published by ZX Media Corporation
COMMUNITY N W! MAGAZINE
Volume 2 Issue 3 • October 2019
DISCOVER ALBERTA’S INNOVATION ENGINE Extending the horizon of possibilities to solve today’s challenges, reaching new potential, and creating a healthier and more prosperous future for Alberta, and the world.
A Grassroots Magazine • For Community by Community • Our imperfections make us great ! Krista Malden
CONTENTS
Community Connector
Kmalden@communitynowmagazine.com
Kenzie Webber Master Creator
INNOVATION
BUSINESS
The Superpower of Super Innovators 5
Telling It Like It Is
34
Investing in Tokenized Real Estate Block by Block 8
Celebrating 30 Years
CONTENT CONTRIBUTORS VOLUME 2 ISSUE 3
36
Stacy Richter
AAIR
37
Jill Quirk
Heloise Lorimer/ STEAM Team
Zanika Malden
Hunter Hub
Diane Swiatek
Koleya Karrington
Les Mottosky
Nicole Langton
Jade Alberts
Ken Goldstein
Alberta Innovates
Greg MacGillivray
Garry Woods
Wendy Hutchins
Flipping The Switch 12
EDUCATION
Using Strategy to Build Engagement
Kenzie@communitynowmagazine.com
38
A Hallowe’en Costume: The Simple Complexity of It 15
COMMUNITY
Hunter Hub Receives Funding 22
Women of Inspiration
Searching For a Code to Success 26
Exploring Community Events 46
RAW Artist
A Journey to Discovery
41 42
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Community Now! Magazine Copyright 2018, published by ZX Media Corporation. Volume 2 Issue 3 October 2019
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All rights reserved. This magazine or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher and writer.
Credit to Errorist_Artist aka Zanika Malden
From Calgary: In the spirit of respect, reciprocity and truth, we honor and acknowledge Moh’kinsstis (Blackfoot) and the traditional Treaty 7 territory and oral practices of the Blackfoot confederacy: Siksika, Kainai, Piikani as well as the Stoney Nakoda and Tsuut’ina nations. We acknowledge that this territory is home to the Métis Nation of Alberta, Region 3 within the historical Northwest Métis homeland. Finally, we acknowledge all Nations, Indigenous and non, who live, work and play and help us steward this land, honour and celebrate this territory. This sacred gathering place provides us with an opportunity to engage in and demonstrate leadership on reconciliation. - Wendy Hutchins
Community Now! \\ 3
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INNOVATION THE SUPERPOWER OF SUPER INNOVATORS
S
Les Mottosky
erial innovators understand a critical concept that much of North America struggles with. In fact, the word “struggle” understates that it’s practically considered a violation of our culture. What is this societal sin? I’m talking about changing our minds.
“
In the world of business, progress and innovation, decision making is a critical skill. Decisions fuel direction, support and determine purpose, move us forward and lead the way for the next set of decisions.
It’s better to create an “oops” than a “what if?…”
What is not always so readily accepted or understood is when a leader alters a decision. Subjectively, many of us understand why this is unnerving or frustrating; it messes with our personal agendas.
(continued on next page) Community \\ 5
(continued from page 5...) However, as strategic innovators we need to learn to thrive in the reality of: “It’s better to create an “oops” than a “what if?…” When a leader chooses a direction, it creates a ripple effect reaction of decisions from members of the team. The leader’s decision creates an anchor that we leverage to start pushing forward with our own decisions. This perceived understanding of what’s going on and how we’re contributing to it, creates a powerful and reassuring feeling of belonging - one of the most powerful human emotions we experience. Belonging and contribution are primal, because they are the “security foundation” of our social brains. In other words, belonging and contributing to a tribe once meant that we possessed a solid survival strategy. While our physical survival no longer necessitates that we belong (there are plenty of anti-social freelancers working in their apartments who never meet the people they do work for), it’s not the healthiest or the happiest way to do life. 6 // Community Now!
When somebody changes their mind, it affects us. At best, it can feel like the opposite of progress and, at worst, it can feel like a betrayal. We have to get over this, though. Mistaking our opinions for facts doesn’t make it a fact. This is the very dynamic at the heart of our resistance to changing our minds. The reality is that changing our minds is a super power. And in a world that seems to sometimes frown upon it, it requires nextlevel courage when changing an opinion, belief or decision. It wasn’t that long ago that politicians and aspiring candidates would be crushed in the media when they changed their stance on an issue. The perception was that they were flakey, unreliable or, worse: unstable. Reality, however, dictates the opposite. It’s only sane to change our minds when we’re presented with new information that challenges what we once believed to be true. Change is the way of the universe and it is the
way of life. It’s a permanent state - so why should our minds be any different? The challenge is often a wrestling with our ego rather than logic. Pedestrian or self-evident to some and for others it’s revelatory, but cultivating a willingness to question our thinking is one of the most important life practices we can commit to. And in business, our existence depends on allowing new information to inform our decisions. Even — or maybe, especially — if that includes changing our minds. As you read this, businesses are filing for bankruptcy because they held-on to a decision too tightly and for too long. The 21st century poster child for this is Kodak of course. Inventors of the same device that took them down: the now ubiquitous digital camera. As has been documented to the point of becoming cliche, they mistook the business they were in for the product they produced: film and chemicals. The brand has since come to understand that they were actually in the image preservation business. With this insight, Kodak 2.0 is experiencing a rise from the ashes moment: where they’re re-emerging as a digital rights
platform for photographers. In essence they have learned that for some people, more than mere sentimental value, imagery also has commercial value. And the artist’s who create that value deserve to be compensated - a seemingly novel concept in the wild, wild west of the world wide web. Kodak’s bold attempt to “change their mind” in an attempt to remain relevant is remarkable and compelling, given it’s in the same industry that made their household brand name a household brand name. As much as we all love the story of a winner, we love the story of a comeback even more. And, by definition, comeback’s are necessitated by a change of mind. Serial innovator’s understand this to the point where they look to disrupt their own thinking before the market can or a competitor does. The costs of the “oops” is nearly always less severe than the price tag of the “what if?…”. This is innovating. And innovating is the constant pursuit of proactively changing our minds. It also happens to be a superpower.
www.thedoorway.ca
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listening to everyone
Innovation \\ 7
INVESTING IN TOKENIZED REAL ESTATE
BLOCK BY BLOCK R
By Stacy Richter
eal estate investing is a lucrative career for some and a side gig for others. There are hundreds of different real estate investment strategies and thousands of variations on those. Every investment carries some level of risk. Real estate is not immune. Investing in real estate requires substantial capital. Especially when compared to the average annual household income in Canada. The Canadian Real Estate Association announced that the national average price of a home sold in July 2019 was nearly $499,0001. Conventional lenders will require a minimum 20% down payment to finance an investment property. That equates to almost $100,000 down payment on the average home. For the average Canadian household that earns ~$71,700 after taxes, real estate investing can be
8 // Community Now!
out of reach. Even more so for the unattached individuals earning just $27,300 per year2.
the strategies, the higher the barriers to make them available.
There are other real estate investment strategies available to Canadians. Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) and real estate focused investment funds can be more accessible to the average Canadian. Though they do not carry less risk and require just as much education to ensure that risk is understood.
The administration of filing these types of investments is partially responsible for what makes them inefficient vehicles for many Canadians.
