We are very pleased to welcome the 14 amazing young people who make up our new cohort, Next Up Edmonton 9!
The new cohort has a wide variety of experiences. Some people are working on climate change and creating a just energy transition, others are organizing around police accountability. Some people work in public health and some people work in schools. Some spend their days writing policy, others organize protests. Some use the arts to create change, others focus on research and hard facts. Some concentrate on local issues and others have done work internationally. Everyone in the cohort is creating progressive change.
We began our year with three days of Orientation. Everyone was very excited to meet each other and get to know one another. We were also joined by some alumni who helped facilitate the weekend - big thanks to Claire Edwards (NUE6), Damien Lechat and Taylor Rubin (NUE7), and Jamie Zarn (NUE8) for joining us!
The cohort spent the weekend talking about ideas of leadership, how we work in groups, and where our comfort zones are. We learned some theories on how change happens and some tools to help us make it happen. We looked at the different roles we all play in social movements and talked about the ways our work supports each other. We shared our stories, talking about where we come from and why we do the work that we do. We also shared a delicious potluck lunch!
It was a powerful weekend that laid a solid foundation for the cohort to learn and grow together over the next seven months.