I've found the vein!!

Last week I promised I would say more about my new job...
Officially I have been hired on as the Youth Progects Manager working with two community development organizations: Phoenix Community Works Foundation and RAFT (Resources and Assets For Transformation). In this role I will be building a youth centred program that seeks to support youth in getting involved in the (global) community through social action for social change. My vision for the program is that we foster a sense of community and social conscience in the youth of today. Through this program, I hope to mentor youth and enable them to employ their strengths and interests to build healthy, sustainable and just communities through engaging in community initiatives and social actions which support local organizations. I will be building this program on a part time basis until I leave for the Ukraine, and then after grant writing, and secure funding, it will be a full time job for me. (yipee!)

That in and of itself is amazing, but that’s not all, believe it or not! Phoenix and RAFT are housed in the coolest place in the world: the Center for Social Innovation (CSI) which is a dynamic space in downtown Toronto. Their mission is to spark and support new ideas that are tackling the social, environmental, economic and cultural challenges we face today. They have created the type of environment that social innovation needs to thrive. This place is a mecca for community development and social innovation. CSI is home base for over 100 different organizations from grass roots organizations to full fledged social enterprises (the david suzuki foundation, the hoop factory, bikes without borders, canadian centre for pollution prevention etc.).

The building is set up as open concept office space that promotes collaboration and out of the box thinking. They have yoga classes through the week, community mixers, a communal salad bar 2x each week where everyone brings 2 ingredients and shares with others, they have a living wall (picture to left), a green roof, and there are even NAP ROOMS!!!!! There is a hum – the hum of good things happening; it is exhilarating just walking INTO the building.

What this all means: I have tapped into a diamond vein! I have spent the last 6 years in university taking core samples and exploring what lies beneath the surface. I have generally excelled at the things I have taken on, but not all of them were the right "fit" - I had not yet found my diamond. I think that one of the reasons that I am hyper involved, and have a voracious appetite for getting involved is my way of searching for that "fit". I have scratched the surface and finally found a rich reservoir beneath.

I entered the Sexuality, Marriage and Family program thinking that I was going to end up in the University of Guelph Couple and Family therapy program to wind up as a family therapist (I should have known those plans would change). Along the way some one asked me to reconsider this idea. She could see in me a highly developed sense of community, and a commitment to social justice and social action and thought that the family therapy program would kill that part of me. I didn't agree with her at first, and have come to realize that I thrive in a community setting (case in point: I have written about communities, and the importance of, on more than one occasion in my previous blogs), and need that community piece in order to feel fulfilled.

Finding the right "fit" is essentially finding that diamond - a wonderful experience - an experience I have now been fortunate to have twice this year, the first was deciding that I could manage going to the Ukraine, and then realizing that it was the perfect opportunity for me, and the second is this new job.

I think that we all want to make a difference in the world in our own way, and finding an avenue or opportunity which will best facilitate our efforts ensures that were are making the biggest possible impact. I am excited and invigorated by all of the things I am finding that fit with the way I would like to move in our global community, and am certainly looking forward to charting the difference in myself and the world around me.

Wish me luck!
*love*