The Coady Connection Newsletter - May 2024

The Coady

Connection

St. Francis Xavier University and Coady Institute stand on the lands of Mi’kma’ki, the ancestral and unceded home of the Mi’kmaw. We express our deep gratitude and appreciation to the generations of Mi’kmaw who, since time immemorial, have loved and stewarded these lands and the beings who call them home. Colonization is not just history; it exists in the present tense. While we strive to decolonize ourselves and our University, we know there is still much for us to learn.

We are committed to doing the hard work of self-reflection and to repairing relationships with the Mi’kmaw on whose lands we reside, including embracing the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada Calls to Action and embodying their spirit in our plans to move forward with our University.

Ms~t wiaqpulti’kl ankukamkewe’l l We are all treaty people

In this issue...

Welcome Message from the Coady Team 4

Welcome New Graduates 6

Apply Now for Upcoming Education Programs 8

ENGAGE: Women’s Empowerment and Active Citizenship 10

Building Peace through Dialogue 13

Pathy Fellows in the Field 14

Rural Women Cultivating Change 16

Jeannine Deveau Education Equity Fund Commits $14.5M 17

Local Engagement in Atlantic Canada 18

Celebrating International Women’s Day 20

Do you have a story to share about how you are applying your learnings from Coady Institute? If so, contact us at coadycom@stfx.ca

WELCOME MESSAGE

from the COADY TEAM

Together, we are cultivating a future where everyone has the opportunity to lead, inspire, and create lasting change.

We are thrilled to share with you the latest edition of The Coady Connection with updates and achievements from Coady partners, graduates, participants, and staff who continue to drive positive change locally and globally.

Through collaborative projects such as ENGAGE and Rural Women Cultivating Change, Coady partners continue to lead transformative initiatives in their local communities. In this edition you will find success stories from partners such as the Christian Commission for Development Bangladesh, le Centre Haitien du Leadership et de l’Excellence, and more. Our partners bring invaluable expertise and experience and are integral to the localization and endurance of such initiatives.

Emerging leaders from the Pathy Fellowship are making significant strides as they design and implement community-based projects while further developing their leadership skills. From raising mental health awareness in Pakistani schools to transitioning Nigerian rickshaw drivers to clean energy solutions, these young leaders exemplify the spirit of innovation and drive. Their projects not only address pressing local issues but also contribute to a global movement towards sustainable and inclusive development and prove that the future for development leadership is strong.

Offering tailored and flexible programming based on the self-identified needs of our partners and participants ensures that we are meeting needs in diverse local contexts, adapting to world events, and supporting development that is driven by communities. Reflective Practice in Action in

Harare, Zimbabwe was developed by Veronica Torres (Program Teaching Staff, Centre for Women’s Leadership) based on a request from organizational partners of the START4GIRLS project, while Towards Feminist Alternatives for a Just World in Bhopal, India was facilitated by Sarika Sinha (Program Teaching Staff, Centre for Women’s Leadership) in the local language Hindi to improve access for grassroots activists looking to deepen their learnings. Addy Strickland and Alaa Salih (Impact and Innovation Officers, CEI) led a successful online leadership course for young professionals.

Local work continues to deepen in communities across Canada through the Circle of Abundance, Centre for Employment Innovation, and the Community Housing Program.

Martha Fanjoy (Director of Programs), and Gord Cunningham (former Coady Executive Director) and participants recently returned from a learning session at the Gros Morne Institute for Sustainable Tourism (GMIST) in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada where members of the ACTivate cohort worked to formulate a community tourism action plan that they will implement in the following months.

Meanwhile Karri-Lynn Paul (Program Teaching Staff, Circle of Abundance) recently co-facilitated the Introduction to First Nation Governance and Leadership for Youth Workshop with Coady partner Further Education Society of Alberta (FESA) as part of FESA’s Pathways Project aimed to create employment opportunities for Indigenous youth.