Each of these conventional investment strategies requires substantial administration and management. The set-up of the investment vehicles, filing the appropriate securities, verifying the land titles, vetting the investors and the investment managers all requires considerable expense to execute. The higher the administration costs required to execute
“The real estate industry has always been slow to adopt new technologies, however, it is becoming more open to the idea that blockchain has the potential to transform the way we buy and sell real estate by lowering hidden costs, expedite the process, reduce frauds and increase transparency.”3 Fractional ownership is a method where multiple buyers take ownership the title of (continued on next page)
1) Global News. (2019, August 16). Canada’s home sales up 12% in July year-over-year. Retrieved October 6, 2019, from https:// globalnews.ca/news/5768765/canada-crea-home-sales-july-2019/ 2) Workopolis. (2018, February 15). Here’s how much Canadians are earning by province. Retrieved October 6, 2019, from https:// careers.workopolis.com/advice/how-much-canadians-are-earning-by-province/ 3) Barzilay, O. (2017, August 7). Will Blockchain Ignite Fractional Ownership Market For Homes? Retrieved October 6, 2019, from https://www.forbes.com/sites/omribarzilay/2017/08/07/will-blockchain-ignite-fractional-ownership-market-for-homes/#24743db83370
Innovation \\ 9
accessible. Further, this token is secured by a specific property with a discrete address that can be verified. This is a far different model then investing $50 to buy one unit of a real estate fund.
(continued from page 9...)
Advocates of the fractional ownership model using blockchain platforms also suggest that the technology has the added benefits of transparency, traceability, security and liquidity.
a property and is not a new concept to real estate. Blockchain technologies can make the strategy more efficient. Blockchain enables the tokenization of an asset.
In real world terms, an investor can buy a token and own a very small piece of a single property. They get to choose the property and the number of tokens to purchase.
So what?
The technology also opens opportunities to invest in properties only previously available to a select few. A duplex, condo building, strip mall or office tower that has been tokenized may now be made accessible to the average Canadian.
The tokenization of real estate allows the owners to issue a token through a blockchain platform. That token represents a partial ownership of the real estate; otherwise referred to as an asset backed token. The token is issued and maintained on the blockchain which “is a database that is shared across a network of computers. Once a record has been added to the chain it is very difficult to change. To ensure all the copies of the database are the same, the network makes constant checks.�4 In other words, a piece of real estate can be broken down into any combination of 1-10,000+ component parts and sold to willing & qualified investors. A home that is sold for $500,000 can be tokenized and issued on the blockchain. The number of tokens is up to the owner of the property. Issuing 10,000 tokens, for example, would yield a token price of $50 each. To the average Canadian who desires to invest in real estate, buying a $50 token is far more 10 // Community Now!
The Flip-Side of the Digital Coin Since tokenized assets can make real estate investments more accessible to investors, the same tokens can make capital more accessible to developers. Residential real estate investments require investors who have sizeable sums of cash or access to credit not available to most individuals. Capital for commercial real estate is even less accessible for developers. Tokenized real estate using blockchain technologies removes many of the administrative inefficiencies for raising capital. A project that is limited to 10-20 investors with larger sums of capital may be opened up to thousands of investors with small sums of capital without increasing the cost to raise the money.
2018 witnessed the first tokenized asset sold in Manhattan for $30 million USD. “The market in New York is always strong, but it can take some time to sell for the right price in a new construction building. With blockchain tokenization, we can remove the unruly pressure of traditional bank financing, which is much healthier for the project and all of the stakeholders. Tokenization is paving the way for a new forefront in real estate development”5 The Downside Technology and innovation often move much faster than the infrastructure and convention they intend to disrupt. The issues of governance, regulation, valuation, claim and ownership rights have yet to be solved and often lag the speed of innovation. The governance of the property that has been tokenized can vary with every single deal and can vary in their complexity.
Regulatory bodies are still writing the body of law when it comes to blockchain transactions. Real Estate and Investments are two of the most highly regulated industries. Valuation of real estate is subjective and usually only determined by the actual sale price of the property. The issue of valuation arises when aged property is being tokenized. The value of the tokens after the fact is also volatile. Claim rights and owner’s rights have yet to become standardized. Control and ownership of the tokenized assets are still in flux. Rapid innovation, like tokenizing real estate, is often accompanied by sizeable opportunity and legacy problems. Blockchain technologies and other innovations provide ample opportunities for financial inclusion, the legacy of our infrastructure, governance and comfort zones will continue to be tested and pushed.
4) Murray, M. (2018, June 15). Blockchain explained. Retrieved October 31, 2018, from http://graphics.reuters.com/TECHNOLOGYBLOCKCHAIN/010070P11GN/index.html 5) Wolfson, R. (2018, October 3). A First For Manhattan: $30M Real Estate Property Tokenized With Blockchain. Retrieved October 10, 2019, from https://www.forbes.com/sites/rachelwolfson/2018/10/03/a-first-for-manhattan-30m-real-estate-property-tokenized-withblockchain/#5d3a50c14895.
RE/MAX IREALTY INNOVATIONS// Deloris Walker
Helping you find the perfect community. 518 9 Ave SE Calgary T2G 0S1 phone: 403.815.0429 email: dwalker1@remax.net Call today and let us find your dream home in the perfect community.
Innovation \\ 11
FLIPPING THE SWITCH With its wireless switching technology, Levven Electronics is breaking down cost barriers to home automation An Edmonton start-up hopes to revolutionize home automation with novel technology that drastically reduces both cost and installation time. Levven Electronics is an off-shoot of a University of Alberta engineering spinoff which, after over the course of 30 years and several owners, evolved into a home automation company. In 2011, James Keirstead acquired the company — and gave it its current name — as a vertical integration move. At the time, he co-owned a local hot tub company and wanted to enhance the wireless technology in its products, but Keirstead soon realized Levven’s true potential. “The [home automation] industry was growing immensely and will continue to grow massively over the next 5-10 years.” He believed that with the right approach, the company could capture a healthy chunk of the market. 12 // Community Now!
The biggest barrier was cost, he says. A fully automated home — that is, complete integration of a home’s lighting, audio, security, and other electronic functions — can cost six-figures. After leaving the hot tub industry in 2014, Keirstead put all of his weight into growing the company and developing a more cost-effective automation system accessible to folks outside of the top 1%. As a solution to this problem, Levven developed wireless switching, which eliminates wiring between the switch and power control, and saves significant amounts of labour and material costs during home construction. Levven’s system relies on controls installed within junction boxes (the box your light fixture attached to) that can be manipulated by wireless switches via RadioFrequency technology (the same technology your car’s keychain fob uses).
These switches can be installed on walls anywhere in a home (and easily moved to other locations as a family’s needs change over time). They can also be treated as portable controls, perhaps living on the bedside table of a small child too short to reach a conventional light switch in the middle of the night. While a simple concept, developing new technology is never easy. Keirstead turned to Alberta Innovates for help and between 2015 and 2017, received extensive expertise from Technology Development Advisors, as well as a micro-voucher, voucher, and funding to hire both a research and development staffer and a marketing associate. “They’ve really been amazing to help us de-risk the enormous investment we’ve had to make to get these technologies off the ground,” says Keirstead.
MARKETING
Now Levven Electronics is working with builders like Landmark to install the home automation systems in brand new homes in Alberta and a few US States (about 1200 thus far, Keirstead estimates). The company continues to expand elsewhere in North America, pending changes to electrical code interpretations. The company has been successfully lobbying governments to that end; in 2018, Alberta issued changes to its interpretation of the federal code allowing wire-free switching in residential homes. “What’s happening now is that customers are asking for more automation, more builders are putting [our technologies] in...and more builders are looking at us,” says Keirstead.
