The title of this post seems a bit obvious and it is really supposed to be that way. Innovation Works is a co-working space where ideas are floating just waiting for someone to catch them.
On December 10 at a Christmas party in London, I met Simone Dovalli who holds a bachelor’s degree in tourism and a master’s in business administration (MBA) degree from Fundacao Getulio Vargas (FGV), Sao Paulo, Brazil.
Simone is trying to enroll in a business management degree program at the University of Western Ontario (UWO) since many of our Brazilian courses are not recognized here.
Simone said she was looking to volunteer and had found an NGO called Boys and Girls, similar to the Big Sisters of London for which I volunteered 10 years ago. Both organizations help vulnerable children and teenagers.
To be accepted as a volunteer in such agencies it is necessary to obtain a Brazilian criminal record clearance, which takes time. Since Simone wanted to get started soon, I suggested she look at Pillar Non-Profit Network at Innovation Works.
I sent an email introducing Simone to Julie and Megan from Pillar telling them that Simone and I would be at Innovation Works on December 13 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.
At the entrance of this co-work space there is a coffee shop called Edgar and Joe’s Cafe where we held a lunch meeting.
We chatted about the experience of residing in London, which is Simone’s desire, and we spoke about fellow Brazilians who we know here. We came to the conclusion that there are more Brazilians living in this city than we had imagined, and many of them are making a really nice contribution to the Canadian community as researchers, small business owners, workers, volunteers and so forth.
And then we had the idea of interviewing those Brazilians who have been here for a long time and given of themselves to London’s development. We would share their stories on Facebook and other kinds of social media and in magazines.
I told Simone that London Inc. Magazine is headquartered at Innovation Works, and we could talk to the editor and propose an article examining the Brazilian contribution.
We met Megan who indicated that she is leaving Pillar and has been hired by another company also situated at Innovation Works.
Afterward, we met Andre, another manager at Pillar. He was excited with our idea and suggested that we talk with Gord, the head editor of London Inc. Magazine. Andre also mentioned another Brazilian, Bianca Lopes, who had worked with Gord a few years ago.
When we called Gord he was unavailable so we decided to email him later.
Right before leaving Innovation Works we interacted with Julie Forrester.
Simone and I agreed that each of us would contact Brazilians we know.
Later, at home, I contacted Dr. Walter Siqueira, a Brazilian dentist who runs a research laboratory at Western. He liked our concept and made himself available to be our first interviewee. He had co-sponsored a study into saliva and Zika virus prevention, and was featured in a university newspaper article in July/August of last year.
I talked about the project with my Brazilian Canadian friend Zulma, who showed interest.
I’ve already made contact with Bianca Lopes, whose profile is impressive, as well as with Gord of London Inc. Magazine, but neither has yet responded.
Simone also contacted a Brazilian friend who is a veterinary doctor and also a researcher at UWO. He too will probably become one of our interviewees.
Let’s look forward to what 2018 will bring!