With support from Pauline MacIntosh (Program Teaching Staff) through Coady’s Community Housing Program, the community of Guysborough, Nova Scotia, Canada has a new housing society working to provide affordable housing in the Municipality of the District of Guysborough (MODG), District of St. Mary’s, and Town of Mulgrave.

As we reflect on these stories, successes, and achievements, we also look toward the future. As an Institute, we have begun a strategic planning process which will guide our work from 2025-30 and beyond. This collaborative process includes consultation with current and former staff, Coady

graduates, partner organizations, and more as we strive to ensure we are on a collective path forward towards social change. Thank you to the hundreds of Coady alumni who answered our survey and shared their insights with us over the past month. We will share a report on these insights with you in the coming months.

We invite you to delve into this newsletter and join us in celebrating the achievements of our graduates, partners, and staff. Together, we are cultivating a future where everyone has the opportunity to lead, inspire, and create lasting change.

- The Coady Team

Sara-Maya is Raising Mental Health Awareness in Pakistani Schools

The Reflective Practice in Action program was held in Harare, Zimbabwe in partnership with START4GIRLS.

Karri-Lynn Paul recently co-facilitated a Workshop with Coady partner Further Education Society of Alberta

Martha Fanjoy and Gord Cunningham recently returned from a learning session at the Gros Morne Institute for Sustainable Tourism in Newfoundland and Labrador

WELCOME NEW GRADUATES

We are thrilled to welcome 169 new graduates in 20 countries who completed online and off-campus programs February through May 2024.

Online and off-campus programs provide participants who may be unable to commit to international travel with the opportunity to learn in their home regions. These programs also create an opportunity to tailor offerings to local contexts and needs identified by local partners.

Financial Inclusion and MicroEnterprise Development: Deepening the Experience was held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia and facilitated in partnership with the Organization for Women in Self Employment (WISE) for members of Engage partner organizations from India, Ethiopia, Bangladesh, and Tanzania.

Pathy Foundation Fellowship is an intensive 12-month program that supports young leaders from partner Canadian universities in leading self-directed community-focused projects communities they have a meaningful connection with, anywhere in the world.

Reflective Practice in Action in Harare, Zimbabwe was facilitated for the START4Girls team who requested a workshop to develop skills and learn tools aimed to capture project learnings.

Leadership

for Young Professionals supported young professionals in Canada who are in the early stages of their careers as they explored what leadership means to them in the context of their work and future goals.

Towards Feminist Alternatives for a Just World offered in Bhopal, India was facilitated in Hindi. Local, grassroots activists deepened their understanding of feminisms and intersectionality while exploring alternatives to the status quo.

Additional offerings included:

• Asset-Based and Community-Led Development Principles (online)

• Grassroots Peacebuilding (online)

• Towards Decolonial Feminist Leadership (Tanzania)

Welcome to these new and returning graduates who join more than 10,500 graduates across 154 countries globally.

APPLY NOW: EDUCATION PROGRAMS

Future of Work and Workers

September 16 – December 6, 2024

Online delivery

Facilitators: Yogesh Ghore and Farouk Jiwa

The unprecedented convergence of the forces of globalization, urbanization, changing demographics, and climate change are already fundamentally changing the way we live and work. Meanwhile rapid developments in artificial intelligence, machine learning, 3D printing, Virtual Reality, the Internet of Things, and Block Chain alongside the disruptive impact of the sharing economy present new opportunities and challenges. The full magnitude of the impact on jobs, work, and workers is not yet fully understood.

This ambitious course will help participants better understand the magnitude and intensity of the current changes shaping the world of work and provide a peek into what is to come. While taking a global view on the issue, the course will also delve into specific examples that are rooted in local contexts.

