Entrepreneurs – Page 5 – Connecting the Dots

On the agenda…Planet Earth

Published on November 29, 2017December 6, 2017 by Seema RampersadLeave a comment

Om Sam Maa Sinchantu Murutah Sam Poosha Sam Brihaspatih –

May the five elements of Air, Water, Fire, Earth and Sky make my body healthy and strong.

Line from a Hindu Mantra.

We rely on the Earth for our own wellbeing, inner peace and life. In the last few months, you may have noticed that there has been devastating damage and loss to human life, property and the Earth by natural disasters exasperated by climate change. If you did not notice this in the news or social media – you must have been on another planet! I have started with this mantra as we said it at a prayer meeting which was a serene and gentle reminder that we are vulnerable mortals. Just as nature can have a detrimental effect of loss and damage on us – we too must try to show some respect to the Earth. It is not too much for us in return to respect it and take small positive steps to sustain it for future generations and life as we know it. I will discuss some small environmental thoughts and ideas that have been bothering me.

It seems that the environmental issues have come to a head recently with this year’s natural disasters. Sadly, we all know that this is not the end of this type of devastation and all around the Earth… we will continue to have floods, earthquakes, hurricanes, avalanches, Tsunamis, droughts, etc. I will discuss briefly these big local and global issues, and acknowledge that it should not just be on the agenda…but remain a standing item on our consciousness. I have little power to do much on a grand scale but in terms of raising awareness and acknowledgement of these issues, it is the least I can do.

First to note down, is the issue of plastics pollution. Plastics and tin cans are frequently dumped in my neighbourhood by street-drinkers and passersby. Littering really aggravates me. I frequently get dirty fingertips from picking up discarded bottles, cans, plastic cups and other litter on my merry walks around town. I normally have to put them in the closest recycling bins that I can find. Plastic take away cups are also dumped near King’s Cross St Pancras as there are not many bins possibly due to security reasons. I generally have to resist myself from picking up discarded cups left near the station’s Taxi rank.

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One solution to plastics pollution is the simple ethos of the three 3Rs – Reduce, Recycle and Reuse. It is better for us to practice these three Rs whether it is on a personal, commercial or larger countrywide infrastructure level. In my initial research, I soon realized that this is not just a local level but also a global issue. As a global community, there are already some discussions and work in progress to solve this in a collaborative and forward thinking way. We still have a long way to go on this issue.

Larger white goods and household trash (no fluffy word) are also frequently dumped in my neighbourhood. Like-minded passionate environmental digital champions such as @Littergram and @CleanupWalthamForest frequently report ‘fly-tipping’ in neighbourhoods to local authorities. This is a local problem but there are also global questions. I recently looked at a BBC documentary ‘Inside Story: A Week in a Toxic Waste Dump’ by Reggie Yates which mentioned the direct impact of our developed world consumption for white and electronic goods, which eventually leads to Third World toxic graveyards that affect lesser developed countries. So to be clear…this is not an isolated issue. There are reactive and circular factors that affect us and our world when it comes to consumption of goods. I visited my nearest recycling waste plant London Energy about five years ago, and it was an eye-opener on recycling, the circular economy and waste management on a large-scale urban city. We still have issues with dumping, litter and flytipping regardless of local authority run initiatives. Education and public information awareness may be the answer to solve these pollution problems, but it also requires behaviour change by citizens (culprits may be a better word).

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Somewhere along the way on this Earth, plastics make their way from urban and rural environments to our seas and oceans. In ‘Plastics waste inputs from land into the Ocean’ Science Magazine 13 February 2015, reports that ‘80% of marine debris originates from land with 275million metric tons (MT) of plastics waste was generated in 1992 coastal countries in 2010, with 4.8 to 12.7 million MT entering the ocean’. This horrendous amount of pollution is predicted to increase in future.

In recent weeks, plastics pollution has also been highlighted by Sir David Attenborough, naturalist and broadcaster, in Blue Planet. I was so pleased to see this conversation ramped up a few octaves and is still ongoing. Sir Attenborough said that “everyone one of us’ has a responsibility to reduce plastics ending up in the ocean. It is one world. And it is in our care for the first time in the history of humanity for the first time in 500 million years, one species has the future in the palm of its hands. I just hope (humanity) realizes that this is the case.”

iEixdOKV.jpg-large — Shared by my contacts on Facebook

Another exemplary organization I found in my research is The Ellen McArthur Foundation, which has been raising awareness on the ocean plastics issue and the circular economy. In ‘Speaker: Recycling alone won’t solve ocean pollution’ Plastic News 25 September 2017, this foundation explains “plastic bottles caps and closures can easily become separated from their bottles and are particularly dangerous for seabirds, who see them floating and mistake them for food…..an estimate 90% of seabirds have plastics in their guts”. Seabirds are not the only species affected by plastics pollution – fishes and marine life may also ingest small plastic debris. Apparently, Asian countries have the highest levels of plastics pollution. This may also end up in our own ecosystem and human food chain!

A paradigm shift is essential – and there is a warning that “our waste will continue to grow with the increased population and increased per capita consumption associated with economic growth, especially in urban areas and developing African countries”. Some behavioural change is required, and slowly this can change with education, positive attitudes and action. There has already been progress, for example, with the Plastic Bag ban or tariff introduced in some countries, so change can happen.

Five years ago at the London Energy tour, the Public Relations Manager told us that she felt that there was too much packaging in UK supermarkets. I always remember this too. However, again with small steps, positive change can happen – behaviour and commercial initiatives can change pollution for the better. For example, The Ellen MacArthur Foundation launched ‘The New Plastics Economy Innovation Prize’ for rethinking of the design and materials of plastic packaging – with categories in rethinking grocery shopping, redesigning, sachets and reinventing coffee-on-the-go. At their awards ceremony at the ‘Our Oceans’ conference, the commissioner reportedly said “bringing your fish home in a plastic bag one year and bring the plastic bag home in the fish the next is the reality. The rethink design awards show how innovation can inspire redesign, reduction of waste and re-utilization”.

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This is only one aspect of the Earth’s vulnerable environment that has captured my attention in recent months. Climate change has also come to the front of my attention due to Earthquakes in Mexico and India, and hurricanes in the USA and in my beloved Caribbean. I tend to keep an eye on the storms in the Caribbean, but the hurricanes this year has been devastating in American and the Caribbean. The relentless and catastrophic damage to Texas, Barbuda, Puerto Rico and other countries in the region as witnessed on social media in real time was very sad and worrying to see.

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In the insurance industry magazine Reactions 2^nd October 2017 ‘Grappling with Irma Climate Change Link’, a Research Fellow at the University College London said that “warmer Atlantic sea surface temperatures mean more active hurricane seasons and stronger storms”. After the damage to property, lives, homes and the land caused by Hurricane Harvey, Lloyd’s of London issued a statement calling for greater industry awareness over changing weather patterns. The statement said: “We know that climate is changing and with it traditional weather patterns. The costs of natural disasters are on the rise, with direct losses in the past decade estimated at $1.4 Trn US Dollars globally”. There is no doubt about the financial and human cost.

All this damage is harder for smaller Caribbean Islands – there is a call for more disaster planning, a “wake up call”, a marshal plan as penned by billionaire entrepreneur Richard Branson, whose own island was affect with by the hurricane this year. It is best explained on Caribbean Intelligence’s site as “a fresh approach to coping with all Mother Nature has to throw at the archipelago of territories prone to geo-faults and Cross-Atlantic high winds”. No time for wasting, there must be a coordinated approach to helping these beautiful islands in the Caribbean…and also the US states affected by these mighty hurricanes now and in the future.

As I reflect, I have experienced a terrifying Earthquake in Italy in 2009 and a hurricane as a child in Trinidad in the early 1970s. The earth’s environment and sustainability is a big topic for just me to battle, and perhaps for you alone too. Optimistically, it is the little actions we should aim to take as often as we can to change course. Otherwise there will be dire consequences that inaction would lead to, should we ignore it. There will be even worst results for the environment and humans…if we do nothing. The United Nations is actively working to solve some of these issues and see their #BeatPollution hashtag on social media.

However small we may do to reduce, recycle and reuse with care for our world, it would eventually have a big impact on our lives, wellbeing and future generations for a better livable environment. We currently have a responsibility of leaving the Earth in a better state than when we arrived on it. This is the universal language that we must try to speak, understand and live by. Earth is the very thing that sustains us. Therefore, it should stay on our agenda.

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The Brown Atlantic – Indians crossing the seas to the West Indies

Published on September 30, 2017October 6, 2018 by Seema RampersadLeave a comment

Black History Month has been celebrated every October in the United Kingdom for the last 30 years when there are many events showcasing the story and contribution of our diverse history. I wanted to write and reflect a little bit more on my own West Indian heritage. It is something I have to explain regularly.

Are you Indian? Pakistani? Mauritian? …These are frequent questions I have faced since moving to the UK. Because of my brown appearance, I have also been asked on holiday in Spain, Italy and France. In 1995, one elderly solder in Amiens, France called me over to ask me where I was from as he thought I was Brazilian. I have no problem with people asking me where I am from but it is a long story that I frequently have to repeat. It sort of goes like this “…I am Trinidadian but I am Indian by race as my ancestors were Indians who went to the Caribbean as indentured labourers to work on the sugar plantations after the end of slavery”. That is a mouthful! However, it is certainly a true story about Indian Indentureship as a global movement of people to distant lands in the new world that resulted in a human journey rich in history and later integration in what we now know as the West Indies. Some photos here are kindly linked from the UK National Archives image library.

