Attention store managers, branch managers, co-operative employees – refer someone you know! Sign up for our 2009 youth leadership seminars! They’re a blast! You’ll get to meet great people from around the Atlantic Provinces. Check The Know for more details. http://www.acyl.coop/english/know.htm
CONTEST TIME!
I need a photo of you in front of a co-operative or Credit Union! Easy enough? Well, no……I need you doing something crazy (respectful and law abiding) in front of a co-operative or credit union. I.e. cartwheel, superman pose, you in your craziest outfit, etc……whatever. Bonus points for those who get employees to help out!
The winner (just one) will receive an ACYL stormtech jacket! All entries must be from Atlantic Canada. Photos will be posted on this e-newsletter.
Deadline – January 31, 2009 - noon
Fast Co-op Facts
Do co-operatives have a significant role in the Canadian economy? What do you think?
There are more than 8,800 co-operatives in Canada, which employ over 150,000 people. Combined these co-operatives hold more than $210 billion in assets, which is owned by the members and communities they serve.
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When Trevor sent me an e-mail saying he’d procured tickets to see Craig Kielburger, my initial reaction was “Who’s Craig Kielburger?”. My second reaction was “OH YEAH! Duh!” I couldn’t pass up a chance to go see something at the Capitol, let alone seeing one of the most influential people in the Human Rights movement live in Moncton.
I am absolutely glad I did.
Now, in the style of Mr. Kielburger himself, this blog is going to be a little unorthodox. I could sit here and type-type-type away about what Craig had to say that night, but I’ll leave that up to my friend and esteemed colleague in the blogosphere, Nate. Rather, I’ll talk about the events that took place that night that led up to, took place during, and proceeded after the main event.
I’ll start from the very beginning. (I’ve been told it’s a very good place to start.)
My evening began with the walk to the Capitol Theatre. We can leave that part out, considering it was a three-minute uneventful time that happens every time I go to church or the mall or pretty much every day. When it got interesting was when I arrived at the theatre. There was Trevor and Nate, who I was expecting, but who I didn’t expect was Nick and Bernice. I’d seen Nick about a month before for a “birthday party” for him and Amber, but I hadn’t seen Bernice since Camp Gencheff. It may not seem like it, being ACYL, but there had been a serious lack of hugs at Mush-a-Mush and Shiktehawk without her. We were under quota.
That was all outside the theatre. Inside, it was a whole new kettle of fish. Inside, I met up with an old schoolmate and Improv team member, Rebecca. It had been a few months since I’d seen her last, it was good to see her again. We talked about school and our Improv coach and junk, and then it was time for the main event.
Now, I won’t spend much time on the details of Craig’s speech. For that, you can read Nate’s post (October e-newsletter). What I will mention here, though, are a couple of points that stood out to me. First was the concept of the minga. The minga, in short and very, very, blunt, is “like a riot, but for good”. The idea of all these villagers gathering to help build a school that some of them may not have been able to go to due to distance in such a short time really struck a chord with me. It’s not all that often that you hear of things like that happening these days. Craig offered anyone to come up with a suitable alternative English equivalent to minga, but I’ll have more on that later.
The second thing that stood out was his talk about Mother Theresa, and how she became who she was by going into a dark, dirty place and finding a woman, and nursing her back to health. This rang with me because of the street I live on. It is not that great a street. Oh, sure, there’s the Moncton Market, but it’s sandwiched between a bunch of sketchy bars and a rather deserted-looking Mongolian restaurant. Nevertheless, I saw my walk home that night from a different perspective.
When the speech was over, there was a special presentation. A high school had raised thousands of dollars for the Free the Children campaign. No, scratch that, not just any school, Tantramar Regional High School. My high school. I got to witness the fruits of three years of fundraising at that school come to fruition, some of which I had helped to do myself. It brought back memories of Shave That Head campaigns, the Vow of Silence, as well as many other fundraisers that group had helped to put together. Needless to say, I was proud to be a Titan that night.