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EDUCATION
A
HALLOWE’EN
COSTUME: THE SIMPLE COMPLEXITY OF IT By Diane Swiatek, Founder and Director of Banbury Crossroads
A
School, Est. 1979
t the end of this month, at the turning of autumn to winter, when summer’s branches
“
In general, costumes allow a person the opportunity to be an actor in the game of
‘pretend’.
have become leafless and appear against the early night sky like bare-boned beasties, a strange ritual occurs in America—Hallowe’en. Its original, superstitious, religious roots are not the point any more. No one is actually frightened, threatened or awestruck by it, any more. Instead, its attraction comes from the costumes and masks worn at parties and on the trek for Hallowe’en candy. There is an ancient, and honorable, history behind the idea of wearing masks and costumes at social events. In some cultures, people believed that wearing a mask allowed a person to take on the (continued on next page) Education \\ 15
(continued from page 15...) qualities of the figure depicted, and it was a very serious occasion. Nowadays, in the western world, costumes and masks are the heart and soul of theatre and film, where they perform a descriptive and symbolic function. When they are used for festivals, carnivals, and especially events like Hallowe’en, they simply give us an opportune chance to be wildly creative, and self-expressive beyond the bounds of our everyday personae. These costumes, and their masks, give all people, from childhood to adulthood, the opportunity to explore and experience other identities, alternate personalities, other occupations, and even other life forms. I have seen costumes depicting a hot dog or a dice, a piece of bacon or a racoon. I have seen butterflies and angels, medieval princesses and turtles. The opportunities are endless for artistic self-expression, and that is often how people evaluate a costume—how realistic the detail of the costume is, how skillfully it is made, and what emotions it elicits in the viewers. People respond both intellectually and emotionally to costumes, which fall into different broad categories—the beautiful and exquisite, the unexpectedly creative and unusual, and the ugly and frightening. All people disguised in carefully put-together regalia seek a reaction, and they all delight in others’ gasps of wonderment, awe, amusement or horror. Laughter resulting from the unexpected is common and expected. This is because when we know familiar persons from day to day, we gather together extensive information to form a pattern describing the truth of their character, personality, knowledge, values and behaviour. Indeed, it is considered a mentally healthy aim to live consistently and congruently as who we actually are. Costumes destroy this 16 // Community Now!
pattern. They make us see people differently. Sometimes, we get a hint of who these people could have been, if they had been born in a different era, or a different place, or a different physical body. Sometimes, we detect an underlying wish or secret desire of the person underneath that costume. On the other hand, sometimes costumes suggest a person’s courage, facing their greatest fear and defying its hold on them, in order to triumph over it. Costumes that depict a great deal of gore and physical repulsivity fall into that category. In general, costumes allow a person the opportunity to be an actor in the game of “pretend”. Children are familiar with this game, as they play it often. They are trying out social situations, adult roles, and common challenges—and they need to do this, in order to make sense of the world modelled around them. Hallowe’en costumes for children are, then, an innocuous continuation of their daily play, but on an extravagant scale. For adults, Hallowe’en costumes give them a chance to be transported back to their childhood, an opportunity to play at “make believe” once a year. This sounds simple and enjoyable, but in our current political and social climate, costumes have become problematic for adults. Considering that costumes make us out to be something that we are not, and that humor is a common by-product of the effect, we need to make sure that we are aware of viewers’ possible reactive sensitivities when we choose a costume. It is fine to dress like a hot dog, because real hot dogs are not capable of complex human feelings. Neither is a dice, a butterfly or even a turtle. However, when our costumes depict actual human beings, then we need to think more deeply (continued on next page)
Education \\ 17
(continued from page 16...) about our choices. It is easy to evaluate some costumes—for instance, no one would object to a Raggedy Anne or Genghis Khan outfit, or one depicting an alien, a prehistoric human, a zombie or a medieval princess, because these people are either not real or not alive today. There is no one to protest the depiction.
the very idea of wearing costumes and has caused some uncertainty and generalized anxiety in the costume-wearing crowd. Those viewers who become personally offended can become a powerful, and sometimes even manipulative, tool for influencing the behaviour of others, and the backlash is that unwitting offenders may feel offended themselves. Costumes have become fraught with risk—the risk of receiving ridicule, as well as causing it. Bravery may be needed for
Some examples are more complex to evaluate, however, particularly when humor is involved. an individual to even put on any costume, at Humor can be both all! What is needed here subtle and blatant, is some objectivity and both confusing and some goodwill, along confrontive, but it is with clarity, kindliness always very personal. and wisdom mixed into it, The unfortunate to figure out how to steer reality is that, due to clear of these obstacles to individual differences the intended Hallowe’en in personal history experience of mystery, - George Eliot that may include surprise and delight. discrimination and Nevertheless, there is always one form of trauma, some people are very fragile when comedy that does lend itself particularly well they respond to other people’s sense of humor to costuming, even if it is offensive, and that and ideas of acceptable topics for makeis parody and satire—mostly of political, or believe. All people develop varying levels of other overbearing, harmful public figures, and resilience and emotional security that impact especially of people who seem threatening, their interpretations of the world. Thus, the selfish or dangerously controlling. Such most vulnerable among them may perceive negative figures may seem to be so powerful certain costumes as offensive. So, an element that they are immune to criticism, anyway. of worrisome unpredictability has crept into The caustic and overt nature of these parodies allows the wearers to experience their own sense of power—of censure. Their costume is like a concrete, visible voice of protest. That creates power of a sort, a minimal sort, but better than nothing, for people who feel powerless. An example here would be the masks of Donald Trump that are sure to find their way into parties, even in Canada. He doesn’t seem to mind the attention, and people don’t feel too sorry for him.
“What are we on earth for, if not to make life a little easier to each other?”
18 // Community Now!
However, for the rest of us ordinary people who are alive today, we usually do not want to be made into caricatures or laughingstocks. We do not want to be made fun of, or shamed. Shame has been anathema to individuals for eons. At one point in history, people who were shamed publicly and shunned by their community (and they might have even deserved it for universally logical and understandable reasons) were effectively shut out from participating in it, and they could die from neglect. Even today, we need to avoid putting other people into a position where they would likely feel embarrassment or shame simply from viewing, or for wearing, a costume. We cannot portray or exaggerate particular aspects or problems of people, such as obesity, alcoholism or mental illness, and we cannot touch the core of people’s identities—such as their ethnicities or religions. Unsurprisingly, we cannot be rude, if we wish to enjoy the esteem of others. It is all about respect. It is also about communicating our expectations in advance, and predicting the likely reactions we will receive from wearing the costume in the first place.
It takes honest self-awareness to evaluate the reasons for our choice of a particular costume. For some, this garb merely provides a chance to imagine a different route we may have taken in our lives: when we wear a doctor’s surgical gown, for instance, or clothing and paraphernalia depicting a scientist, or a carpenter, or a musician. No one minds that choice. It is simply intriguing. Sometimes, a costume may depict an alternate personality— someone more exotic, or brave, or strong, or comic, or extroverted. Again, that is just an interesting chance for the person to explore possibilities in their lives. At the bottom of it, both choosing and viewing a costume require the same commonsense sensibility towards people that we need to display every other day of our lives: it has to proceed from our ability to feel empathy and respect for others. If we cannot, we will make blunders in our daily lives, and we will make blunders in our costume choices, as well as in our reactions to them. Every other day of the year, we have to predict and evaluate possible (continued on next page) Education \\ 19
(continued from page 19...) outcomes from the words and actions we choose, in relation to our effect upon other people. We have to take responsibility for our thoughts, feelings and situations. However, we do not have to walk on eggshells, or be hypervigilant, to protect overly fragile people who do not take responsibility for their own thoughts, feelings and situations, and who would rather blame everyone else for their life experience. They have their own personal work to do. We may choose to help them in some other concrete way, but costumes can be a red herring in this task, and actually distract from our real need to find more effective ways to support people at risk. There needs to be a sense of balance here: the right and ability of well-intentioned people to enjoy creative self-
WE MAKE
expression, as well as to observe purposeful non-exploitation of vulnerable peoples— in all spheres of their lives, not just during Hallowe’en holiday celebrations. It all boils down to the fact that our ability to belong within the communities in which we live and work depends upon a deep sensitivity and caring towards others—a deep, authentic, and mutual respect. It boils down to the give and take inherent in people reciprocally speaking and listening, sharing and helping. George Eliot once wrote, “What are we on earth for, if not to make life a little easier to each other?” Socially intelligent people know that it is both unkind and unwise in the extreme to knowingly hurt, malign, ridicule or disrespect others. Every day, that is true. It is also true at Hallowe’en. We do know what to do. It’s simple.