National Archives - 7643279364_eba109e1f6_o — **Description:** Coolies arrived from India at Depôt. **Location:** Trinidad and Tobago **Date:** 1870-1939 **Our Catalogue Reference:** Part of CO 1069/392 This image is part of the Colonial Office photographic collection held at The National Archives, uploaded as part of the Caribbean Through a Lens project. We have attempted to provide place information for the images automatically but our software may not have found the correct location. **We need your help** to fill in the gaps, to unearth the missing stories, the social and cultural memories from this selection of colonial recordings. Do you recognise anything or anyone in the photographs? Do they provoke any personal or historical memories? If so, please leave your comments, tags and stories to enrich our records. If you would like to get involved in our community project Caribbean through a lens, we would love to hear from you. For high quality reproductions of any item from our collection please contact our image library

That is the short version. Here I am going to elaborate as it will also serve as a refresher in a voyage of self-discovery. There were a large number of East Indians who moved to the Caribbean as indentured labourers to provide a workforce that would replace the now freed African Slaves. Indentureship was used to entice Chinese, Europeans, Portuguese, Syrians, Lebanese and East Indians in chronological order to the Caribbean. The Fatal Razack was the first ship to bring indentured labourers from India to Trinidad in 1845 with 227 immigrants. This migration continued until 1917 and is referred to as ‘The Brown Atlantic’. There are both positive and negative outcomes of the resulting mass migration as written and discussed by academics, taught at school and oral stories told from my own circles and elders in Trinidad. I have always wondered to myself why my ancestors left India? I am still not sure what were their motives to leave India.

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Indians were brought to the Caribbean “under dubious circumstances” and lived in the same conditions as some of the former African slaves. Lomash Roopnarine writes in ‘A critique of East Indian Indentured historiography in the Caribbean’ that “Indians were treated more or less like black slaves during indenture with little or no opportunity to challenge the institutionalization of their indenture contract”. It certainly may have had its challenges after leaving Asia in what was considered a highly advanced society, had ancient religions and an already rich culture. Regardless, even though some may argue the ‘wool were pulled over their eyes’, large numbers set bound to new lands across seas and the Atlantic Ocean. Professor Clem Seecharan, at a recent event at the British Library, believes with our collective hindsight, it was also an opportunity to escape from whatever battles or personal baggage our ancestors wanted to leave behind in India. This is the similar story for all immigrants to North and South American in the last four centuries.

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Growing up in Trinidad, my elder relatives would tell stories of ancestors who came before us to the Caribbean. Unfortunately we have not traced our ancestors back to India, but these anecdotes and stories have been passed on over the 170 plus years. Ideally, it should be documented whilst we can remember the details such as in this archive by the National Council for Indian Culture. Social media has helped recently as older relatives would verify and add what they know to photos of persons and events that occurred. I recently found out that my maternal relations were most likely not indentured labourers but business migrants who came via French Martinique. They were also not based in the plantations, but in the city of Port-of-Spain. One thing that was certain – they were adamant on hanging on to their rich Indian culture, religion and heritage. Who can blame them after seeing for themselves how the colonial imprint had erased other indigenous and migrant cultures in the West Indies.

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At the time, my ancestors would have found it difficult, if not impossible, to keep in touch with their relations in India – they would eventually lose the connection with these Indian relations, their immediate roots and the location routes that they took before their arrival in the Caribbean. My mother told me a while ago that when they were growing up in the 1950’s, that they had no idea that they would go to India one day. It probably still is a dream for most Trinidadian Indians (Indo-Caribbeans or East Indians as we now called ourselves) to travel back to India one day. In the academic world in the 19^th century, “few studies have concentrated on the re-integration of ex-indentured Indians to their former communities and even the second time…the reason for this discontinuity and disconnection in the study of indenture from India and the Caribbean has to do with the great distance and poor communication networks between the two locations. Discontinuity might have to do with language and cultural barriers. The culture of Indians in the Caribbean changed immensely from the original homeland. To some extent, new communities were created overseas”.

Cane field 8023250953_4b60496b7d_o — **Description:** Trinidad and Tobago. ‘Sugar loading in the south of the island’. Photograph No.: ZZZ 73308 H. Official Trinidad and Tobago photograph compiled by Central Office of Information. Copyright hand stamp of Anne Bolt, Paddington, London, on reverse. **Location:** Trinidad and Tobago **Date:** [1948] **Our Catalogue Reference:** INF 10/359/9 This image is part of the Central Office of Information’s photographic collection held at The National Archives, uploaded as part of the Caribbean Through a Lens project. **We need your help** to fill in the gaps, to unearth the missing stories, the social and cultural memories from this selection of colonial recordings. Do you recognise anything or anyone in the photographs? Do they provoke any personal or historical memories? If so, please leave your comments, tags and stories to enrich our records. If you would like to get involved in our community project Caribbean through a lens, we would love to hear from you. For high quality reproductions of any item from our collection please contact our image library

This is some of the challenges faced by academics, but the same applies to all descendants. It is a sad result of indentureship but also a warning that immigrants lose links with their ‘Motherland’. My Italian migrant relatives who live in the United Kingdom are considerably more fortunate in that they have only been here over 50 years – they can still speak the language, communicate by modern technology, and travel to the continent is only a few hours away to see relatives. This was not the case and still is not the case with Indian heritage – the family connection has long gone over a hundred years ago! It has only been in the last 25 years or so that affluent Trinidadians are able to travel to their ancestral India in group-organised tours. I haven’t been to India as yet, but still hope to travel there one day.

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Over time, Indians were able to assimilate and integrate with other migrants in the West Indies. When Indians arrived in Trinidad, “on estates, residents workers of both races shared similar experiences and conditions, although tendency developed for creoles and Indians to do different, specialised tasks”. There was some recording of tensions, such as “Trinidadians of other races were not sympathetic to the new arrivals and they freely expressed their contempt for the Indian religions, culture, method of dress and family life”. In Jamaica, some Indians were “cordially welcomed by their Black brethren, generously offered them oranges, sugarcane, and various descriptions of fruit, as well as bread, cakes, and trifling articles of clothing for their children”. Yet actual conflict between the races was rare. I am sure there would have been tensions at times too, but generally many races and cultures tolerated and got along despite the circumstances. It seems Indians were also in a position to resist and organised discontent against colonial government as the years progressive.

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I still have a book we used in secondary school called ‘Social Life in the Caribbean 1838-1938’ by Briget Brereton. Reading it again does reinforce some of my own oral stories heard from ancestors such as Indians hanging on to their own traditions, culture and religion. My mother’s family told stories of having only Christian schools in Port-of-Spain, and that they were encouraged to convert but this was vehemently resisted by my Hindu grandparents. Children were also encouraged to work at an early age on the plantations to help in households such as the case with my father. Canadian Presbyterians missionaries were also instrumental in educating young Indian children but also in the hope of converting them to Christianity. Further education schooling for all children were only made compulsory later on. Despite this, it is amazing that so much of their original Indian culture has survived! Indians eventually adopted and integrated Creole Caribbean cultures too, such as Creole fashion, language, names, food, etc. Brereton states, “the educated middle class made up largely of Christian Indians grew up in both territories (Guyana and Trinidad), and was an important group from about 1900”.

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One point highlighted in my research is that there was few women heroines pointed out, but Roopnarine writes “Are we to believe that the movement of 500000 Indians from their homeland to the Caribbean and years of indentured experience did not produce one single outstanding female indentured servant? From a colonial perspective, this memory never existed.” I also read that Shaleela Hosein interviewed Indian women in rural Trinidad to determine their historical experience through their eyes – “the result is a remarkable oral narrative that exemplifies strength, stability and strong leadership among Indian women in latter stages of indentureship. It seems a contradiction to Indian migrants being subservient and submissive”. From my own family history and neighbourhood – we were told and saw women who worked extremely hard in rural agricultural jobs in the plantations to support their families. Eventually there was, and still is a push and emphasis on education for all. These migrants must have been tough to decide to leave India for the unknown Caribbean, and to make the journey across the Atlantic. This toughness must still be in our DNA. Remember that there was none of today’s modern technology.

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Coincidently at the British Library, recently I attended a talk based on the book ‘Sugar Sugar –bitter sweet tales of Indian Migrant Worker‘s’ with the author Lainy Malkani and the same Professor Clem Seecharan mentioned above. There was great discussion on this topic, and Professor Seecharan mentioned various thoughts, such as we should see indentureship as an opportunity for our ancestors from what would have been a hierarchical (caste) system in India. It gave people opportunities too to move away and get upwardly mobility. It may have also been a myth that they were not aware of what they were signing up too – some wanted to come to the Caribbean. Apparently some Indians also returned to India, but most indentured migrants stayed.

It is also very hard to trace migrants as they came from various Indian villages and changed names etc. Professor Seecharan also shared some insight that the French governed Tamils, and they would have settled in Martinique. This also seems to make sense with my maternal ancestors. He was not that enthusiastic about tracing his own family tree to Guyana. It was also the first time I heard about indentured labourers going to work in Fuji – but I was aware of Mauritius, South Africa etc. There were lots of other questions from attendees at the Knowledge Centre event, especially for Indian descendants like myself who now live in the UK. Tracing families in India may be a tough task due to poor and inaccurate record keeping, and would require a lot of time researching through archives and records. It is great if you can trace your background as recently shown for celebrities Liz Bonin and Noel Clarke on the TV Series ‘Who do you think you are’.

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Indians weren’t always bound or stayed in plantations. Brereton continues that as time passed, Indians adopted “most aspects of western culture and their lifestyle become more and more distant from that of their parents and grandparents. They were businessmen and professionals, civil servants, teachers and clerks, based in towns, especially San Fernando in Trinidad, New Amsterdam and Georgetown in Guyana. They began to form organisations to protect their interest and first entered political life in the early 1900’s”.