Feminist Leadership for Capabilities, Ecology, and Transformation

September 16 – November 1, 2024

Online delivery

Facilitator: Sarika Sinha

Women leaders across the globe are dealing with dispossession from resources, capabilities, and a form of discursive ‘development’ which is deeply rooted in a capitalist and patriarchal order. In the current milieu – as women leaders face further marginalization, cultural exclusivity, and the Covid-19 pandemic – we offer this online discourse hinged on power, patriarchy, and justice to support and facilitate a process of enhanced critical thinking and alternatives towards feminist ecological justice.

This course aims to inspire and empower people of all genders across the world to engage in purposeful and justice-oriented leadership, and to design ways to inculcate processes, systems, and structures towards the above issues in the communities you are engaged with.

PROGRAMS

Towards Decolonial Feminist Leadership

November 5 – November 15, 2024

Dharmshala, India

Facilitator: Sarika Sinha

This course is open to persons from South Asia who identify as women.

In a world ruled by an exclusionary capitalist regime, the course aims to unpack both the concept and practice of leadership from the standpoint of power, intersectionality, patriarchy and inequalities. The course, further, attempts to highlight the significance of feminist and collective leadership processes in the movement towards redistributive justice.

This course is offered by Coady Institute, in collaboration with host organization Jagori Rural Charitable Trust, and a network of feminist organizations across South Asia.

The following online programs will be offered in January 2025

Participatory Project Planning and Management

We are currently in the process of developing this course description.

Grassroots Peacebuilding

This 7-week online certificate is an introduction to peace and conflict while examining the nature, effectiveness, and challenges of grassroots peacebuilding.

Asset-Based and Community-Led Development Principles

This course is for change-makers of any age or sector questioning the relevance of projects and programs driven by external organizations and focused on communities’ needs and deficits. This includes community builders, government agencies, NGOs, universities, and grant-making organizations.

Leadership for Young Professionals

APPLY NOW

This course is intended to support young professionals in the early stages of their careers as they explore what leadership means to them in the context of their work and future goals. It will offer participants the chance to grow their understanding of what leadership means, explore their own personal strengths as leaders, learn new skills, and begin to think through how they can apply their leadership in the workplace.

ENGAGE: WOMEN’S EMPOWERMENT

Christian Commission for Development Bangladesh (CCDB) Celebrates 50 Years

Please join us in congratulating Coady partner the Christian Commission for Development in Bangladesh (CCDB) which is celebrating 50 years.

We are proud to work alongside CCDB now, and throughout the past 50 years, as our connection dates back as far as 1972.

CCDB is one of five ENGAGE partners working to advance gender equality and poverty reduction by enhancing women’s capacity to participate in the social and economic life of their communities. The initiative is funded by Global Affairs Canada.

Through Engage, CCDB is working at the community level to support the formation and strengthening of local women’s organizations to address issues of climate change.

Eric Smith (Project Manager, Engage) says,

“From the early days following the Bangladesh Liberation War and providing emergency relief during independence to a transition to grassroots development and leadership, then empowerment and microfinance and now incorporating the most pressing issue of our time, climate change, you’ve placed people – most often women – at the heart of what you do. Coady is honoured to have walked alongside CCDB for over 50 years.”

Congratulations to our friends and colleagues and CCDB on reaching this impressive milestone, and we look forward to celebrating many more with you in the future.

Meet Sahanara, who speaks in this short video about her experience as the secretary of a CCDB-Engage women’s group.

“Previously [before forming the women’s group] we couldn’t talk much, couldn’t solve any problem but it has changed now. We realized that self-confidence is most important to us. If we don’t have selfconfidence within ourselves, if we can’t believe in each other, we won’t be able to accomplish any task.”

ACTIVE CITIZENSHIP

Centre Haitien du Leadership et de l’Excellence (CLE) Prepares for Second Cohort of Social Enterprise Fellowship for Women in Haiti

Twenty-five women graduated from the first cohort of the Centre Haitien du Leadership et de l’Excellence (CLE)’s Fanm Angaje in 2022. After the success of the program’s initial offering, the centre is now preparing for a new cohort of Haitian women in social enterprise.