As the night progressed, I visited more. Trevor bought Nate and I each a copy of Craig and his brother Marc’s book Me to We (which I fully intend to read, since it’s the future book for a book study at my church), and when we got to see Craig, he signed it. We had discussions, and I pitched my alternative to minga: “mass co-operation”. I don’t know how much Craig liked it, but he totally agreed with me that that’s what it was. We also told him about ACYL. Since then, I’ve been having totally outrageous daydreams that he’d come take part. Hey, a guy can dream, can’t he?
After that, it was time for us to split ways, but before we did, we met up with Robyn, my Secret Pal at Shiktehawk. It was good to see her again, too, and it was such a nice surprise, even though it had only been two days since I saw her last.
And that was it. Everyone left, and I walked home. I may have missed House that night, but given the choice between watching House or seeing the show again, I’d still pick the show.
THE WALL
Allotment garden
Great way to reduce your carbon footprint! Start an allotment garden at School for someone or group that may be less fortunate.“Most people believe that access to food is a basic human right, because, like air or water, it is fundamental to health and survival. But the question is how to make this right a reality.” – Foodshare
The City of Toronto has 991 allotment garden plots available for rental.
Canada needs to increase the amount of aid we give to poorer nations. This isn't a new idea - Canada has been promising to increase our foreign aid for years. Point seven per cent (0.7%) of our national income is the level agreed upon by donor nations and the UN as necessary to make serious progress towards alleviating extreme poverty in the world.
Internet’s most popular website for teens!
OPPORTUNITIES FOR YOU! Make serious summer cash!
Need a job?
Atlantic Canada's first, most visited and only bilingual recruitment web site. With the best employment advertisements, we will help to locate the opportunity that's right for you, right now.
Created as an online tool to help professional recruiters find new talent for Atlantic Canadian employers, CareerBeacon.com is an excellent communication tool that delivers the best options to career seekers.
New Brunswick Youth Apprenticeship
The New Brunswick Youth Career Connections Program (formerly known as Youth Apprenticeship) provides youth with an opportunity to experience the "world of work" and expand their knowledge of essential employability skills. http://www.youthcareerconnections.ca/
Nova Scotia Youth Apprenticeship
What does Workit mean? It means discovering your talents. Finding a job that you truly enjoy. Taking advantage of big opportunities. In short, Workit means turning your potential into success. The Workit Youth Apprenticeship Initiative is a province-wide effort to fill the increasing labour shortage in Nova Scotia's skilled trades. Whether you're a youth, parent, educator or an employer, this site has the information you need to learn more about the benefits of youth apprenticeship. http://workitns.ca/
We are a group of fifteen young people between the ages of 15 and 24 from all over the province. Each of us bring unique interests, backgrounds and abilities to the Council. We are appointed by the Government of Nova Scotia to offer them advice on youth issues and concerns.
In short, we meet four times a year to talk about youth issues and offer ideas on how to make government and its programs and services better for youth. We also work with the Youth Secretariat to identify and address issues which are important to us.
CONTROVERSY….I give you controversy. ‘Prop 8 – the musical’
Your thoughts?
Bloggers Needed
ACYL is looking for bloggers! Is there anyone interested in givin’ it a shot, if so give me a shout! A big thank you goes out to Liam, Patrick, Blake, Bethany, Matt and Megan who will be blogging for ACYL. WICKED! Great response so far!
THE ‘GOOD STUFF’
Featured Co-operative (look at the diversity within the co-op sector)
The Bike Kitchen is a project of the UBC Bike Co-op, with the support of the UBC Alma Mater Society and the Trek Program Centre. Any extra revenue raised by the Bike Kitchen is used by the UBC Bike Co-op to provide bicycle programs on campus and in the larger community - last year the Kitchen raised over $7,500! http://www.thebikekitchen.com/
When Trevor sent me an e-mail saying he’d procured tickets to see Craig Kielburger, my initial reaction was “Who’s Craig Kielburger?”. My second reaction was “OH YEAH! Duh!” I couldn’t pass up a chance to go see something at the Capitol, let alone seeing one of the most influential people in the Human Rights movement live in Moncton.
ACYL is looking for bloggers! Is there anyone interested in givin’ it a shot, if so give me a shout! A big thank you goes out to Liam, Patrick, Blake, Bethany, Matt and Megan who will be blogging for ACYL. WICKED! Great response so far!