Beyond the Boundary by C.L.R James

‘A House for Mr Biswas’ by V. S. Naipaul

It is with pride and admiration that we can now look back at our ancestors who came to the Caribbean and contributed to its’ economic, social, political and cultural development – and made it their home like everybody else. Some notable Indo-Trinidadians are listed here on Wikipedia. There is still a strong link with India for some of the population with simple things such as Bollywood movies, songs and fashion still very popular. Television helped to connect some of the disconnected just as the Internet does today. I recently saw young Trinidadian Indians singing Hindi songs at a wedding and they knew all the lyrics despite not knowing the language. Cricket is also another uniting force with India, Britain and with our African brothers in the Caribbean. Professor Seecharan said that C.L.R. James’s book ‘Beyond the Boundary’ is one of the best books ever written in English, and he obviously had admiration for C.L.R. James.

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There is much to celebrate personally. My own grandfather was a well-respected businessman by the 1950’s, and my father a dedicated worker with 50 years in the sugar industry. There are many ways that Indo-Caribbeans have contributed to the region and even to the wider world with later migration to Canada, America and the UK. Nobel Prize Winner for Literature, V.S. Naipaul, was a family friend and he has written books that make us look at ourselves such as ‘A House for Mr Biswas’. In the arts and culture, we are tenacious with our own Indian culture, but have also created our own fusions, and some spicy flavours – such as with the Chutney Music genre. Yet too, we are still proactive and keep intact our ancient religions, traditions, language to some extent, fashion, dance, food…and our homes reflect that. Indian Arrival Day is now celebrated annually with a public holiday on 30th May in Trinidad.

7643565602_211f236921_o — Description: 23. Walker Street – the owner is not a barrack dweller. Location: Frederick Village, Trinidad and Tobago Date: 1949 Our Catalogue Reference: Part of CO 1069/401 This image is part of the Colonial Office photographic collection held at The National Archives, uploaded as part of the Caribbean Through a Lens project. We have attempted to provide place information for the images automatically but our software may not have found the correct location. We need your help to fill in the gaps, to unearth the missing stories, the social and cultural memories from this selection of colonial recordings. Do you recognise anything or anyone in the photographs? Do they provoke any personal or historical memories? If so, please leave your comments, tags and stories to enrich our records. If you would like to get involved in our community project Caribbean through a lens, we would love to hear from you. For high quality reproductions of any item from our collection please contact our image library

This post is just scratching the surface of years of history – colonialism, end of slavery and global migration at that! I am a product of that triangular Brown Atlantic passage, and from my perspective – it as a great way to view the world. I also wanted to highlight this rich, sometimes forgotten heritage for Black History Month in October. We know the story of Columbus heading west in his search for East Indian Spices, but his voyage ending up in what is now known as the Americas and Caribbean. Funny and ironic, that my East Indians ancestors eventually also sailed west to settle in the melting pot of the West Indies. It is also great that some of us kept our Indian names in defiance, that our culture has survived but also that there has been integration, inter-racial marriages, social cohesion, fusion, adoption and adaptability with other communities and cultures. Generally it is a great example of the positive influence for multiculturalism and mass immigration that our Indian ancestors have played in the hemisphere. They should be appreciated and celebrated for their innovations, continued development and colourful contribution they make to the region. The journey surely has not ended yet.

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Information Superhighway: access all areas

Published on May 31, 2017January 4, 2018 by Seema Rampersad1 Comment

The Information Superhighway was a term used when I started working in the information industry in the early 1990’s. There are also a few books published on the topic at the time and my manager ordered some for our collection in the library where I worked. Recently I was reminiscing with my ex-colleague, Lina Kouzi, about this and we discussed how revolutionary it was at the time. That was about 24 years ago…before “everyone” used the web. I had already attended lectures at university on the “information society” vision that was a precursor to the information superhighway or cyberspace, as we now know it. All of this is history, but there are two aspects of the information and library world that will remain relevant even now: (1) Some people can use web-based sources very easily for their information needs, cruise at their leisure and/or accelerate in the fast lane for such things as the deep web and e-commerce. But (2) there are also parts of society and the developing world that do not have access to this road – much less so to a superhighway. These access barriers get forgotten sometimes.

Librarians and information professionals are always keen to help users to access content regardless of format, and to provide content that is relevant, correct, critically analysed within research frameworks and standards in various fields of interest.

This month, it was such a pleasure to volunteer to represent SLA Europe in Dublin for the inaugural Information Professional Career Expo at the Dublin Business School in Ireland. I was keen to meet professionals and new graduates in the Irish Information Community and to make time to see my ex-colleague and friend Lina at the National Council for the Blind in Ireland (NCBI). I flew into Dublin City Airport early in the morning and Lina took me straight to her office at the NCBI. I have kept track of Lina’s amazing work over the years and I find the library and media services she provides to the blind and partially sighted to users across Ireland awesome and inspiring! There are many features about their services that are unique and tailored for their users, such as a collection of braille resources and various media output in audio recordings of news, magazines (journals), books, etc. Lina showed we around the purpose built office in the Dublin suburbs with traditional library storage, but also with BBC standard built recording studios and booths. It was also very nice to be introduced to her colleagues, and I made sure I told them how amazing their work is to their users.

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Lina is also working with the local residents in a deprived community on a programme for up-skilling and training with recording items from the collection to be sent to users. I also saw the postal bags for materials that are sent out across Ireland free of postage charges, and with easy postal bags for users who may find it challenging to return items to the library. Some of her users have access to content on memory USB sticks, which are then returned in these postal bags (see photo). Library users have machines and devices for playing the audio materials that they receive from the NCBI. Obviously, there are younger users who may have smarter technology but some of them still use tradition and antiquated machines, as they are familiar with the machines. Lina created an annual report with some amazing facts and figures of their work and the valuable contribution they provide for their users and the positive impact this service has on users’ quality of life.

We both loved catching up and it was non-stop chatting on old and new stories. That is the beauty of being with an old friend – you pick up where you left off! We both quietly recalled and congratulated each other on our careers’ progress and how those early days at Coopers & Lybrand (now PricewaterhouseCoopers) were foundations skills and learning in the ‘Books’ and ‘Journals’ sections even in a corporate library – the experience is still relevant to the services we provide today in our current roles in terms of the ‘content’, transferable and business skills that we possess.

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After a quick lunch at the Temple Bar district of Dublin, I made a quick dash in the Dublin Taxi to the inaugural Information Professionals Career Expo at the Dublin Business School (DBS). Bursting with energy and excitement after seeing my dear friend, I entered the expo in full swing to a warm welcome to meet Irish SLA Europe members and DBS contacts Siobhan McGuinness, Neasa McHale and Marie O’Neill. I was mainly here to network, exalt the benefits of SLA Europe as a global network of information professionals and to give advice to anyone who wanted to chat at our stall. I had the pleasure of meeting a few new graduates and gave then a few tips on how they can keep in contact with SLA Europe and what we are up to by our social media channels. I also spoke on some of the more important CPD and social events we host. I gave tips on job seeking and staying on top of their personal development and seeking emerging new roles as well as traditional ones.

Representing SLA Europe

Lovely Neasa, Siobhan and Emma

Philip from the Library Association of Ireland

SLA Europe Nibbles and Networking at Information Professional Expo 2017

Nibbles and Drinks.

In the general career mentoring area, I also met Florence Curley from PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC). Florence and I (like many other geographical territories) used to communicate to exchange information and assist each other in finding information or leads for our library users. It was nice to meet someone in person you have never met before – even if it was 10 years ago that I left PwC!

It was also a pleasure to give a short talk at the start of the SLA Europe hosted networking and nibbles, where I was introduced by Philip of the Library Association in Ireland. Philip set the tone with any introduction that called for information professionals to be excited to “put information in the hands of their users”, but also to “fight the good fight” with all the changes in the industry. I had prepared for a light-hearted talk on my career and what SLA Europe has meant for me and my own professional development, but I went on to mention thoughts that was hopefully motivational, encouraging and praiseworthy. I also urged the room to be prepared for the fight that we face as information professionals. There are various roles, industries, subjects and creative cultural aspects of our valuable contribution – and I made sure that point was not missed. Siobhan has written a fab Information Professional Expo event review here.

Info Professional’s Career Expo

Promoting Professional Organisations

Meet people from industry.

It was really nice to meet many of the group attending the nibbles and networking afterwards for a more personal chat on issues and opportunities that they may face. It was a true pleasure to attend these different venues in Dublin with varied user experiences and professional elements, which personally put the library and information industry into clearer perspective on the roads that lie ahead.

My time in Dublin was not all work and I was able to take a nice walk to my hotel, spend the evening listening to live music in my music-themed hotel and go by train to Galway the next morning. I have visited Ireland before about 15 years ago for St Patrick’s Day, and definitely, it is a fabulous city that is worth a visit. The countryside on the way to Galway was beautiful and very cliche green with livestock roaming the fields. It was such a joy to see the animals resting, playing or grazing in the green grass of Ireland. Galway was really nice as shown in my photos and I hope to visit Ireland again one day to see more of the countryside.

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Not only did I spend time speed networking in Dublin, but I also attended the Business Show as part of the Business & IP Centre team at Excel in May. It is amazing that information is ubiquitious and accessible night and day in the palm of our hands, but people still want face to face information or pointers for those hard-to-find information needs. Even if it is to reassure them what they already know. I assisted with about 15 speed mentoring sessions for the London Growth Hub at the Business Show and most speed mentees wanted information that was practical or confirmation of where they can go to find out what they were looking for. The Information Superhighway may be all well and good but there is still a need for information professionals to provide that face-to-face conversation or provide answers that some people still need…and they may prefer to communicate in person. We still do this everyday in the library where I work.

Fake News and digital literacy are other issues that have come to the forefront in the last year. This had probably been exasperated by social media and mainstream news being manipulated by the powerful. This is not a new issue and I have been interesting in the topic for a while but not overly passionate about it. There is a fabulous article in Information Today May 2017 entitled ‘What’s behind fake news and What you can do about it‘ by Kate Dempsey – which gives some fabulous insight into the role of information professionals and librarians in fact-checking and preventing the spread of misinformation. Tracey end by stating “It is vital to prove your continued value, and this is a timely, powerful way to do it. It’s one thing to repeat the old trope ‘People need libraries now more than ever,’ and that is another thing to get out there to prove it”.