CLE is one of five Engage partners in five countries working to advance gender equality and poverty reduction by enhancing women’s capacity to participate in the social and economic life of their communities through initiatives co-designed with Coady Institute and supported by Global Affairs Canada.

CLE’s Fanm Angaje Fellowship Program aims to empower young women working in economic development and/or social enterprise initiatives through technical training, skill development, mentorship, networking, and more.

A focus group conducted with the participants of the first cohort demonstrated its positive impact.

Esther Chrisostome, featured in this case study video, used the fellowship as an opportunity to launch Assurdent – a social enterprise aimed at making dental care more accessible.

“For several years working in the communities, I came to realize that many people in the population do not have access to oral and dental care,” Esther explains in the video. “We can provide dental care for people at mobile clinics, at private clinics, and at home for affordable prices.”

Assurdent also offers education and teleconsultation.

“One of our program participants started a radio show about dental health rights after the last residential seminar. She has become a voice in the sector by giving advice on dental care and her business is now fairly well known. She credits the course with giving her confidence and exposure to this type of platform,” says the organization in a recent report.

. . Continued on next page

“During these trainings, I learned what kind of care I should give to my health,” explains Assurdent client, Mathania. “There were a lot of things I didn’t know before. I didn’t know if I had to brush my teeth top to bottom. I didn’t know that you had to be careful with the gums. With Assurdent, I now know all of these things.”

“Another participant, who lost the use of her lower limbs in a traffic accident at a young age, is now responsible for the national coordination of the women of the Third Voice Movement, a political party. Despite her handicap, she remains highly involved in the social and political life of her country.”

Through the focus group, participants noted some of their experiences including:

• personal leadership development;

• improved confidence and self-motivation;

• improved structure and leadership for their organizations;

• access to knowledge, resources, and support;

• and, network building and new partnerships.

All 25 women from the first cohort have expressed a desire to support the next cohort as mentors and coaches. CLE says this is a clear marker of the success of the program in creating a supportive network of women leaders.

The second cohort began February 4 to mark International Development Week. We wish these entrepreneurs all the best as they set out on a mission to tackle complex social issues through innovative solutions.

“The first cohort of the program has shown significant improvement in their leadership and confidence levels, as well as their ability to create impactful social changes in their community; they are not only seeking profitability for their social enterprises but are also looking to make a positive impact in their community.”

Centre Haïtien du Leadership et de L’Excellence

More Fanm Angaje Case Studies

Daphnée Valmond Bourgoin is the founder and CEO of Tisaksuk, an artisan-made clothing store featuring hand-painted designs and inclusive sizing. After opening a store and workshop in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Daphnée is now opening a second location in Florida, USA.

Jovana Legagneur is the founder and CEO of Natural, a company that creates and sells items made with natural ingredients including soaps, wines and liquors, seasonings, and more. She is growing her team and working to add new products such as lotions and other skincare items.

BUILDING PEACE THROUGH DIALOGUE

Coady Coffee House Series

Coady staff Digafie Debalke (Program Teaching Staff) has been hosting monthly coffee houses intended to create space for dialogue on peace and conflict transformation. These blended oncampus/virtual events welcome people locally and globally to listen, learn, and share while also spotlighting speakers working to build peace locally and globally.

Recent guests have included Rieaz Shaik (High Commissioner of the Republic of South Africa to Canada), the Sisters of St. Martha, the Pathy Fellows, Grassroots Peacebuilding participants, graduates, and interns, and more.

South Africa’s Journey to Reconciliation and Healing: Lessons for the World

Bottom-up Peacebuilding and Unbuilding the Structures of Violence

PATHY FELLOWS in the FIELD (2023-24)

Sara-Maya is Raising Mental Health Awareness in Pakistani Schools

Sara-Maya Kaba is working with students and teachers to improve mental health outcomes through arts and sports activities in Pakistan.

