Over the past year, 20 student volunteers met bi-weekly with a number of Dal staff from the Career & Leadership Development Centre and Student Services, organizing an event they hoped would inspire and motivate university students in Atlantic Canada.
Their plans came to fruition over the weekend of February 15-17 when AV俱乐部 played host to over 150 students and professionals for the first (and hopefully annual) East Coast Student Leadership Conference (ECSLC).
鈥淭he last year we鈥檝e been working non-stop,鈥� says conference co-chair and Neuroscience student Chris Parent.
The event was originally inspired by a group of students, including Parent, who attended the Canadian Conference on Student Leadership in November 2011 at the University of Calgary. Realizing that Atlantic Canada was underrepresented, the group decided to develop its own event here at Dal.
鈥淲e first identified what the students wanted and went from there,鈥� says Parent. 鈥淎nd the speakers we came across were just a perfect fit. We wanted to cover all different grounds. We realized there were people coming with an interest in sustainability and so Chris de Waal was a great fit for that. We also realized that there were entrepreneurs, so Barbara Stegemann caters to that, as well as Hezekiah Griggs.鈥�
Insistency through adversity
In the Rowe Building, student opinions flanked the walls. On a display board asking for some of the challenges facing student leaders, responses ranged from 鈥渓ack of funds鈥� or 鈥渁ge,鈥� to 鈥渓ack of internal and external support鈥� to 鈥渟ystematic oppression,鈥� and even 鈥渞emaining self-cynical.鈥� On another board, students identified guest speakers, mentors, and media campaigns as some of the top ways to encourage student leadership on campus.
Small-scale farmer, butchery entrepreneur, and champion of the local food movement Chris de Waal (who was up at 5:30 a.m. to cut meat before his talk three hours later) was a particular hit with the predominately student audience, many of whom, perhaps ironically, were vegetarians.
鈥淒on鈥檛 think that passion is feeling good all the time about it,鈥� he said. 鈥淧assion is insistency through adversity. It鈥檚 letting that passion wake you up at one in the morning on a Saturday and forcing you to go when you don鈥檛 want to. You have to work on cultivating your passion.鈥�
There was plenty of passion at the conference, but it also offered a unique opportunity for students to meet and share ideas. Entrepreneur Barbara Stegemann pointed out that鈥檚 the power of networking. 鈥淚f you鈥檙e present, all the resources you need are right in front of you,鈥� she said.
Leadership for the future
Chris Parent hopes the event will continue in the future, particularly since in recent years the Canadian Conference on Student Leadership has been out financially out of reach for AV俱乐部 students. (Last year it was held at the University of Calgary; this year it鈥檚 at the University of British Columbia, Okanagan Campus.)
Dal students who applied for a bursary from Student Services to attend the ECSLC received a large discount on registration. They paid $30 for early-bird tickets, rather than $105, and $50 for the $125 regular-priced tickets.
Student delegates from outside Halifax (some came from as far away as Guelph and Trent universities) were sponsored by local businesses, including Barbara Stegemann鈥檚 husband.
With support from the university, the local business community and all the volunteers, there鈥檚 no reason to believe the conference won鈥檛 happen again next year. 鈥淚鈥檓 loving it, but it鈥檚 not about me, it鈥檚 about the students,鈥� says Parent. 鈥淎nd I鈥檓 so proud of the volunteers who鈥檝e just been going non-stop.鈥�
Reflecting on his mistakes and newfound motivation, Chris de Waal left the audience with humble words on Sunday morning.
鈥淩emember, leadership is not about you. It鈥檚 about the people you live for. The ideas you鈥檙e willing to die for, to fight for, to sacrifice for. Your ideas are not going to be the same as everyone else鈥檚, but when you hit on that, when that becomes a driving force behind what you鈥檙e doing, it will be much easier to live for people.鈥