It is vital to prove your continued value, and this is a timely, powerful way to do it. It’s one thing to repeat the old trope ‘People need libraries now more than ever,’ and that is another thing to get out there to prove it” – Information Today, May 2017, ‘What’s behind fake news and What you can do about it‘ by Kate Dempsey.

As with all content, we eventually will manage archives for future scrutiny, analysis and fact-checking. We are here to provide accurate, impartial and unbias information for independent research and for the empowerment of our users. This is not always easy, appreciated or even possible, but we professional won’t have it any other way! It is our standards. So if you get away with half-truths or disinformation – we will eventually catch up with you in time! I remember telling the attendees at the networking event in Dublin that I would have changed my career by now if I didn’t like being an information professional. I haven’t always had the “luck of the Irish” in my career…but I do feel lucky to do what I do. Information works for me.

18582419_10212742283542145_7040794935090751454_n — Emerald – Ireland from the airplane.

Fashion Conscious

Published on March 31, 2017April 4, 2017 by Seema Rampersad8 Comments

I am not an expert, queen or slave to fashion but like most people, I have a keen interest in fashion throughout the ages. Growing up with lots of women and female cousins around me meant that we would chat, admire and pass on hand-me-downs items of clothing. I think that was such a lovely and memorable part of growing up. Again, I repeat that I come from a little island in the Caribbean but we were still in step with fashion trends. Matriarchs in my family have some fabulous photos of classic late 1950’s and 1960’s fashion, and some of these would look just as on trend today! There are two points that I like about this – the sustainability of sharing unwanted clothes with close ones, and the important creative inspiration that fashion archives are for new creations and innovations.

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It is so easy to find historic fashion on the web in various fashion archives. I follow Europeana on Twitter @Eurofashion, and I’m warning you that they frequently share real treasure designs and photos that will give you fashion flashbacks! The special thing about fashion is that it can still seem very fresh in the right context and setting. I am lucky because as I work at the British Library…and we have access to archived fashion books, magazines (Vogue archive) and even dress patterns.

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I have also met many start-up businesses that are using the current research resources to plan and grow their businesses from designing and selling fashion from childrenswear, women’s plus sizes, womenswear and menswear, lingerie, shoes, handbags etc. The fashion opportunities are endless. I have also blogged about fashion along these same lines here in this link in ‘Fashion has nowhere to go but in Circles’ on the Business & IP Centre’s blog.

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Customised and seamstress dressmaking was a great aspect of growing up in 1970’s and 1980’s Trinidad. We had fashion shops, markets and shopping malls but it was still special when we would go with our specific designs to seamstresses for these designs to be made uniquely in the fabric, colour and made-to-measure for ourselves. Before the internet, we would get fashion and design ideas from television, film, music videos and American shopping catalogues too – such as JC Penny. I remember a few seamstresses that used their dressmaking skills as a livelihood and business to support their families. Presently, some of my friends are keen dressmakers at home for their own consumption, and have been creating fashion pieces in their spare time to their preferred tastes, which I think is amazing!

One of my favourite customised outfits I remember, and have a photo of, was my first jumpsuit! I was about 7 years old and my lovely grown up neighbour, Radica, took me with her to San Fernando (a city in Southern Trinidad) to get it made. I remember the cotton denim look and the little red berries pattern on the fabric. I loved it! Jumpsuits were initially a world fashion trend in the 1970s (possibly older). However even then, I remember that it was awkward to go to the lavatory in a jumpsuit. Fast forward to the present – and the jumpsuit is back as seen in these Pinterest curated photos. And I am still trying to perfect the art of using a jumpsuit at parties and festivals.

IMG_1307 (1) — Jumpsuit for a boat party – Summer 2016.

Continue reading “Fashion Conscious” →

Pizza – a renaissance on the high street

Published on February 28, 2017March 3, 2017 by Seema Rampersad1 Comment

There is an on-going pizza revolution in my part of the woods. Pizzerias have become ubiquitous with old and new pizza companies on the market. One of our favourite fast foods seem to be going through a renaissance right now with many independent shops on the high streets. This is not hard to believe as you may ask who doesn’t like pizza? No doubt about – it is popular on most of the planet!

I have always liked pizza even when I lived in Trinidad. We had our own pizza companies such as Mario’s Pizza, Pizza Boys and the familiar global brand Pizza Hut. Going out for pizzas was always something to look forward to when I went to the malls with my friend. I remember also trying to make pizza with roti (Indian flatbread) dough as a teenager. On a memorable school trip to Venezuela, we went to a Pizzeria where our tour guide suggested the ‘house special’. It was a delicious pizza with my first taste of one with anchovies and copious amount of other toppings as compared to those I had known in Trinidad at the time. I also remember a very amorous Venezuelan couple in the restaurant who had us giggling throughout the meal. I have had my share of pineapple and ham pizzas too, and recently heard that the President of Iceland had to clarify his position on these toppings after a social media storm as mentioned in this Guardian article.

10426852_10204229404165481_6720400936209253549_n — Pizza in a Restaurant in Caserta, Italy.

Fast Forward to London where I have sampled British high street pizzas, and various other independent ones along my way. My husband is Italian and obviously my relatives make fabulous homemade pizzas. My brother-in-law also has an outdoor pizza oven at home and a pop-up pizza business as a ‘hobby’. Our friends own one of the first pizzeria’s in Bedford where they are made in wood-fried ovens, which adds some authenticity to the flavour.

Being married to an Italian, I began to hear and understand the origins of pizza in Italy. Here is a fabulous link on the history of pizza, and it explains the many innovations over the centuries from plain focaccia-like breads to the current form of pizza as we know it. Pizza Margarita was the favourite baked by Raffaele Esposito for Queen Margarita of Savoy as it evoked the colours of the Italian flag – which is topped with seasoned fresh tomato sauce, mozzarella cheese and basil. Buffalo mozzarella is originally from the Campania region of Italy and is the best you will taste anywhere in the world! The buffalo mozzarella is so good…it is served whole as a delicacy, and even the local Italians enjoy and savour it.

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Over the years, I try to make unfussy pizza at home which is simply made with fresh ingredients. I usually plan in advance to get fresh yeast from the supermarket bakery counter. I don’t have a wood-fired oven, but my pizzas are good and usually get positive feedback from family and friends who have tried it. Steady on though…I am not sure I am ready for large-scale pizza making! So I have no ambitions to open my own pizzeria.

13886447_10209955593356632_4287653539853754933_n — One of my pizzas.

There are pop-ups, restaurants and take-away pizzerias all over the world. The market for pizza is thriving, and there are so many ways that it can become a viable business. I found that there are several market research reports on this, where in the UK alone – sales for pizza has revenues of £2.7Billion and there was a predictive 9.5% growth in dining-in restaurants. According to Mintel Research figures for 2016, the long term forecasts expects the industry to grow by 34% from 2016 to 2021. It is no wonder that it seems to be one of the most popular types of businesses in the food market, and in our high streets. This insight from one of Mintel’s analysts states…

“Digital innovation and authentic dishes made from simple and fresh ingredients are transforming pizza and pasta into a destination business, helped by the expansive store presence of leading players. Independent players may be hit by competition from the swelling multitude of new entrants and deli-and-dining formats that are driving more customers into store.” – Trish Caddy, Foodservice Analyst. Mintel.

My teenage son’s pizza learnt at school.

One of my own pizzas.

Stuffed Crust in Italy.

In the last four years, there has been regeneration of the high street in my neighbourhood, which also introduced some new independent Pizzeria players such as:

Nuovo Mondragone – a local independent Italian restaurant who make fabulous pizzas and also great calzones. Their main restaurant is situated in the scenic village area of Walthamstow.

Sodo Pizza Café – a London independent pizza chain who took over the building previously used for a local café (where I used to go dancing sometimes!). The pizzas are good, and I particularly like their use of social media to remind us that they have specials on during throughout the week.

Peppe’s Pop-up – Peppe has been the longest running pizzeria on our high road situated outside the local community CAMRA award winning Rose and Crown Pub. Their pizzas are amazing, and Peppe’s pizza spinning is mindboggling.

Yard Sale Pizza – And the newest pizzeria on the block is this chain in London. I haven’t had time to try it as yet but going by tweets in the neighbourhood…the pizzas look amazing and everyone is excited!

Calzone with Proscuito and Rocket Salad, Italy.

One of my best experiences of pizza dining was at the Pizza Express Jazz Club last year. It was first opened in 1969 by company founder Peter Boizot, and is still grooving strong today. As you would expect, some new and exceptional artists and musicians have played there over the years. I went to see a Motown special (yes I hear you, I know that it was not traditional Jazz!) which was upbeat and fun. The dining is intimate and cosy with dimmed lights, and the ambience as good as a traditional Jazz club. The added bonus is that they do pizza (which I didn’t have) and the service excellent too. It might be an ideal setting if you are looking for a jazz club experience after the hugely popular film of the moment…La La Land.

Motown Tribute Band.

Pizza Express Jazz Club, Soho.

Sorry…not pizza but Risotto.

Jazz Memorabilia.

I am not the only one excited about pizzas. Earlier this month, National Pizza Day was celebrated highlighting all the new independent restaurants in town, and there is also National Pizza Month celebrated all throughout the month in October in the USA. The pizza vending machine also exists! Seriously, everyone has personal pizza favourites and it really is food fit for us all to enjoy. Pizza sells itself. It will always be around for hundreds of years to come…I hope.

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This Christmas…Christmas is Love.

Published on December 23, 2016December 26, 2016 by Seema RampersadLeave a comment

It’s December and most of the world is celebrating the festive Christmas season. It truly is a magical time of year and we all will have special memories, whether it be at home, school, work and in our neighbourhoods. There is so much to enjoy, indulge and be thankful, and it is great to have time in the year ideally spent with family and friends.