“There are three main pillars of the initiative. One of the pillars is focused on mental health and arts education for students. The students I’ve worked with have ranged from Grade 3 up to university students,” Maya explains.

“The second is mental health and arts education for teachers and school leadership, including principals, coordinators, and teacher-mentors. Teacher training is essential to bring mental health awareness into the classroom. The third is mental health and sports, using winter sports – particularly women’s involvement in ringette – to increase mental health outcomes.”

Learn more about Sara-Maya's initiative.

Anthony is working with Nigerian Rickshaw Drivers to Transition to Clean Energy

Anthony Ighomuaye is in Nigeria where he is working with rickshaw drivers to convert rickshaws from fuel to solar energy, helping drivers save on fuel costs and power their homes while minimizing negative environmental impacts.

“Rickshaws are very common in emerging markets and are one of the most common forms of transportation as it’s accessible to almost everybody regardless of socioeconomic status – it’s one of the most affordable means of transportation,” Anthony explains.

“The drivers are really saddled with the high cost of fuel and high cost of maintaining the vehicles which leads to a heavy decrease in how much money they can take home.”

Learn more about Anthony’s initiative.

Aubrey is Supporting Student Athletes to Lead Cultures of Consent

Aubrey Rose Apps has a goal to improve the student experience and reduce rates of sexual violence on campuses. Through the Fellowship, she launched Youth for Consent Culture (YCC), and she is delivering workshops to student athletes ranging from the ages of 15 to 25 in three modules: building culture, healthy connections, and consent conversations.

“These workshops are supposed to create an understanding of what those things look like – consent and healthy relationships – within the sports world, and then also an understanding that’s translatable to a broader context [outside of sports],” she explains.

“Hopefully the athletes who go through this learning are able to become leaders in those discussions so that we are inspiring a culture of consent led by the voices of athletes.”

Learn more about Aubrey’s initiative.

The Pathy Foundation Fellowship is facilitated by Coady Institute on the campus of St. Francis Xavier University. The Fellowship is a yearlong community-focused experiential learning opportunity aimed to develop active and effective change-makers, while creating positive social change in communities around the world. Fellows develop new tools and skills through participatory workshops; work closely with communities to foster sustainable and positive social change through co-developed community projects; and receive mentorship and personal development support through Coady staff, dedicated leadership coaching, and peer fellows.

Learn more about the Fellowship

RURAL WOMEN CULTIVATING CHANGE

Partners Gather for Annual Planning

In late February, Eileen Alma (Executive Director), Brian Lazzuri (Manager of Marketing and Communications), and Veronica Torres (Program Teaching Staff) traveled to Ethiopia for the annual Rural Women Cultivating Change (RWCC) planning session hosted by WE-Action Ethiopia and the Institute for Sustainable Development - ISD.

RWCC, led by SeedChange / Sème l’avenir, supports project activities, led by local organizations in Ethiopia, Tanzania, and Kenya, that are creating space and capacity for women to take control of their lives, advocate for themselves and others, and take leadership roles within their communities and beyond. The project is funded by Global Affairs Canada. Coady Institute serves as an educational partner.

Representatives of SeedChange, Coady, WE-Action Ethiopia, ISD, HIVOS East Africa, Pelum Tanzania, Tanzania Gender Networking Program (TGNP), Groots Kenya and SeedSavers Network Kenya gathered to discuss communications and advocacy strategy both in East Africa and Canada as RWCC passes the midway mark.

Learn more about RWCC.

JEANNINE DEVEAU EDUCATION EQUITY FUND COMMITS $14.5M TO

STFX INCLUDING RENEWED COMMITMENT TO COADY’S

CIRCLE OF ABUNDANCE

StFX University recently announced an outstanding $14.5 million contribution from the Jeannine Deveau Education Equity Fund. This funding will support the creation of two new centres on campus: the Deveau Centre for Indigenous Governance and Social Justice and the Black Student Success Centre.