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Education \\ 21
Hunter Hub receives funding to lead Where people, talent women in STEM entrepreneurship and ideas collide program and pitch competition Who is the Hub for?
It’s for everyone! The innovation, social enterprise and entrepreneurial communities including: students, student clubs, faculty members, staff, alumni, Calgary and beyond.
How can the Hub help you?
The Hunter Hub is a safe place to try out your entrepreneurial ideas. Do you want to learn what entrepreneurial thinking is? Do you have an idea for a business? We can connect you with information on all aspects of starting a business or side hustle.
Building the University of Calgary as a hub for women-led innovation
What is the Hunter Hub for Entrepreneurial Thinking?
The Hunter Hub is the University of Calgary’s new initiative to engage and immerse students, faculty, staff, alumni and the By Shea Coburn Canadian community in a culture of entrepreneurial thinking, challenging themHub withfor a new and bold approach to teaching, Hunter Entrepreneurial Thinking learning, discovery and knowledge-sharing.
The University of Calgary’s Hunter Hub
The Hunter Hub for Entrepreneurial Thinking was created in 2017 for Entrepreneurial has as received with a generous gift from the Hunter Thinking Family Foundation, an interdisciplinary nucleus for activities that will support grant funding through the federal Research entrepreneurial student experiences, enable faculty to lead in Support Fund’s Incremental Grant to innovation, and expand a growing community ofProject entrepreneurial and innovative thinkers.
build the university’s first women in STEM (science, tech, engineering and mathematics) entrepreneurship program and pitch Events & Programs Innovation Reactor Program Summer competition. Incubator
Do you have entrepreneurial expertise to share? We’re always on the lookout for entrepreneurs to share their experiences and expertise with our students and growing The goalscommunity. of the program are to: present a workshop, entrepreneurial Want to join a panel, or share your entrepreneurial journey? We’re also looking to host entrepreneurs-in-residence and mentors to help guide emerging • support women in building business, entrepreneurs. If this is you, let us know!
social enterprise or side hustle in(403) STEM 220-4425 hunterhub@ucalgary.ca
• support women to grow anUcalgary existing MSC 171 business, social enterprise or side hustle in STEM Follow us:
TENET I2C Energy New Venture Competition WELab is aAcademy female entrepreneurship education European Innovation Global Entrepreneurship Week
@hunterhubyyc • strengthen business or entrepreneurial skills for women entrepreneurs in STEM
APPLICATIONS OPEN andLab develop Falling Walls UCalgary the next generation of women North American Innovation Academy leaders and changemakers (see our entrepreneurs, website for further details)
• support participation of women entrepreneurs in traditionally underrepresented sectors, specifically women of colour anducalgary.ca/hunter-hub Indigenous women in STEM
and mentorship program, designed to inspire
across diverse disciplines. The Hunter Hub for Entrepreneurial Thinking’s WELab program is the first of its kind in the university’s history and will serve all female-identifying students, staff, and faculty interested in receiving entrepreneurial mentorship and training. 22 // Community Now!
• support networking and mentorship access for women entrepreneurs and; • create awareness of entrepreneurial resources across all disciplines
The WELab program will offer: • Mentorship workshops: Beginning in October 2019, WELab will be offering mentorship workshops with experienced entrepreneurs, changemakers and leaders in STEM. • WELab Hub, a women entrepreneurship digital incubator: We will be offering a digital incubator to centralize resources, templates, and funding sources for women entrepreneurs and changemakers. The incubator will also offer a digital chat portal for participants to connect with like-minded innovators and mentors. • 2020 WELab Pitch Competition: In Spring 2020, the Hunter Hub for Entrepreneurial Thinking will be hosting a women entrepreneurship in STEM pitch competition.
“WELab aligns with the university’s innovation-related strategic priorities and ensures that our students are empowered and equipped to enter competitive STEM fields,” said Joelle Foster, executive director of the Hunter Hub for Entrepreneurial Thinking. “We are thrilled and honoured to showcase the University and Calgary’s first women in STEM entrepreneurship pitch competition and mentorship program to brand our city as a hub for women-led innovation.” “We all know innovation is crucial for any community’s socio-economic prosperity,” said Elise Ahenkorah, programs and partnership lead for WELab. “But beyond being innovative, we require an inclusive economy for everyone to contribute to Alberta’s economic diversification. WELab will serve as an asset in equipping talent with the skills and entrepreneurial thinking to support Alberta’s economic diversification and innovation ecosystems.” WELab’s first mentorship workshop will launch in October 2019. The WELab 2019/20 stream will be focused on STEM. In future (continued on next page) Education \\ 23
(continued from page 23...) years, WELab’s programming will have a different discipline focus to reflect the University of Calgary’s faculty areas. To stay up to date with the Hunter Hub and WELab’s activities, please register for their newsletter. About the Hunter Hub for Entrepreneurial Thinking The Hunter Hub for Entrepreneurial Thinking was created in 2017 with a generous endowment from the Hunter Family Foundation as an interdisciplinary nucleus for activities that will support entrepreneurial student experiences, enable faculty to lead in innovation, and expand a growing community of entrepreneurial and innovative thinkers. It includes a dedicated space on campus (a collision space) where students, faculty, 24 // Community Now!
and staff can gain and share knowledge, build networks, and turn ideas into practical solutions that can benefit society. Research Support Fund and Incremental Project Grant The federal government’s Research Support Fund (RSF) assists Canadian post-secondary institutions and their affiliated research hospitals and institutes with the expenses associated with managing the research funded by Tri-Council agencies (CIHR, NSERC, and SSHRC). The Research Support Fund helps the university create an environment where researchers can focus on their research, collaborate with colleagues, and translate their discoveries and innovations. The Incremental Project Grant is a new stream of the RSF that focuses on innovation and commercialization activities, facilities renewal, information resources, and equity, diversity, and inclusion. Read more about how UCalgary uses the Research Support Fund.
Banbury Crossroads School Seeking a school like home?
For 40 years, Banbury has offered an atmosphere where children feel safe, comfortable, and relaxed. We offer full Pre-K to Grade 12. To learn more, please schedule an appointment with us today or call Anne in the office at (403) 270-7787.
www.banburycrossroads.com
Building B1, #201, 2451 Dieppe Ave SW, Calgary, AB T3E 7K1
Searching for a CODE TO SUCCESS A STEAM program can help teach important life skills Written by STEAM Team coach Jill Quirk
In a world where everything is going digital, it is important to help our students learn sustainable digital skills. Skills that they will use throughout their lives. If in the future, technology will drive every sector, wouldn’t it be great to find ways to help students be ready for this? The STEAM program at Heloise Lorimer School is an opportunity for students to learn important life skills like: collaboration, communication, problem solving, and learning computational thinking. Students come to the STEAM lab as a class to; Design, Think and Play. The goal of the STEAM lab is to find ways to engage all students at all different levels to feel good about themselves and learn important life skills, especially empathy towards others. The STEAM Team is comprised of students grade 4 and 5 who like to help coach a class (grades 1-4) with a design challenge. Each week we (The STEAM Team) try to have a new challenge or add to a challenge. Often the challenges ideas are created by The STEAM Team members.
26 // Community Now!