I grew up in a tropical island in the Caribbean but although we did not have cold snowy weather, it was just as festive and special as in colder countries. We would look forward to choosing or asking for toys that were advertised on Television, in local shops and shopping malls. My parents actually dedicated a day for looking at the shops downtown in the capital Port-of-Spain. Schools prepared us to sing carols weeks in advance, hosted Christmas parties and performance shows that were high-points both for children and parents. In secondary school, we had a fabulous variety show at Christmas, which was a great opportunity to showcase young talent. I still remember some of the dances by students and it forms our collective memories of a time gone by.

10359918_10205015611780180_8121421033338200622_n — Homely Scene at a Christmas Show – Business Design Centre, Islington.

We had fun and special celebrations with neighbours as children too. We would go from home to home to partake of food and drink until it was too late at night – and then the next evening, we would carry on from where we left off. As teenagers in the 1980s, we also had fabulous trendy disco parties that were very popular at our house. All the teenagers would pull together to organise the Christmas party with the approval of our parents. It was very trusting of my parents to allow us to host this and my mother would again help with the cooking en masse. Everyone would work towards decorating the back yard with coconut branches for a boogie, and set up of the DJ sound system. It was very exciting. We did this for a number of years with about a hundred people attending by invitation only, and so had hired police security too. Quiet time spent with family was very special and some of my most treasured memories.

Trinidad is still very much into Christmas traditions religiously, spiritually and culturally. We have a large proportion of the population who are Christians but regardless of religious background – most of the country celebrates Christmas with home cleaning, decorations, food, drink, music and song. One unique aspect of a ‘Trini Christmas’ is Parang Music. Originally from Venezuela, it is folk music that was brought to Trinidad by migrants who were primarily of Amerindian, Spanish and African heritage. It is mainly sung in Spanish and I read that it developed from musicians and singers going from door to door and street to streets for ‘fetes’ spreading the Christmas story in song. The villagers would offer food and drink to the serenading Paranderos. This genre of music is truly amazing, upbeat and even better to hear live! I haven’t heard any live Parang since I came to London, but I still like using You Tube to listen to music (you may have noticed!). The Latin fusion beats give the music a rhythm that even though the message and lyrics may be religious – the contagious beats and joy may make you want to move your feet! The music has evolved into what is now called Soca Parang.

One of my favourite Vinyl albums is ‘Christmas is Love’ by Singing Francine which was bought by my father. Apparently the music is still played today as it contains the classics songs ‘Parang Parang’, ‘Hurray Hurrah’ and ‘Ay Ay Maria’. I heard recently in this article that vinyls have superseded downloads in the UK, and this LP would definitely be on my Christmas wish list should I go back to playing records.

Christmas in my neighbourhood in London is buoyant with activity and community spirit. For many years, the annual Lloyd Park Children’s Charity Winter Fayre was a great way to start the Christmas celebrations with Santa’s Grotto, Games, Food, and Children’s activity and market stalls. It was always festive fun but also a good fundraising initiative for local families and the community.

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This year in my neighbourhood known as the Poets’ Corner E17 area of Walthamstow, we hosted our first Christmas Market in a newly pedestrainised road layout. The stalls included products such as local honey and wax, graphic designers and artists crafts, charity groups such as La Leche League, and a community table with the funds going to a local charity called Haven House. We also had a programme of local talent such as Irish Dancers, Vestry School of Dance, Greenleaf School Choir and our own eager Poets’ Corner E17 Choir which was accompanied by the Salvation Army Band as shown our blog.

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Both of these winter events are not held in churches but they are great examples of market stalls, local businesses and community groups coming together to celebrate the wonder that is Christmas.

Christmas is obviously a time for selling, giving and gifting. On a commercial note, I briefly researched what businesses should expect at this time of year and there are a few prices on Euromonitor’s blog ‘Christmas Shopping Trends 2016’. This is informative for consumer spending patterns with the top five goods shopped for in order are: (1) Clothing and Footwear (2) Toiletries and Perfume (3) Food and Drink (4) Toys and Games (5) Books. It is also interesting to know that 86% of those persons surveyed also bought in store, and 76% shopped online. If you use the ‘Click and Collect’ shop services – you know how convenient it can be! It is nice to see there are both business cases for supporting the high street, and online businesses. My neighbourhood is also making a concerted effort to support local businesses with a free courier delivery service and shop local campaign.

Mintel market research ‘Christmas Shopping Habits 2016’ reports that November’s Black Friday, which is a predominantly American shopping day, has had an impact on UK spending and retail patterns in recent years with some shops taking part. Some shops prefer to still focus on the December sales period. Even I bought something on promotion this year for Black Friday as I got 20% of a jacket I had my eyes on.

Manchester Market

Selfridges

Oxford Street

Regents Street

Carnaby Street

E17 Art House, Walthamstow

And Christmas would not be Christmas without food and drink. I love baking at this time of year and there is something so comforting, reassuring and nostalgic about the scent of Christmas. My mother, aunties and neighbours got us into baking as children. We would help with breaking organic eggs (at the time we all had our own chickens) and then taking turns in mixing the cake ingredients. This was before my mother got a food processor which made baking easier but less of a communal fun ritual. There was something special about those cakes – not sure of it was the eggs, sugar or Trinidadian rum! I now do my own baking such as mince pies and Trinidadian Christmas Cake, but there are also Panettone around given by Italian relatives.

One of my Trinidadian Christmas Cakes

Panettone & Port

My Mince Pies

My cake for Poets’ Corner’s Christmas Fair

Christmas dishes are unique to each countries of the world but the English Christmas dishes are probably one of its’ best culinary traditions. I look forward each year to Roast Turkey, Pigs in Blanket (Sausages wrapped in Bacon), Stuffing, Yorkshire Puddings, Vegetables and Gravy with Cranberry Sauce and Bread Sauce (which I am not so keen on). Christmas Crackers are also good fun around the table! I have grown to like Christmas pudding and it is similar to Trinidadian Christmas Cake. I love spending time with family and friends at this time of year like everyone up until the New Year Celebrations. I do miss Trinidad but I hope I can spend Christmas there one day again in the future.

English Christmas Dinner

Christmas Pudding

Background Music Perhaps

Trinidadian Sorrel Drink in Local Shop

There has been so much going on in our troubled world and we are still nowhere near that elusive world peace. But still…Christmas has many and the best peaceful, thoughtful and universal human aspects to it for which we can keep hope. In these reflective lines, I have given you a flavour of my own seasonal experiences. You would have your own to share I am sure. This Christmas, my sincerest wish is for you to have a jolly time, spread the joy and peace of the season. And for the coming new year – sending another wish for a Happy 2017.

Creche at Italian Church in Bedford

Wish on Naturally Decorated Winter Tree

Christmas Wishes to You.

A Passion for Good Social Media in the Digital Age

Published on November 30, 2016December 5, 2016 by Seema RampersadLeave a comment

I just came back from seeing Jim Jarmusch’s film ‘Paterson’ where the sweet character by the same name stated “Life was perfectly fine before smartphones”. Whereby, his equally sweet girlfriend’s response is “But it makes things easier.”

This resonated with me as I recalled older means of communication and how life was about 15 years ago when the internet was not at its’ current maturity. Telephones calls, written letters, snail mail, printed news and tradition media was the norm then. Fast-forward and things have definitely shifted with the exponential growth of social media in the digital age. We now live in a world of citizen news, social networks, digital connections, push media – where we have to be vigilant to distinguish what is trusted content or misinformation. The broadcast model is truly smashed! The smartphone is changing the way we use traditional media, with the young using internet sources and less so by the older population using tradition media such as radio, magazines and newspapers according to this eMarketer graph. The younger crowd are going for Instagram and Snapchat and the older crowd to Facebook and LinkedIn. The share of the market by demographics is a clear indicator of who and how we are using these.

What about me? It has been about ten years since I started using social media but as a librarian and information profession, it is a skill set that we have been evolving naturally over a long time. We still are excellent at consuming, digesting, regurgitating, classifying, cataloguing and disseminating information for sharing, awareness and future use. Information overload is no big deal for us as we sort the “wheat from the chaff”. Don’t get me wrong! I tend to share a load of rubbish myself. I frequently explain to people that I handle serious, factual and hard-core information – so, social media is lightweight and therefore easy for me. What I try to do with social media is stay informed, self-regulate my content, be respectful and simply entertain you and myself in the process. I love sharing music, foodie stuff, art, photos and lots of fun things.

10551121_10204176787970109_1405345730516412578_n — Endlessly… Content is King.

Now let’s look at the show-stopping current figures for social media platforms. The market research publisher Key Note summarizes “that in the United Kingdom alone, the UK population have become intertwined into the daily lives of many consumers, facilitating what has been described by observers as the digital revolution. Social as a phenomenon is both immediate and ubiquitous, making it a compelling, and potentially viral, marketing platform for both large and small companies”. The figures for users are phenomenal too with Facebook having 1.55 billion users active per month, You Tube 1 billion, Instagram and LinkedIn 400 million each, Twitter had 320 million and Google+ had 300 million (but currently falling off a cliff). There are important and valid reasons for using social media, such as for the following:

Communication Tool
Customer Engagement
Product Development
Increase Revenue and Sales
Increase Brand Recognition and Credibility
Grow an Online Community
Be Transparent and Trustworthy
Word-of-Mouth Recommendations (such as our likes, comments, feedback)

Source: Wikipedia Brian Solis and JESS3 -theconversationprism.com

Social media makes businesses as smart and connected as the world we live in. But you might have guessed that my personal favourite uses of social media are for current awareness, news, hot topics (a Knowledge Management term), to connect with people and to stay in touch with family, friends and acquaintances. Some of the regular activities we conduct on smartphones are listed as:

Read or send emails 60%
Visit social networks 52%
Browse websites for personal interests 42%
Download apps for free 39%
Online banking 38%
Watch video clips on sites such as You Tube 35%
Purchase goods or services online 34%
Download/stream music over the internet 24%
Use instant messaging services such as BBM 20%
Watch catch-up TV 14%

Source: eMarketer – note ages 15+; in the past 3 months Source: Ipsos MORI, “Tech Tracker: Q3 2015,” Sep 2, 2015.

