WEAll News

‘WEALL Connects’: Intergenerational Connections

Tags: community, event, event recap, intergeneration, WEAll Connects, weall youth
Published on August 13, 2020

By Alexander Evatt, Helsinki, Finland

Dear WEALL community,

Two weeks ago, WEAll Youth brought together WEAll Youth, Citizens and Members at ‘WEAll Connects’, our first Intergenerational event aimed at creating a space to build cross-generational connections and discuss WEAll Youth’s initiatives and goals.

I had the great pleasure to facilitate the first WEAll Connects session, which welcomed WEAll Youth and WEAll members from all over the globe, including Argentina, Canada, USA, Uganda, Kenya, Netherlands, Scotland, UK, Spain, Singapore and many others – weaving a tapestry of intergenerational connectivity and support.

My journey as a member with WEAll started last year, during my Master studies on ‘Leadership and Change Management’ in Amsterdam. Part of my thesis research centered on how to create the bridges between generations in organizations and get intergenerational energy flowing. One of the main findings of my research was the importance of creating “safe spaces” that allow people to share and get to know each other by opening up and listening to different perspectives.

This is one of the reasons I was excited about the co-creation, within the WEALL community, of a space to explore how we can collaborate across generations to build connections, hear one another’s voices and offer support.

Part of the intention for the WEAll Connects event was empowerment. There is power in connecting Youth, the leaders of the future, with experienced experts within WEAll’s network, who can offer confidence and insights.

Together, we explored how to best find synergies and collaboration possibilities across generations and communities, discussing:

  1. What are your greatest challenges?
  2. What do you want to achieve by the end of 2020?
  3. In what ways can we continuously connect, share ideas and projects and support one another?

We explored challenges, such as navigating difficulty in creating engagement, a lack of awareness around intergenerational work, translation of ideas into action, as well as how to integrate Youth voices into the work of WEAll members.

We also felt positive emotions, such as excitement, openness, joy, appreciation and compassion for one and other – and a sense that this is something we want to be a part of.

We all shared the urgency for a unified space where WEAll Youth and Members can share networks, projects and invitations for collaboration and meet regularly.

I felt as if all of us who joined the session embodied what such a WEAll connecting space looks like, feels like, talks like, and works like!

I’m looking forward to continuing the WEAll Connects sessions by building on inspiration and ideas from our first event, deepening our connections and creating value for one and other.

Join us – I’m looking forward to connecting at the next WEAll Connects event!


Alexander Evatt
Next Generation Leadership Coach
alexander@newdirection.fi 
www.newdirection.fi

#WEAllConnects #BridgingGenerations

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