This month we are learning the basics of how to code. The STEAM Team students are teaching about the importance of giving accurate directions, how to work together (learning collaboration skills) and how to problem solve. This month we are learning how to code without computers, as we are “unplugged”. This is more about teaching computational thinking then coding. We are trying to find ways where a solution can be reproducible. When we set up the lab, each table group as large laminated grid sheet which will act like a “computer” screen. Students work in groups; where each student gets a role to determine how to get a Coding Mouse or a Dash robot to the end of a maze. The fun question we want students to answer is, “What did Dash/ the Mouse do on vacation?”. Students create a game to explain what they did on vacation. We are trying to tap into their creativity because; “creativity is intelligence having FUN”. Each group is divided into 4 jobs: Program Designer – this student designs the game by placing the laminated play cards on the “screen”. For example, what does Dash want to do on his vacation? Setting up the game for Dash, where he will have to complete a variety of activities. (continued on next page) Education \\ 27
(continued from page 27...) Program Designer Assistant – this student designs something creative with the LEGO or K’nex for the game. (For example, students made pits of lava, an extra maze, or a treehouse). Often this student is the one who struggles with reading/writing, however loves communicating with their hands. Program Writer – this student writes the code on the laminated sheet using arrows (Forward, Backward, Right and Left). Program Tester – this student tests the program written by group members with a robot (the mouse using coloured arrows or a DASH robot using an ipad). As they are setting up their “game” – students are creating stories, and finding ways to unleash their creativity. The idea behind this design challenge is that each student has an important role for the group, so every student feels important and feels like they contribute something special to the group, regardless of their abilities. The thinking behind this task is that there are four computational thinking strategies. We are practicing: pattern recognition, decomposition (making a list of steps), abstraction (beyond just what’s in front of
28 // Community Now!
them) and making algorithms (instructions to solve problems, not just math). When observing students’ problem solving, students are hitting failure head on. Often their first, second and even third time, the codes don’t work. However, they are learning how to persevere. Students often need to work out problems visually with their hands. When coaching The STEAM students, I encourage them to jump head first into the unknown. An example of this is when grade 5 girls wanted to learn how to code with colour codes/Ozobot robots. The girls didn’t know why the coloured paths were not working, however they continued to try different strategies and find ways to make their coloured pathways work. They soon found out that it was the thickness of the line that mattered, and they were so happy when they got their colour codes to work that they created a large maze for others to try. We as educators could show students what they were doing is wrong, however students having to solve it on their own allows for a more powerful personal victory and teaches them how capable they really are.
STEAM Team planning sessions: When planning with STEAM Team members, it is usually based around tinkering with materials in the STEAM lab until we come up with something that clicks. For example, some STEAM Team members noticed we had a lot of left over bridges from last year’s grade 7 bridge challenge. A few students asked me; “Can we work with a grade 1 class and make STEAM badges with these left-over popsicle sticks to give out to make students feel good in the STEAM lab?” We then made it happen and worked with a grade 1 class to make adorable STEAM badges which we now hand out when we see students using their Heloise Lorimer virtues. When I asked some grade 5 STEAM Team students about the first month and how they felt this challenge is going so far, this is what some of the STEAM Team members said: “When I saw some kids really stuck on coding the DASH, I showed them how to do it, and I felt so helpful” Cora. “I saw kids working together and trying to figure out how to code the robots, I thought it was really good to see kids collaborating” Liam. (continued on next page) Education \\ 29
(continued from page 29...) Anika explained how she found that the younger kids were good at saying what’s on their minds. She observed that often young kids are not afraid to speak up. “I saw kids communicating together and it was great to see” Anika. Some STEAM kids just love to create with their hands. “I like to teach kids how to do new things, it makes me feel really happy because I am helping them learn a new skill” Alia. “Whenever I help kids be better at STEAM I focus on helping them learn to cooperate. I think it is important to teach kids how to work together for the real world” Maisoon. “What I like about helping in STEAM is that I love seeing the difference in how the kids do something. Also, when they learn something new, I love watching them get better and better” Mallory. “I have been a STEAM leader for a few years now. I like STEAM because you learn a lot about yourself. I like to code robots, and I really like to play with the materials to see what I can create. For example, I like that there is embroidery thread in the STEAM lab and I just can grab it and then I can make patterns with it for my STEAM badge. You just never know what can happen in the STEAM lab!” Natalia. We will continue to play and tinker and see where our 2019-2020 journey will lead us….
The FUTURE IS WHAT WE DESIGN IT TO BE. 30 // Community Now!
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TELLING IT LIKE IT IS This issue of #TellingItLikeItIs features Vanessa Hernandez; Founder of WarBaby Cosmetics. Warbaby Cosmetics and yourself have always preached natural and local, why is it important to follow these standards rather than making a few extra dollars? I have always strived to be a person of integrity and I began this business with a desire to make product available to people that was safe for use. That was my ultimate goal, above thinking about the dollars and cents I would be bringing in. As long as I broke even every month so that I could continue running the business without debt, that was my biggest concern in the beginning. The business has grown but my intention remains the same. Safe and effective product and outstanding customer service. Period. What is your process of producing your product once you receive the ingredients? I research and source my raw ingredients from cosmetic supply companies in Canada and I love knowing that in order for these companies to sell these ingredients, they have been Health Canada approved. I formulate every finished product myself and in doing so, I am able to weed out the fillers and useless ingredients that are sometimes found in big brand products that make promises and don’t deliver. I cut right to the chase and only use the most effective, safe ingredients! If you had one piece of advice for small businesses, entrepreneurs, what would it be? Once I have my ingredients I hit the lab and start manufacturing. My QC person is me and because I make everything myself I can be sure that everything is done to code and with the strictest sanitation and sterilization in practice. Warbaby has been in business since 2015 and you were nominated for Women Entrepreneur of the year in 2018. How have you been able to market against the big companies?
WarBaby Cosmetics has been in business since 2015! We hit the 5 year mark with more and progress than we could have anticipated! Being nominated for the Alberta Women Entrepreneur Award was an amazing honour and privilege and though I did not take home that award, it was enough just to stand in a lineup with so many amazing Albertan women! This year we are being published in the 2019 Edition of KNOW Book YYC! I think that my success in marketing against the bigger companies when it comes to cosmetics has been my attention to detail and customer service as well as being a person who operates with honesty, transparency and integrity in all matters and at all times. What is next for WarBaby Cosmetics? We currently have some products being discontinued to make room for some new and exciting products! We continue to grow and I expect to not only add to our amazing line of product but to also sit with more clients in my chair for makeup this year with the opportunity to meet so many more amazing people and beautiful faces! Even though I know I can’t be everywhere at once, the personal touch with my makeup clients is SO important to me. If you had one piece of advice for Small Businesses, Entrepreneurs or start-up, what would it be? In the words of Dori in Finding Nemo, “Just Keep Swimming...” Being an entrepreneur is not for the faint of heart but I am willing to bet that most if not ALL of us do it because we are absolutely passionate about what we have to offer to the public and how that contributes to making this world a better place. Sometimes when things get hard, you have to have that fighters talk with yourself. You know, the one where you stand and look in the mirror, head turned down, eyes turned up, sweat running down your bruised and beaten face but you flex your muscles and say, “bring it on...”. You need to keep going. No matter what.
Jade Alberts Jade Alberts Consulting 403-771-1301 • www.JadeAlbertsConsulting.com • www.LinkedIn.com/in/JadeAlberts 34 // Community Now!
WELab
WOMEN ENTREPRENEURSHIP LAB
WELab is a female entrepreneurship education and mentorship program, designed to inspire and develop the next generation of women entrepreneurs, leaders and changemakers across diverse disciplines.
Get the help you need to build your ideas into reality. WELab is a female entrepreneurship education and mentorship program, designed to inspire and develop the next generation of women entrepreneurs, changemakers and business leaders across diverse disciplines. WELab is open to all female-identifying students, at all levels of study, from all faculties and departments. WELab 2019/2020 Stream: STEM (science, tech, engineering and math) In upcoming years, we will focus on other disciplines WELab 2019/2020 Offerings: Mentorship opportunities Digital incubator WELab Pitch Competition Elise Ahenkorah, Programs & Partnership Lead ucalgary.ca/hunter-hub hunterhub@ucalgary.ca
CELEBRATING 30 YEARS OF IDENTIFYING AND CELEBRATING OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENTS IN SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY IN ALBERTA. Since 1989, ASTech has: • Showcased Alberta’s excellence in science, technology and innovation by recognizing more than 600 individuals, organizations and teams • Invested more than $1.6 million in the science and technology community through cash prizes to award winners The ASTech Foundation: • Creates inspiration • Fosters innovation • Promotes excellence • Builds entrepreneurship and prosperity • Supports education and training ASTech recognizes, celebrates and works to grow the culture of innovation in Alberta year-round, through community outreach that highlights the work of our ASTech Awards alumni. The achievements and the passion behind the work are celebrated through Humans of Alberta Innovation and the Alumni Speaker’s Bureau. We support industry innovation and economic diversification through industry showcases that explore sector challenges from multi-stakeholder viewpoints. We encourage youth to pursue excellence in STEM through the NextGen Innovators Showcase and the ASTech Scholarship program.