If you are connected on social media to me – you would know that I am a prolific social media user. I am quite unique (but similar to other business librarians!) in that I have managed information on some HEAVY subjects (as I say…A to Z of subjects) and these are built into my psyche, consciousness and allows me endless mindfulness to share information and knowledge. This uniqueness is enhanced and highlighted as I work at the British Library, whose corporate motto is ‘The World’s Knowledge’. Enough said – there really is no stopping us here. There is enough soul, momentum and forward thinking content to keep us on our toes, fingertips and therefore to share constantly on multiple social media channels.

33401_1465356284084_2370720_n — Connectivity of Social Media

You may have noticed that I am passionate about life and find immense pleasures in sharing the best of humanity, good work and love that I encounter in my simple life. I would like to proclaim that I am a social media champion. I had spoken seriously at CILIP almost 10 years ago on ‘Strategic Library Services – Global Collaboration and Business Benefits’ on the finer points of using collaborative technologies. I also spoke with a panel of health professionals for Social Media Week 2012 on ‘Collaborating on Cancer’ at City Hall London. I have also been delivering with my colleague Neil Infield our ‘Social Media Masterclass’ Workshop and Webinar at the Business & IP Centre, where we aim to demonstrate the various social media platforms and give you tips on how to use them effectively to engage customers to increase sales and brand awareness.

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As I conclude, the sheer speed that social media is moving in the world means that you MUST be active in using these to be au fait with all the functionality and features…or you will get left behind. In the short space of time, we have seen Google+’s launch to its current demise, Instagram grow, Twitter fade, Facebook saturate. I am still playing catch-up with Snapchat, What’s Up and whatever else will come our way.

The sheer speed that social media is moving in the world means that you MUST be active in using these to be au fait with all the functionality and features…or you will get left behind. …On Social Media.

Before these media shifts in communication, Sean Williams writes in ‘Connecting in the Social-Media Age’ U-Wire (University of Utah) – “people had to pay for expensive long distance calls. Social media makes it easier to send messages to thousands of people at the same time, all at no cost”. I remember being a foreign student and not being able to call my parents in Trinidad for months on end, and when I relied upon letters by airmail! This is no longer the case. With smartphones in the palm of our hands – the key is in the convenience. It is the game changer.

Social Media – Game Change

There is no letting up in technological advances and we must continue to use these platforms for businesses, but also for social good. Some irresponsible politicians deliberately choose to divide us and appeal to negative attitudes and menial behaviour. We must not let that deter us from all that is good and positive about social media. Personally – I think it will be quite boring if we were to talk about business or politics all the time. We can aim to continue to discuss our connected world, deepen our knowledge on issues and find innovative solutions to real problems. So what are we waiting for…let’s get on with it and have some fun!

1795148_10203744136914103_636351373860006916_o — Share the Passion!

A Summer adventure in New York

Published on September 29, 2016October 2, 2016 by Seema RampersadLeave a comment

Sometimes when I read The Guardian’s Q&A question What is your earliest memory?, I am surprised that people remember moments as late as when they were three or four years old. On this, I have a crisp memory and remember symmetry in dreams when I was a toddler. I am not sure if this is unusual. Apart from that, one of my earliest childhood memories is telling family “I want to go to New York!”. My mother would attest to that. I always dreamt of travelling as a child, and New York was on top of my list. I’ve never made it until now in my 40’s, and this was also my first ever visit to the USA.

Growing up in Trinidad in the 1970’s and 1980’s, you really could not avoid being seduced and attracted by the media images of the USA. We had exposure to numerous American television programmes and film, such as, Sesame Street (aired morning and afternoon), Laverne and Shirley, Saturday Night Fever, Grease, Taxi, Working Girl, etc. There are far too many other songs, films and books that represent the country and cities. New York to this day is still tops and will always be a magnet for these creative outputs. Here are some of my highlights of my recent visit ‘across the pond’ with family this summer.

My first impression at the airport was a bit of apprehension for being fingerprinted and photographed at the immigration desk, which seems like a normal Home Land Security procedure for visitors. However, trepidation was quickly replaced with genuine awe on the first sight of the city as we approached on a Go Link shuttle bus from New Jersey. There was an amazing moon above the night skyline of skyscrapers in Manhattan – I couldn’t help thinking of the film tune Arthur’s Theme with the line ‘…Caught between the moon and New York City’. As there was traffic, our shuttle driver also took us for an extended drive around the buzzing and luminous Saturday nightlife. We saw famous landmarks such as the Lincoln Centre, Times Square, Central Park and recognisable famous streets.

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Day One – Close to the hotel was the impressive art deco Chrysler building, and it is breath-taking to see this many times throughout the next week. For Sunday brunch, we tried Scotty’s Diner on Lexington Avenue. It was very busy around 10:00am with people having breakfast, which I presume was a Sunday morning tradition. It was interesting to observe the dishes being served such as French toast and pancakes with a variety of toppings. The portions are definitely bigger there! Therefore I stuck to a muffin in preparation for the big lunch that came later at friends.

Next was the trip to Queens to visit family friends and it was an adventure from the start. The walk to Penn Station was about seven blocks but not far away to walk. Again, it was amazing to see the shops at ground level but also to look up at the amazing architecture. It was a fabulous surprise to see on route one of the world’s most famous and tallest buildings – The Empire State Building.

It was the first time I used the city’s public transport. The Long Island Rail train ticket was reasonably priced to take us to Queens and seemed to run quite frequently for a Sunday. It was packed with young people heading to the Babylon Festival and we had a friendly couple who sat next to us. The young man even checked his app to tell us when our train was due to arrive in Sutphin Boulevard. The station exit that we came out had an amazing tribute to Jazz Legends of Queens. Apparently, New Orleans may be the birthplace of Jazz…but Queens is proud to proclaim that it is “the home of Jazz”. There is even a Queens Jazz Trail. I also noticed that ‘On the Road’ author, Jack Kerouac, was also a past resident.

It was also great to spend time with very dear friends and to see the suburban homes and gardens in the neighbourhood. There was a Punjabi celebration in a park closeby and according to Wikipedia, Queens is now an ethnically mixed community.

Queens.

Tropical Blooms.

Jazz Legends Tribute in Queens.

Day Two – We decided to use the buses and to walk around Little Italy, Chinatown and the Lower East Side of Manhattan. There were no location plotters in the buses, so you had to play attention for your stop which was considerably easy due to the street grid system. I love that about New York! I think this systematic urban planning for a new city has fabulous benefits and must have been exciting for the generations that made the modern city.

As we stopped near Bleecker Street, there was street art that resonated the social and cultural heritage, including the splendid punk band The Ramones, and others leading all the way to Little Italy. Little Italy is a must to visit, especially if like me, you have Italian connections or relatives. This is where Italian migrants settled, and although now they may have moved out of the area – it really was incredible to see the sights, story and to imagine what life was like then. Little Italy also runs parallel to Chinatown, and therefore it was interesting to see the similarities with another migrant community.

Little Italy is a must to visit, especially if like me, you have Italian connections or relatives. This is where Italian migrants settled, and although now they may have moved out of the area – it really was incredible to see the sights, story and to imagine what life was like then. …On Little Italy.

Italian & Irish Migrants Tribute.

Artist on Street Art.

Little Italy.

The Ramones.

Little Italy.

When in Little Italy…Meal.

Italian cafe.

Chinatown.

Next was a walk to the shore through the financial district past Wall Street. The financial district had banners up boasting that it was the Best in the World’s Capital Market. As I walked through with my business information hat on – I also thought of the Wall Street Journal and NASDAQ.

Financial Market Banner.

Wall Street District.

A short walk away is the station for the Staten Island Ferry, which is free to use and runs every 30 minutes. It is interesting to read why it is free now, as it wasn’t always free. The wind was blustery on the ferry but the views of the city and the Statue of Liberty are breath-taking and worth a fortune for a free ride!

Statue of Liberty.

View from the Staten Island Ferry.

Staten Island Ferry and Views.

After the round trip back to the Manhattan shore, we walked up to the 9/11 Memorial. As I approached the memorial, my exhilarating holiday mood changed to sombre and reflection. Taking in the scale of Ground Zero and remembering the television images on that terribly shocking and sad day kept crossing my mind. It is surreal, but also strangely connections you to those tragic moments when history changed. I was there for the thousands of people who lost their lives on that day. It was both a pilgrimage, and a duty to pay my respect at the 9/11 Memorial.

9/11 Memorial Flight 93.

Ground Zero.

9/11 Site.

That day ended with a last walk along Broadway all the way to 37^th street. It took about two hours but it was fabulous to go past the buildings, the African Burial Ground, Dean and De Luca Deli (from the film Manhattan), various shops and New Yorkers. It was nice just to observe people going about their normal business and leisure activities. It is fabulous to look up at the very tall buildings as you walk along the pavements on the ground. Again, I kept thinking of the people who had designed and planned the city in the past and how fulfilling it must have been to create this amazing city with towering architecture.

Dean and De Luca Deli, Broadway.

Dean and De Luca Deli.

National Museum of the American Indian.

African Burial Ground.

Day Three – Having worked in libraries and information centres, the next day I went to see the United Nations (UN) Headquarters from the exterior with it’s famous block architecture and international flags. You can get free tickets to see the visitors centre but time was short to spend a long time there. For many years and even now, I still use UN publications and their website for information. I have also blogged at work about their Year of Pulses 2016.

