, elected officials, federal officials, and private sector experts to discuss and share best practices for making Canadian communities more environmentally, socially and economically vibrant.