The ASTech Awards are Alberta’s most prestigious science and technology honours. The premiere event of its kind in Alberta, the ASTech Awards bring together 500 leaders from industry, government, media and educational institutions to honour and celebrate outstanding achievement in 10 categories covering the innovation ecosystem and sectorspecific categories. The ASTech Awards recognize and celebrate our brightest minds and the greatest achievements of outstanding individuals and organizations in the Alberta science and technology community.
ASTech: https://www.astech.ca for more information vists https://www.astech.ca To get your tickets for the 30th annual ASTech awards click here: https:// www.astech.ca/awards/tickets-2019-astech-awards Join us in Volume 2 Issue 4 as we cover and celebrate the winners of the 2019 ASTECH Awards.
AAIR AUTHENTICITY, ACCOUNTABILITY, INTEGRITY AND RESPONSIBILITY All four of these words are not only big, but they each carry a huge amount of weight, so let’s define them. Authenticity originates from the word authentic which is to be real or true. In psychology, the idea of authenticity is that regardless of the circumstances and how difficult things may be that you always hold true to who you are at your core set of values. Think back to your own values. Are you in alignment with your own values? What does it look like when you are being authentic? Is someone who values health and fitness in alignment if they are smoking? How about someone who values community but participates in putting unauthorized graffiti on public property? Accountability is the act of being accountable. But it is so much more. It really is the act of being willing to step up to the plate, be present and accounted for, to be able to justify your actions both the positive and the negative in any given situation. Is there somewhere in your life that you are not stepping up to the plate? Are you playing the game of life from the shadows of the marsh and flying under the radar? Now is the time to stand up and be counted. Integrity is doing what you said you would do. If for any reason that you can’t complete the task you said you hold yourself accountable to make it right for others. It’s important to make it right for those that were counting on you to do what you promised.
Are there places in your life that you over promise and then shrug your shoulders when you are not able to deliver? It can be as simple as being on time for an appointment that you agreed to or promising you are going to get fit, but a year later you are still not working out. Take ownership of those promises and make amends so you can move forward or the energy trying to hide and deny those promises will destroy you emotionally. Responsibility is taking ownership of a duty or task that you have been assigned or that you have indicated you would complete. This ties into both Accountability and Integrity. Are you taking responsibility for that late appointment or promise? Blaming the traffic or stress is not taking responsibility. Taking responsibility is acknowledging your mess so you can be accountable and have integrity. In our lives, nothing has more impact than the person who is authentic, takes responsibility for their lives, is accountable for their words and actions and acts with integrity. Those that do are the people that we look up to. As humans we are looking for those leaders among us that will show us the way and show us that we can be authentic, accountable, responsible, and have integrity (AAIR); a breath for fresh AAIR. This is what true leadership is. When we live our lives from a place of AAIR we become leaders in our own lives. I may be wrong, but ultimately I believe that this is what each and every one of us is striving for.
Adette Lacerte, BA, CPC, ELI-MP • Life Coach – Nine and Three Quarters Coaching Ltd. Cell: 403-477-4779• Adette.Lacerte@NineAndThreeQuartersCoaching.com www.NineAndThreeQuartersCoaching.com https://badgermouth.com • https://rawartists.com
USING STRATEGY TO BUILD ENGAGEMENT
About the Value Proposition Approach to Strategy The VP approach also delivers three strategic outcomes that three years of research Greg MacGillivary identified that only leading organizations
achieve: The S2S Value Proposition (VP) approach (1) Building a purpose and values-driven meets you where you’re at, builds focus culture. and dramatically shifts your organization’s performance. Based on the success of Suncor, (2) Embracing an all-stakeholder it captures 100% of what your organization is perspective in developing strategy today and will become all in one place. (considering your Board, staff, customers, partners and others). The VP approach:
(3) Engaging every mind in developing • Takes an integrated approach to strategic and executing strategy. and business planning by providing: (1) your Board and leadership with a If improving is the mountain you want to clear line of sight into implementation; climb, then your VP brings together the and climbing tools that your organization will use (2) every employee with a clear line to improve now and for years to come! of sight to the organization’s broad strategy. • Embraces an annual planning cycle that first renews the broad elements of your strategy and then engages every mind in its further development and execution. • Establishes clear accountability, which assures follow-through on both top-down priorities introduced by leadership and bottom-up initiatives identified by teams. Building engagement can increase performance by 200%, save you 5% of your annual salaries and deliver other remarkable quality, safety and retention benefits. You can learn more by reading the S2S Value of Engagement article in the September Edition of Community Now! Magazine. 38 // Community Now!
Benefits: Engagement, Accountability & Follow-Through
Engagement is built when teams consider an organization’s broad strategy, top-down priorities, and their own organizational context in developing improvement ideas, which are then vetted through your annual planning cycle. This allows: • Top-down strategic priorities introduced by your leadership and bottom-up improvement ideas introduced by teams to be vetted, resourced and executed. • Clearly defined accountability sets the stage for follow-through across strategy development, strategy implementation and performance management using
Every mountaintop is within reach if you just keep climbing!
the S2S Two-Page Plan – a simple, proven, tailored, team-based and highly integrated strategy development, strategy implementation and performance management tool. When broad strategy is translated into specific action with clear accountability, follow-through is virtually guaranteed. In this way, the VP approach ensures that your organization is not among the 60 to 80% of those who fail in strategy implementation.
Sharing Your Organization’s Story Your VP will also help the members of your organization share its story: • Sharing your why and focus areas is a great way to open a simple and consistent conversation about your organization in 15 seconds or less. • Based on the interest expressed by the audience, one can then share more about your organization’s vision, mission and values, or more about its goals and priorities for the coming year. Your VP equips everyone that supports your organization with the ability to simply and consistently share its story.
Moving Forward As we do this work, S2S can also share ideas on (a) using online tools to evaluate engagement; (b) defining your desired culture and using purpose and values to shape it; (c) developing people; and (d) rewarding performance. Together, the members of your organization will build a great strategy. They will also build a high level of performance-enhancing engagement and build the ideas, relationships and alignment that will drive success. Shared strategic focus – from broad strategy to specific action – success is only a few strategic conversations away! S2S would like to stay connected with you to see your organization through a one-time transition from how things have been done to a new way for your organization to improve. Moving through this transition will also mean that you no longer require our ongoing support. By embracing the S2S VP approach, your strategy will be renewed annually and actioned with enthusiasm and with ease! We would also like you to know that the entire S2S solution set – Scenario Planning, The Business Idea, Strategy and Collaborative Leadership – builds engagement.
In Reinventing Organizations (2014) former McKinsey & Company consultant Frederic Laloux summarized three years of research into a suite of organizational best practices.
Business \\ 39
COMMUNITY
RAW IS COMING TO TOWN!
On October 24, join CN! Magazine as we explore the Newest most Diverse art show STELLAR hosted By Raw Artists which is traveling across Canada. This is no ordinary art show! RAW is showcasing local and Canadian talent. Art of All kinds! From hair stylists and tattoo artists to painters, musicians, fashion designers and much more. The platform that RAW has created for artists is a community and they are inviting everyone to come and explore what the art community is all about.