Next we walked along 42^nd Street past the Woodstock Hotel where apparently my entrepreneur grandfather stayed on a business trip in the 1950s. And then we walked to 41^st Street towards the New York Public Library (NYPL) on Library Walk. There was a great build-up of awe on the street approaching the library with plaques on the ground aptly designed with heart-warming and uplifting proses, excerpts and quotes on books, libraries, knowledge and information. The Library was close to our hotel and it inspired me a few times that week.

United Nations.

New York Public Library.

The NYPL building itself is designed in an European classic architecture and built on a spot that was once a water reservoir. I only had time to see one of the reading rooms but spent some time in the library’s shop too. It was very similar to the British Library’s shop and I bought some souvenirs. One tip – the NYPL (Twitter @nypl) has a fabulous Twitter feed that you should follow!

Just behind the library was the fabulous Bryant Park. My first visit was at lunchtime and it was fabulous to see the park being used during the lunch break by workers, people playing chess or just enjoying the warm summer outdoors. There was also live music one evening, and it was really awesome to take it all in with lofty buildings surrounding the park.

Ground Plaques on Library Way.

LIbrary Way leading to The New York Public Library.

Chess Players in Bryant Park.

Chess Anyone?

Times Square was a close walk away and good to see during the day and night. Coincidently, there was recently a BBC Two ‘New York – America’s Busiest City’ series that explained that Times Square initially was home to the New York Times, hence its’ name. The advertising boards have been a part of its’ peppered history and seedy days, but has been recovered to be a focal point for digital advertising boards, news feeds for advertisers and live news broadcasts. Day and night – it seemed to be a tourist hotspot.

Bryant Park at Lunchtime.

Listening to Live Music in Bryant Park.

Grand Central Station.

Times Square.

Day Four – We took the subway this time to Queens and again it was an opportunity to use public transport. Grand Central Station was not far and as you enter – you are impressed by the décor, the lights, astronomical ceiling mural and station elegance. There is an Oyster Bar apparently too, but I did not get a chance to see it. The journey to Queens was my first time on the subway and it is different, as well as similar, to the London Underground and other underground networks I have used. You literally go from deep underground to way overhead above ground rail tracks! New Yorkers were happy to help confirm and to give me directions. Knowing me, I still had time to look out for poetry, art and buskers.

I was meeting friends again and was picked up from Liberty station in Queens. It is the place in New York where the West Indies meets the East Indies. The shops represent a multicultural community – the melting pot that Trinidadian Angela Hunte wrote about in the song ‘Empire State of Mind’ sung by Jay-Z and Alicia Keys. The food that my friends cooked or bought were on par to that in the Caribbean. It seemed like a home from home to the Trinidadian community there.

The shops represent a multicultural community – the melting pot that Trinidadian Angela Hunte wrote about in the song ‘Empire State of Mind’ sung by Jay-Z and Alicia Keys. The food that my friends cooked or bought was on par to that in the Caribbean. It seemed like a home from home to the Trinidadian community there.

Lovely Busker at Foulton Station.

Rockaway Boulevard overhead tracks.

PTO – Poem on a Metroline Ticket.

Grand Central Station.

Day Five – After a fleeting visit on the bus to the Museum of Modern Art and a walk to Central Park, I was excited to dedicate some time to seeing the park and to having a Hot Dog! The park was created for the public health and wellbeing for the residents of the city. It is also fascinating to see in the BBC Two documentary the number of animal and plants species that have to be cared for and the enormous amount of work that needs to be carried out to maintain a park that size. The park is beautiful with lush green trees, picnic areas, street entertainers, space etc. I particularly liked the ‘Literary Walk’ with statues of favourite dead people such as Christopher Columbus, William Shakespeare and Robert Burns. The park is too big to see even in one day, but it is a must to see the contrast between the green spaces and the skyscrapers that surround it. I also had a Hot Dog by the famous Nathan Hot Dog company, as recommended by one of the park guides.

Central Park meets city skyscrapers.

Robert Burns statue.

Shakespeare in Literary Walk.

Fountain in Central Park.

Later that day we took a train to Mount Vernon in Westchester County, which passed through Harlem and over the Hudson River. I couldn’t help thinking of the negative reputation the Bronx had in the past, but ironically and more positively the music, dance (e.g. Harlem Shuffle and Break Dancing) and art that it inspires. Apparently it is still a place of contrasting communities with gentrification creeping into areas that were once neglected parts of Harlem. On arrival in Mount Vernon on the other hand, it seemed more affluent and picturesque. The best of both worlds, it is not far from Manhattan and within reach to the city for commuters.

Nathan’s Hot Dog in Central Park.

Street Art – Love.

Summer Blooms – Mount Kernon.

Day Six – I had also dedicated a day to shopping at Macy’s. It was nice to spend quality time with my mother shopping. I didn’t go on a silly spending spree but it was still kind of my mother to buy me a dress in the summer sale. It was interesting to see a ‘sale checker’ in Macy’s. I haven’t seen this facility for shoppers anywhere before. It was great for checking prices when items get mixed up or are reduced further in the sales. It was also nice of the sales staff to offer us the Charity Weekend Card at $5.00, which allowed us to have a further 25% off the price of purchases. I was really pleased with the final sales and discounted prices. So the New York shopping sales is not a myth, even with the current sterling to US dollar exchange rate.

Macy’s.

Price Checkers in Macy’s.

My lovely mother and I.

I rarely use Taxis in London, but I used the iconic Yellow Taxis with my mother. There were lots of them around, reasonably priced compared to London and are frequently used in Manhattan. The fierce competition between Uber and these traditional taxis on the road is also mentioned in the BBC Two documentary.

I also liked the SMART City initiatives and innovations I saw such as the street platforms for checking your ‘on the go’ connections, device charging points etc. There are also digital boards to keep New Yorkers and neighbourhoods informed.

SMART Dining at Newark Airport.

Digital City.

The most negative aspect of the visit was the high quantity of homeless people in the city. Sadly, homelessness is everywhere in First and Third World countries. But I hope that they are cared for by the organisations responsible everywhere, especially in countries with cold winters.

On reflection, New York is one of those places where you just have to visit! I imagine it will be interesting whatever time of year you want to go, and there are many museums and shopping that would be better in the colder seasons. It is still one of the world’s greatest cities, and I hope to visit it again another time to have another bite of that Big Apple.

Festivals and the Living is Easy

Published on June 30, 2016September 1, 2016 by Seema Rampersad2 Comments

I have just returned from the International Festival of Business 2016 in Liverpool. This was an amazing opportunity for the Business and IP Centre to coordinate business advice clinics with regional Business & IP Centres in the network in the ‘Business Advisor Lounge’ at the newly opened National Exhibition Centre. The centre officially opened the same day as my visit by Queen Elizabeth II HRH, and I was told by colleagues that there was a lot of excitement having such a high profile respected world leader visit earlier that same day.

I was quite happy to go back to Liverpool again after visiting Anfield Football Stadium on the outskirts of Liverpool for a Euro 2000 football qualifier with Wales against Italy in 1998, as the Welsh Millennium Stadium was under construction. I didn’t see much of the city then, but I recently went back to for work for the day to Liverpool Centre Library to meet their staff at the Business & IP Centre Liverpool. As a city, Liverpool has benefited in regeneration from a lot of investment in the public realm, and it looks shiny and fabulous on the two sunny days I was there. There is old architecture mixed with the new, Beatles tributes everywhere, the Mersey River, Albert Docks and attractive pedestrianised shopping areas. It is definitely a city worth visiting!

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Liverpool

The International Festival of Business had a few highlights for me:

The Business & IP Centre held an Inspiring Entrepreneurs event on ‘Going Global’ with an excellent panel of entrepreneurs with some practical insight and tips for taking your business global.

I attended a talk by the Global Visionary Women’s Network Convention with motivational speaker Queen Naa Tso Soyoo I from Ghana. Her talk and story on transformational leadership was interesting and passionate. I particularly liked her point that regal leaders had to earn their status rather than expect it.

PricewaterhouseCoopers had a stall at the festival to the theme ‘The Next Chapter’ as it was in my full view all day – and kept reminding me of my time working for them. When I worked at PwC, there was a good-hearted joke that you can go anywhere in the world and still encounter a PwC experience or meet someone with a connection with them!

The UK Trade and Investment and HSBC both had massive presence in the exhibition space for attracting inward investment, advice for exporting and creating business connections. Whilst I was there, the theme for the festival last week was ‘Energy and Environment’. It was interesting to see the innovative productions on display and the eco-friendly and green initiatives.

As I was working in the Business Advice Lounge to give information to businesses – I was unable to attend other events on simultaneously. However, it was a brilliant opportunity to collaborate with our partners in Business & IP Centre Sheffield and with The Intellectual Property Office (IPO).

I have just told you a brief review on a serious business festival, but I am going to use this opportunity to write about the Summer music and arts festivals bloom in the United Kingdom. My childhood friends would remember that I love music, dancing, listening to the radio, going to live concerts and shows. It was this very same vice that was one of the attractions for me coming to London in the first place to study. Think of the heady 1980’s with Live Aid and MTV that were broadcast across the globe – Trinidad & Tobago never missed a thing! And so I was seduced by this global pop culture.

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Walthamstow Garden Party.

Festivals are big business and ubiquitous in the last 12 years. This summer, I saw many festival articles, poster advertisements in the London Underground and promoted on the radio. There are a few articles on the industry that have caught my eyes. The Guardian Newspaper informs that the industry attracts foreign visitors and that overseas visitors spent £852 a visit. The article also refers to an industry report ‘The Real Cost of Festivals’ by Parcelhero and states that 40% of British went to one festival and we collectively spent £2.1 Billion Pounds.