It also includes a five-year commitment to Coady Institute’s Circle of Abundance – Amplifying Indigenous Women’s Leadership programs alongside many other programs and projects across the university.

We share our deepest gratitude and always to the Deveau family for their dedicated support to education equity, and to our work here at Coady and StFX.

I hope that when we think of Jeannine Deveau, we think of a woman who cared, deeply – and we think of the ways in which we can all leave a legacy.

– Dr. Andy Hakin, StFX University President and Vice Chancellor

LOCAL ENGAGEMENT in

Centre for Employment Innovation (CEI) Launches ‘Knowledge Hub’ for Career Development and Employment in Nova Scotia

The Centre for Employment Innovation (CEI) recently launched a Knowledge Hub aimed to support the Nova Scotia Works system by providing relevant and impactful resources, tools, and information, and provides practitioners with evidence-based strategies and research to better serve their communities. The digital resource library is curated to include the best available evidence drawing from research, subject-matter and practitioner expertise, and community member experience.

in ATLANTIC CANADA

2023-24 Nova Scotia Youth Focused ‘Community of Practice’ for Career Development Professionals

Concludes

The Centre for Employment Innovation (CEI) wrapped up the 2023-24 Nova Scotia Youth Focused Community of Practice for Career Development Professionals.

A ‘community of practice’ (CoP) is a group of people who come together around a set of shared interests, ideas, challenges, or goals. They share best practices and expertise and lean on the collective knowledge of group members to make space for new learnings and ideas to emerge. Over the past seven years, the CEI has been researching, designing, and facilitating these collaborative spaces as part of its work with various career and employment practitioner groups in Nova Scotia.

The 2023-24 sessions included:

• The Future(s) of Work

• Youth and IT Skills

• Supporting Indigenous Youth

• Youth and Entrepreneurship

• Beyond Decent Work

Youth Volunteerism

• Overlooked and Underprepared

• What’s Happening in Schools

Stay tuned for the 2024-25 calendar of events.

CELEBRATING INTERNATIONAL

Hum Sab Gathering in Bhopal, India

It was a celebration of feminist resilience

Approximately 2,000 people gathered in Bhopal, India in recognition of International Women’s Day. Coady staff Sarika Sinha (Program Teaching Staff) and Eileen Alma (Executive Director) attended.

“We came together under a banner called ‘hum sab’ which is a Hindi word for ‘all of us’,” Sarika explains.

“We were trying to celebrate the pluriversality of India. We came together and set up a forum in which all of us sat in a circle. Everyone was an equal participant. Women spoke about their own resilience and struggles. Some had won, some were still on the journey, and some had lost miserably. We all had the chance to speak.”

Several women’s groups performed artforms traditionally reserved for men.

“Kabir is a form of traditional music. In India, Kabir is only performed by men. We had women’s groups perform Kabir. So that was one way of challenging patriarchy,” Sarika explains.

The celebration included a screening of the film Ek Jagah Apni (A Place of Our Own) which documents the journey of Laila, a transgender woman struggling to rent an apartment in Bhopal, India. The featured woman hosted a question-and-answer session following the film.

“It was a celebration of feminist resilience,” Sarika reflects.

WOMEN’S DAY

Investing in Women with ENGAGE Partners

On International Women’s Day, we gathered virtually with attendees from around globe and representatives from each of the five Engage partner organizations:

• Self Employed Women’s Association (SEWA) in India;

• Organization for Women in Self Employment (WISE) in Ethiopia;

• Gender Training Institute (GTI) of the Tanzania Gender Networking Programme (TGNP);

• Christian Commission for Development (CCDB) in Bangladesh; and

• Centre Haïtien du Leadership et de l’Excellence (CLE) in Haiti

With the support of Global Affairs Canada, these partner organizations are working to advance gender equality and poverty reduction by enhancing women’s capacity to participate in the social and economic life of their communities.

On International Women’s Day we learned how each organization is ‘investing in women’ through education, advocacy, social entrepreneurship, and more.