31 Dec 2015 Insights & 2016 Goals
As our second year of G Day comes to a close, I am reflecting back on the awesomeness of three events in three cities in 2015, thinking through lessons learned and considering the future. Here are a few insights and goals about what you can expect from Team G Day in 2016:
More G Days!
If we’ve learned nothing else, it’s that the idea of G Day seem pretty popular (blush!) and that a great deal of people want to see more of them: yay! What we can tell you for sure right now is that we will be having G Day Calgary on June 12 2016, and Vancouver and Victoria in September and October. There are a few other possibilities that we’re not quite ready to reveal yet (!!!), however stay tuned and we’ll let you know.
A major focus for us is to build a scalable model – along TEDx lines – where communities of any size can become G Day licensees and hold events under the G Day banner in their communities. If leading a G Day feels like an exciting project for you, let us know!
… with less going on,
Organizing the program for G Day reminds me of decorating a Christmas tree: it’s hard to resist the temptation to add just one more thing. Looking back, it feels like we definitely reached for a few too many ornaments and the result was overwhelm and/or not getting as much time in each presentation as the participants would have liked. Lesson learned: too much of a good thing is still too much.
… more connection
Further to the last point, we were struck by how many Girls and Champions alike asked for more time to get to know one another. This is wonderful news, and works beautifully with the idea of being a “Village” as opposed to just Girl on her own, with peers or a parent. Done!
and more diversity.
For starters, get more men/Dads/non gender-conforming Champions and Presenters involved. It’s been hard to shake the assumption that G Day is exclusively for Mothers and Daughters: in fact, it never has been. The more we learn about the importance of the role of Fathers (where present) in adolescent girls lives, the more committed we become to offering more relevant Presenters and content. Indeed, Vivek Patel was one of the most popular Presenters at G Day Toronto in April.
G Day has also always included transgender girls – including Vancouver November 2014 G Day participant Tru Wilson who recently made the Vancouver magazine 50 Most Powerful People list! While we managed to include Vancouver Deputy Mayor Andrea Reimer, the parent of a genderqueer teen as a Presenter at G Day Vancouver, it was actually her child who we initially approached. It wasn’t a fit for them at the time, however Roan Reimer is still on our “most wanted” Presenter list.
G Day Victoria had the greatest number of Aboriginal Presenters and participants of any G Day to date, and we have a particular interest in seeking out and including local Coast Salish traditions in G Day’s programming on an ongoing basis.
Plus getting a little more grown up!
A couple of other tidbits: in 2016 United Girls of the World, the non-profit society that is G Day’s home, will be applying for Charitable status. This will be a major step that will allow us to access increased funding and donations. Also, keep your eyes peeled for a new website, launching early next year.
Thank you for an incredible 2015, all the best for 2016, and hope to see you at G Day!
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