15th Western Hemisphere Regional Conference

Cultural Connections Event

 

The Western Hemisphere Region is delighted to share that the call for participants for Cultural Connections 2019 is now open!

Cultural Connections is open to young women ages 18 to 30 years old and will be held immediately prior to the Regional Conference in Grenada. This is an exciting opportunity that enables young women to participate in both events, with the goal of creating a strong, diverse, and collective voice at Cultural Connections to help shape the future of the movement and an opportunity for each delegation at the Regional Conference to include a young woman in a leadership role.  

Who should attend?

The Western Hemisphere Region aims to bring together a group of young women who are passionate about the Girl Guide and Girl Scout Movement, excited about exploring leadership in an international context, and interested in pursuing a governance or leadership position within their Member Organisation or WAGGGS.

Participants should also be willing and able to share feedback and ideas around the best ways to engage young women in leadership roles as they will have a unique opportunity to engage in the research responding to World Conference Motion 32 on barriers to engaging young women in leadership.

Essential skills

Successful applicants must be:

  • A Girl Guide or Girl Scout between the ages of 18 and 30 years old at the beginning of the event

  • An active member of a Member Organisation of the Western Hemisphere Region

  • Able to work in a team

  • Able to effectively communicate in English or Spanish

  • Committed to personal development

  • Willing to work respectfully and with curiosity across diverse cultures in an international context

  • Motivated and enthusiastic about the idea of pursuing a governance or leadership position within your Member Organisation or WAGGGS in the next triennium

Preferred experience

Additional attributes that will be helpful include:

  • Previous international experience through Guiding or Scouting, either with your Member Organization or WAGGGS

  • Leadership or governance experience within a Member Organisation or WAGGGS

Dates

Arrival and registration for Cultural Connections is Friday, 5 July 2019. The event commences with a welcome dinner on Friday and continues with program through Monday, 8 July 2019, prior to the Western Hemisphere Regional Conference in Grenada.

Applicants should be able to commit to work on pre-tasks before the event and to develop and implement a project upon returning to their Member Organisations.

We encourage young women participating in the event to stay for the Western Hemisphere Regional Conference from 8 - 12 July as part of their delegation, a Western Hemisphere Region guest, or a volunteer in a leadership role for the conference.

Event Fee

Thanks to a generous grant from the Girl Guides of Canada, the Western Hemisphere Region can provide financial support to enable young women to attend this three-day event with a fully funded event scholarship. To encourage as much diversity as possible, scholarship priority will be given to support one young woman per Member Organization.

Financial support for scholarship recipients will fully cover the event fee, meals, and lodging; flights are excluded and are the responsibility of the participant or Member Organization.

If more than one person per Member Organization would like to participate, additional participants can take part for an event fee of $650 USD, including all program delivery, meals, and lodging.

Special Regional Conference Lodging Offer

To make Regional Conference more accessible for young women, the Western Hemisphere Region is thrilled to offer special lodging and group transportation from the Cultural Connections event site for all participants who would like to attend both events.

Your Cultural Connections scholarship includes full funding for lodging and transportation to extend your stay through Regional Conference, but does not include the Regional Conference event fee. The Regional Conference event fee for young women ages 18 - 30 is $400 USD.

Registration

Registration is now closed. 

If you need any assistance, we will be happy to assist. Contact the Events Team at WH.ReCo@wagggs.org or via the World Bureau Office (+44 207 4336 437).

Deadline

The deadline to register is 17:00 GMT on 3 May 2019. We encourage you to register early as scholarships will be given on a rolling basis.

We looking forward to welcoming you to Grenada for an exciting opportunity to connect with young women from across the Region.