On the evening of May 31st, over 170 people who live and work in communities across Ottawa gathered at City Hall to celebrate local, resident-led positive changes at the CDF Learning Forum. Stories were told and connections were made.
The 8th annual CDF Learning Forum kicked off with a live performance of the We’re the Next 2B video by Lowertown youth. To end the opening ceremony, a team of dynamic Ottawa South women shared their stories about how they are working with neighbours to better their community. As graduates of Creating the Change We Want, these inspirational women highlighted the importance of getting involved in community initiatives. Participants were given the chance to eat, chat and exchange ideas with 17 grassroots projects (event program) that are making a difference in all sorts of unique ways. Participants could also take part in a conversation about how to use video to tell your community story or how to influence local decision making. In keeping with the celebratory, fun spirit of the evening, people also contributed to a ‘Connecting with neighbours mural and could throw on a costume for a photo with friends in the ‘photo booth’. The festive evening wrapped up with participants enjoying the rhythms of the Burundian Messenger Sacred Drums.
Check out the photos from the event!
Here are some comments that people made after participating in the event:
- It gave me new ideas and added to my web!
- I made connections and learned about different organizations that work in Ottawa and how to leverage them to help ours
- Seeing that others are working together makes it more motivating
- It was fun to talk and learn and even dance!
If you have comments and or questions, we would love to hear them. Contact gilliank@seochc.on.ca.