Meet BADGERMOUTH “The concept RAW has created in great, The multiple art idea is brilliant. Its really hard to find your footing in the art industry and RAW is providing artists a chance to be showcased in front of an audience,” said band member Rob London.
A Toronto based eclectic indie rock trio inspired by punk/post-punk, math-rock and post/ baroque. Known for their uniquely big sound, they are experimental, a touch Baroque, and…. well, a little touched. “You don’t choose music, music chooses you,” said Rob. Meet Rob London, Andrew Gordon and Nick Palmer. BadgerMouth has been together for 5 years as a band, all self-taught musicians. Influenced by both the west and the east BadgerMouth grew up listening to Nirvana and No means No along with Our Lady Peace. Their sound is different, inspiring and setting an example on how we should be expressing ourselves musically. When looking at music, BadgerMouth doesn’t just see the music, they see the business behind the music! “We need to provide a product people want” stated Rob. “This is show business, not show friends. We have to treat it like a business, and create a product people want.. It’s like you’re in the advertising industry, your bringing people into a venue to promote culture and the venue.” “We love to play, and RAW is another avenue for that.” Stated Rob when discussing his current tour with RAW show STELLAR. “This is something different, it gives us the opportunity to play much larger venues. And give us more credibility.” Badgermouth; will be hitting the stage with RAW in Calgary on October 24 at the Marguee Room. Along with painters, jewelry designers, hair dressers, tattoo artists, fashion designers… RAW is setting the stage (literally) on how to show case the art community and how to bring community together. Community \\ 41
CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL THE FINALISTS OF Women of Inspiration 2019
Women of Inspiration Awards was a night of celebration! Canada’s Premier Awards Gala recognizing women leading by example and inspiring those around them to be more and do more. Women of Inspiration are entrepreneurs, professionals, thought leaders, visionaries, everyday heroes, game changers, movers and shakers and difference makers in our community. They are everyday heroes and inspirational leaders and catalysts from all walks of life making an impact locally, nationally and globally. To read about ALL the finalist click here https://canadianbusinesschicks.com/ women-inspiration/nominees-finalists/
Nicole Langton, with winner of WOI2019 Mary Fisher; Calgary Fire Department Lieutenant
Monica Kretschmer : Founder and CEO, Universal Womens Network™ Founder, Women of Inspiration Awards Founder, The Nest Foundation | Speaker with Krista Malden, Founder of ZX Media Corporation // COMMUNITY NOW! Magazine.
42 // Community Now!
ROBYN WOODS (HENDERSON) The Uncomplicated Family/ Teleroo World - CEO/Founder
Robyn Woods (Henderson) is, word for word, taking the road less traveled and ignoring the naysayers. As a co-parent of five children, two with disabilities, and founder of a successful western-Canadian disabilities services and technology company, she sees first-hand the quality of life that children and families living with disabilities can achieve when supported with personalized, readily accessible care. She is also acutely aware of the barriers they face achieving this type of care, including cost, accessing the right experts at the right times, language barriers, and much more. Robyn has responded as a hurricane force transforming disability service delivery with Teleroo™ World, a patented, evidence-informed, secure, and globallyrelevant collaborative suite of technologies that can be used in health, education, the community, and the home to deliver personalized disability care. People have said she’s biting off more than she can chew as a Registered Speech-language Pathologist single-handedly boot-strapping the funding for Teleroo™ World and taking it from concept to commercialization. They were wrong! Teleroo™ World is at work helping families achieve quality of life outcomes in half the time of traditional disability services and is being piloted in world-class locations, such as the Stollery Children’s Hospital.
CHRISTY LANE Vivametrica - Founder
Dr. Christy Lane is a mompreneur and exercise scientist who is changing the way people understand and manage their health using wearable devices and predictive analytics. She is the Founder of Vivametrica, a health analytics company in Calgary that uses artificial intelligence to uncover health risks. Currently as a Visiting Professor at Stanford University she is leading her field in the science of physical activity as it relates to preventing and managing mobility limiting disorders. In the fall she will become the Chair of Health and Physical Education at Mount Royal University where she hopes to foster the growth of new health and wellness leaders in Canada. Christy has won many international awards for her work in lifestyle medicine and the application of technology in health, and speaks often globally on these topics. She was awarded Calgary Top 40 Under 40 in 2018. Her support and mentorship of girls and women in STEM has had significant impacts on the careers and lives of her those who have worked with her. She is also passionate about helping fellow female entrepreneurs close the funding gap.
CARRIE MANITOPYES
Grey Eagle Resort & Casino - Human Resources Manager
Carrie Manitopyes is a member of the Muskowekwan First Nation and is a mix of Saulteaux and Cree heritage. She graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Calgary, where she majored in Psychology and a minored in Workplace Learning. She obtained the Chartered Professional in Human Resources (CPHR) designation and completed the Conflict Resolution Program at Mount Royal University. In her current role as Grey Eagle Casino’s Human Resources Manager, she advocates for Indigenous voices to be heard and has introduced Indigenous practices to mediate workplace conflict. “Winning a Women of Inspiration Award means a lot to me as it is public recognition that my contributions as an HR professional are valued and that my efforts are making a difference.” Carrie Manitopyes
(continued on next page) Community NOW! \\ 43
(continued from page 41...) Before coming to the University of Calgary in 2015, she was vice-president for research and innovation partnerships at Northern Illinois University (NIU). A running theme in her research and teaching has been inclusivity. Ultimately, she believes the way we enhance the learning environment is through inclusive and diverse modes of instruction and careful attention to the vocabulary we use.
DR. LESLEY RIGG Dr. Lesley Rigg is an internationally recognized scholar with over 25 years of experience working in postsecondary education. Lesley is a forest ecologist, earning a bachelor’s degree in geography and environmental studies from York University in Toronto, a master’s degree in geography from the University of Colorado and a doctorate degree in geography and environmental studies from the University of Melbourne in Australia.
Currently, Lesley sits on Boards for Trout Unlimited Canada and the international Council of Colleges of Arts and Sciences as a director. She is the first Dean from a Canadian post-secondary institution to serve in that capacity. The Council serves as a forum for the exchange of ideas and information among deans representing liberal arts and sciences at a policy-making level. In 2019, Lesley was recognized as SHEInnovator by SHEInnovates Alberta, the first Canadian chapter of the UN Women’s Global Innovation Coalition for Change. She is one of 42 women selected as inaugural representatives for SHEInnovates Alberta. Lesley is in her second term as dean for the Faculty of Science and is excited to see where the Faculty of Science will grow under her leadership.
Opening early November
The Collaborative Pop-In Shop Bankers Hall
It's all about Mind Wellness & Happiness. Finally, HAPPINESS has found a home in downtown Calgary. Karen Judge - Mind Health & Happiness Expert is launching a ground-breaking concept to connect people to education, products, and resources that support the health of the mind and ignite happiness. The Collaborative brings together a variety of vendors and experts in the Mind Health and Happiness space. For further information checkout getadoseofhappiness.com 44 // Community Now!
CN! Magazines 2 Annual nd
Mental Health Event Speaker Series
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 13TH | 8 a.m. - 3:30 p.m. LET’S BREAK SOME STIGMAS AND MOVE THE NEEDLE...
KEY NOTE: TBA EMCEE: Peter
Lafontaine;
Business & Technology Leader, Change Agent, Sales & Marketing Excellence, Entrepreneur, Mentor, Social Good Interloper
PANEL DISCUSSION: led by Jade Alberts;
SPEAKERS
Strategist / Influencer That Tells It Like It Is
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Jim Gibson; Partner of Thin Air Labs, Author
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Tom Morin; Author, speaker, consultant & coach
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Karen Judge; Functional Mind Wellness &
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Connie Jakob; Speaker, author, connection
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•
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and Influencer
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Stacy Richter; The Marketing Mindbender
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Les Mottosky; Curious, Creative and
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Vanisha Breault; Founder & Executive
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Garry Woods; CPS Sergeant
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Ken Goldstein; Managing Director,
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Jill Quirk; Educator, STEM Leader
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Kristylee Christensen Fehr;
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Dean Kendall; Financial Organizer,
at Work Feels Good
Happiness Educator
coach, reimagining environments for wellness
Kurt Kinnear; Community Builder & Leadership Guru, Hubudub
Greg MacGillivray, Managing Director, Scenarios to Strategy Inc.
