Thanks to the support of Canadian Heritage, Youth mentors and mentees aged 14 to 30 from British Columbia, Alberta and Quebec will engage in youth-led trainings and workshops focused on having meaningful conversations about their identity as it combines with issues of equity, diversity, inclusion, Indigenization and decolonization. The project plays on the notion of “paying it forward” by sharing a part of yourself and your story with others, ultimately encouraging conversation and leading change.
Members from Big Brothers Big Sisters of Canada’s National Youth Mentoring Advisory Council (NYMAC) have designed a training module that focusses on supporting volunteer mentors to be able to discuss topics of equity, diversity, inclusion, Indigenization and decolonization. NYMAC is recruiting 3 lead mentors in each of the following cities/regions: Vancouver, Abbotsford, Lethbridge, Calgary, Edmonton and Outaouais. These 18 lead mentors will recruit and train 20 more youth mentors so that these “Mentor teams” can lead several workshops in each of their cities bringing together 40 mentees (240 mentees in total!) to have conversations around equity, diversity, inclusion, Indigenization and decolonization with each other.
By engaging Canadian youth mentors and mentees in trainings and workshops to reflect on their unique cultural history, identity and traditions, its impact and influence on the current makeup of Canada, and the important values to ensure the future of Canada is positive for everyone, the goal is to highlight that the act of volunteer mentoring is an intentional investment in one’s community.
The youth mentor hosts will gather individual stories from mentee participants during the workshops based on their reflection of their own history and identity. We hope to share these stories with you during Canada History Week with the hashtag #BBBSwhatsyourstory.