Koleya Karringten; Executive Director at Alberta Blockchain Consortium
Innovation Strategist.
Director, Terminator Foundation
The Goldstein Group
Community member, mom, survivor of abuse.
Ideal Life Experience Ltd.
Lunch is included!
For more information or to purchases tickets, please visit: https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/cn-magazines-mental-health-speaker-series-tickets-75880264915
CN! EXPLORES COMMUNITY EVENTS: BEAKERHEAD Sept. 21 , 2019 Beakerhead is an amazing exploration of science and innovation. Providing opportunities to students, teachers and the community at large to learn and be creative while exploring. Amazing, spectacular and an event everyone should check out.
46 // Community Now!
EDMONTON COMIC AND ENTERTAINMENT EXPO Sept. 20-22, 2019 When we think about The Comic and Entertainment Expo, we always go straight to comic books and sci fi, BUT the Edmonton Comic and Entertainment Expo is SO MUCH more! This event is a weekend filled with local artists and business, actors, cosplayers, food and amazing costumes! This event is about bringing community together, exploring different aspects of the comic and entertainment industry and is a great opportunity to learn and see something new!
TERMINATOR RUN Sept. 29, 2019 This Is Community! It was a cold, snowy morning but the community showed up! “Addiction doesn’t stop for the weather,”said Vanisha Breault; Founder of The Terminator Foundation. A Youth Addiction Awareness Walk and Run, filled with community support. This is an amazing event to bring people together to break stigmas, build awareness and most importantly to show that we need to walk together snow or shine!
Community \\ 47
A JOURNEY TO
DISCOVERY
CONTINUED
By Garry Woods
U
p until now I have tried to present to you an accurate recollection of some aspects of my life, from growing up in a conflict zone, to trying to live in the conflict zone I created within myself. Mostly low points and struggles, punctuated by some highs.
“
Slowly I came to the realization that I was in a police holding cell. On the wrong side of the door. Without the key.
48 // Community Now!
I want to fast forward now fifteen years. I figure it is time for some hope in this tale. It is diďŹƒcult to really embrace hope and get its full benefit unless you have experienced some degree of despair, hence my reason for sharing the darker side with you. In 2009, having moved to Calgary a year earlier, I found myself facing a drunk driving charge. It was the worst night of my life, the culmination of years of practice, and one which proved to be a turning point for me. I
have only a vague recollection of the events of the night, mainly around wanting to fight with the police officers for having the audacity to arrest one of their “brothers”. Great idea. I am not proud of anything I am about to tell you, but that was actually how I thought that night. I probably also thought that it was down to my skilful driving (in a blackout) that nobody was hurt or killed or that nothing was damaged. Yes, really.
I had none of my belongings. Slowly I came to the realization that I was in a police holding cell. On the wrong side of the door. Without the key. Not only without the key, but without any knowledge of my situation. What was my jeopardy? Had I hurt anybody? I was scared. I had policed in Northern Ireland and found myself in some very sticky situations, but I had never felt more scared than I did that night.
I remember waking up the following morning and then falling asleep. Then waking up. And falling asleep. Every time I woke up, my eyes would take in a little more of the environmental information around me. Firstly it was that I was lying on the floor on a blue foam mattress. I was cold. Then it was the shaft of sunlight from the small window high up on the wall. The stainless steel toilet, the lack of furniture.
I had the opportunity about a month later to spend time in a treatment centre, or ‘rehab’ to give its popular name. Believe me when I tell you its not like television. I was embarking on a journey of recovery, and of rediscovery. Rehab had never been on my bucket list, but I took the opportunity. Initially I told myself (continued on next page) Community \\ 49
(continued from page 49...) that I was doing it to keep my job, and to keep my family intact. I was reminded on more than one occasion that I was doing it for myself, because if I wasn’t right, then nothing I was a part of would ever be right either.
I learned several things. Firstly, that addiction does not discriminate. It doesn’t matter if you are rich or poor or how intelligent you are or what your line of work is. 50 // Community Now!
I entered rehab and quickly found that I was in a large group of people ranging in age from eighteen to eighty. There were alcoholics (which, of course I wasn’t…), and drug addicts. There were those who had committed horrendous crimes and done horrible things to people, even to those they loved. Many of them were platinum club members of their local police station cells, having frequently been arrested. I struggled to identify with any of them. I had nothing in common. My problems were small. How could I possibly tell them that I was a police officer when they probably hated the police? Should I tell them? Would it cause division and make them less willing to share. Sharing is one of the basic tenets of successful participation in a treatment centre. Would I hinder their
recovery chances? I spoke to my counsellor. He was really helpful and suggested that I do whatever I feel. Great. The day quickly came when I got the opportunity, in a large seated circle of thirty people, to speak. “Would our newest member like to introduce himself?”. “Absolutely not!”, I thought to myself. I had picked out a few friendly faces in the circle, so focussing on them, I tentatively began to take my first steps in the sharing process. I told them my story and how I had come to be there. Then I said, “There’s something else and I am not sure whether or not to tell you.” Nobody said, “Yes, what is it?” or “Please tell us, Garry!”. They all just stared at me. I opened my second box of Kleenex and said, “I’m a police officer.” Some people started to cry. One person left the room. I wasn’t at all convinced that I had made the correct decision. Then this one guy, who was certainly not one of my initial friendly faces, I had him pegged as an officer safety concern, looked at me. He looked at me for a long time. In my judgemental opinion at the time, he had clearly been around the block and back several times. He was the epitome of a thug. Finally he spoke. He said, “Buddy, welcome. You are here for the same reason as I am. I admire you.” He became my best friend for the six weeks I was there. I learned several things. Firstly, that addiction does not discriminate. It doesn’t matter if you are rich or poor or how intelligent you are or what your line of work is. Secondly, at the centre of every addiction is a human being, a human being with a story, with a set of circumstances either presented to them at birth or acquired by them during their life as a result of choices they made. When grown ups used to ask me as a kid, “What do you want to be when you get
older?”, I probably uttered the word astronaut or doctor or footballer (that’s soccer to you). I’m fairly certain that I never said, “I think I’d like to be an alcoholic and spend some time in rehab.” It was never an aspiration of mine. I had an experience in May 2009 which was to change my life. I had no belief in any higher power up to that point. I could run my life myself - I am not talking about God or religion, but I didn’t need faith or help. I had done a pretty good job, eh? I can say one thing and I have never been as sure of something as I am of this. Again I am telling things as I see them now. The worst night of my life was that night in May 2009, but I am convinced now that every person involved that night and ever since has been placed into my life for a reason. It is up to me whether or not I choose to see that and whether or not I choose to accept the challenge and the opportunity that I am blessed and fortunate to have been given. So far so good - that was the last time I ever drank alcohol. The memory of that night in the holding cell is what keeps me sober - I don’t want to relive it, but neither do I want to forget it. The other thing that keeps me sober is the fact that I have been given a gift - the gift of sobriety. My dad never received that, or if he did, he didn’t act on it. I firmly believe that genetics play a big part in our vulnerability to addiction. I don’t know where my dad got his weakness from, but through my gift, I have a chance to maybe break that chain in the family and at the very least have some meaningful conversations with my eleven year old son. I won’t tell him what to do - I will just share my own experience, strength and hope with him and give him the best chance I can. I like the life I have now and I am grateful for it every day. Community \\ 51
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