There is always excitement in who is going to headline the main stage at Glastonbury to rock out the crowd, and it seems that the line up of artistes is crucial in this competitive market. The line-up and offerings must be attractive to sustain its clientele.

Coachella, the biggest festival in the world, sells 198,000 tickets and pulls in $84 million for the Californian event. The UK’s largest festival – Glastonbury – has a turnover of £37m but sees profits of just £86,000: less than 50p per ticket.

Source: ‘The Real Cost of Festivals’ by Parcelhero.

At work, I also have access to the Mintel market intelligence reports that I used to research the industry. Mintel’s ‘Music Festivals’ which states that festivals and concerts have been the fastest growing area of leisure spending over the last five years to 2015. There is also a fun and informative article by a member of staff on The IPO’s blog on Festivals.

Locally, I have participated in the Walthamstow Garden Party, a community festival which is hosted by the Barbican Centre in London. The Barbican with the local council and community groups ( arts, artists, craft-makers and businesses) coordinate the festival. They all have been successful in delivering a fine show with headliners such as Tiken Jah Fakoly, Femi Kuti, The Brand New Heavies and The Asian Dub Foundation (due July 2016).

As the Fundraising and Events Chair at The Lloyd Park Centre – we have hosted the Mini-Garden Party offering as a family friendly space. The garden party is great for showcasing the newly award winning park redevelopments (including the skate park and William Morris Gallery), ‘Useful and Beautiful’ creative local arts and crafts, fitness groups, real food market, poetry, music, DJs, disco and many other businesses. Personally, I think it has been successful with visitor numbers at 30000 per annum. The organisers have given the opportunity for the Barbican, Waltham Forest Council and local groups to collaborate, and get to know each other better to put on a fantastic community festival which is open and free for all. Yes…I said free!

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Jazz FM’s Love Supreme Festival.

Love Supreme Festival is held in Glynde and is hosted by Jazz FM. The name is inspired by John Coltrane’s ‘Love Supreme’. Glynde is not to be confused with Glyndebourne that is famous for opera but you do have to pass through there to get to the festival. This festival is aimed at the family friendly market and is in a very scenic field in Sussex. I have been a fan of Jazz FM for a while, as my ex-colleagues will tell you. Three years ago I tried the station’s competition for festival tickets for fun …and I actually won two free camping tickets!! There was no way I couldn’t go! I ended up going with two friends and our children.

For Love Supreme, I normally pitch a tent (glamping is too expensive for me!) with the help of my dear friends. This is my third year there and I am looking forward to the Funky Sensation Party on the Friday night. It is nice to be there in the inaugural night when campers are settling in before the busyness of the next two days. It is pure pleasure to see people filling in the Arena tent and dancing to Jazz, Soul and Hip Hop (correct me if I am wrong please). People dancing, the energy and movement remind me of Trinidadian Fetes or Parties where everyone just want to dance!

People dancing, the energy and movement remind me of Trinidadian Fetes or Parties where everyone just want to dance! …on Love Supreme Festival

I have been listening to Jazz for a few years before the digital age. Listening to radio stations on apps and digital broadcasting will enlighten jazz lovers to the biographies of the artistes, history of the song and allows you to share your (impulsive) experiences on social media. This is a very powerful immersive experience, so I am constantly trying to resist sharing songs – but have little control as you may noticed. I am sure you have experienced this too. I have written about this user experience in a blog post for work ‘Rock Stars to Classical Orchestras’ at the British Library. I think this must make me a fan, groupie or in this case – a ‘Jazzhead’. I am already trying to coordinate and organise which acts I am looking forward to seeing at which stage in the festival and at what time, so that I can see and not miss them!

Feel it in your heart and feel it in your soul
Let the music take control
We’re going to party, limin’, fiesta, forever…

‘All Night Long’ by Lionel Ritchie.

One point that I would like to make is that festivals are fabulous outlets for businesses. I love all the various international food stalls being a foodie, fashion stalls, bookshops, coffee shops, bars etc. I understand there is going to be a new beauty salon and banquet style dining on offer this year. This must be a great opportunity for businesses with so many festivals in the United Kingdom. I would like to try another festival another time such as Glastonbury, Latitude and Womad. Womad is extra special to me as The British Library has recorded it for over 30 years.

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Soon I will be there, lost in the music and experience with good friends (especially in the chaotic times of Brexit!). I hope you will forgive me for this self-indulgence. It is one of my guiltiest pleasures and so I must try to behave. My only wish is that we’ll have some sunshine there.

On the beat with Community Action

Published on May 30, 2016September 3, 2016 by Seema Rampersad2 Comments

It takes a Village to raise a Child – African Proverb

I was born and grew up in a village in Trinidad but I was certainly no country bumpkin! The village, Dow Village, was smallish in size but mighty in activity and life.

We were very busy with several multi-cultural, multi-religious, traditional and modern activities, events and celebrations. As I look back at those early childhood years of village life on a Caribbean Island, I realise that we had a special community energy and participation in many aspects. We had bazaars and raffles to raise funds for various initiatives towards sports days, construction of buildings, treatment for unwell villagers, the Temple’s fund, local schools, re-enactment of Ramlila, Diwali Celebrations, Christmas, Eid-al-Fitr, Holi (Phagwah), street and house parties, and other events (please let me know if I forgot any!). Some of the activities we held would entail selling fresh food, tea parties, Bar-B-Ques, Curry-Qs, playing games, and various entertainment ranging from sound systems to live music (such as tassa drums, Indian Orchestral to local Rock Bands). The village then was busy with life – it never felt boring or backwards.

Residents left their doors unlocked and gates open with low crime levels. Everybody knew everybody and it was used to our advantage – to build our community, to watch out for each other, to have pride in our neighbourhood. There were bad points occasionally with fallouts but generally my village has stood the test of time. Up to now, I love my neighbours in Dow Village and I am sure that they love me too. We experienced everything from life to death and we can still touch base with each other wherever we are in the world with modern technology. Some of us may have left our villages for the wider world but David Rudder and Carl Jacobs sing in the Calypso ‘Trini to De Bone’:

“There’s no place like home some people say
Though some have to leave to make their way
But in their hearts I know their destiny
To come home and big up dey country” – Trini to De Bone.

I came to study in London over twenty-five years ago and lived in Hornsey and Tottenham initially. I used to hang out in Holloway, Highbury, Stoke Newington and Islington. It was interesting from the offset to experience so many cultures, tribes, languages and communities in North London. These ranged from North Londoners, Cockneys, Post-Punks, Irish, Greek Cypriots, Turkish, Kurdish, Nigerians, West Indians and lots more other ethnicities. It was a new melting pot for me to take in.

I eventually ended up in Walthamstow and was sceptical to move to East London as I had grown used to North and North East London. However, the timing was right again. Walthamstow still had affordable family homes, green spaces, and convenient travel links and a community feel about it. Moving to live here was a very good decision in the long term, and so the community story continues.

Walthamstow was recorded c. 1075 as Wilcumestowe (“the Place of Welcome”) and in the Domesday Book of 1086 as Wilcumestou. It does lie geographically on the edges of London and was a route between London and Waltham Abbey. Today that welcoming community spirit is still alive and kicking in Walthamstow. There are many remarkable things about the town and a few of them include:

The famous Walthamstow Market which is renowned for being the longest street market in Europe. I understand it has changed over the years but you can still get great bargains.

William Morris Gallery in gorgeous Lloyd Park, which was once the home of William Morris, world renowned designer, craftsman, poet, writer and socialist. His creations, ethos and influence are still relevant and inspiring today.

The Village area has old buildings and quaint houses which make you wonder about the past and the people who lived there. There lies too the Vestry House Museum which has permanent and temporary exhibitions, a community room and beautiful garden. I have been on guided walks with Joanne Moncrieff‘s Westminster Walks, who tells you all the facts about the buildings and area to bring them alive.

WGP-LPC2015 — Storytelling by Mike at the Walthamstow Garden Party, The Lloyd Park Centre.

There are two community initiatives that I actively contribute to: The Lloyd Park Centre charity and the Poets’ Corner Residents Associations. Since 2004 at The Lloyd Park Centre, I have been a Management Committee and Fundraising and Events Group member. After many years thinking of helping in a local charity, the timing was right to start. I was inspired to get involved when I heard that this organisation was formed by volunteers in the 1980’s and still depended on community participation in its constitution, operation and strategic direction. It is also the lifetime commitment of inspiring Pauline Thomas MBE. The organisation’s history and commitment over the years is very admirable. In my time there, it has moved from portable cabins to an environmentally purpose-built designed building, and its financial turnover has doubled. I have seen it grow from strength to strength in offering children and family services such as day care, holiday clubs, baby clinics, Dad’s Club, Twins Club, Grandparents support, Autism support, outreach and a franchise of Dolly Parton’s Imagination Mobile Library to a deprived community.

I have volunteered consistently for all these years and have been very ‘hands on’ in attending regular meetings, helping when and where I can with my skills, knowledge and most of all…my time. Committee meetings are not so daunting as you are briefed and guided by the other committee members who are already there. As time goes by, I have learnt from the organisation and challenged myself to activities that I wasn’t aware I could do – for example, I cooked for 200 people in their kitchen for a fundraiser! Generally I plan, organise and run events in my own time and all other activities that a local busy charity requires. I have to hone in on my organisational skills as this is not my day job and from my use of social media – you can see what I get up too! As with everything, nothing stays the same and the organisation is constantly evolving, improving and taking on new challenges.

I am proud that when I worked at PricewaterhouseCoopers I won a financial award for volunteering as part of their Community Affairs programme (Hello David!). They have a long history of Corporate Social Responsibility. I also have won the charity’s Volunteer and Fundraiser award a few times. However, it means a lot more than that to me. Over the years, my volunteering was a team effort to raise money and my goals really were to give support, help as much as I can and to be engaged in an organisation that has made a huge contribution to the local community and families for over 30 years. The last 12 years have been fun, satisfying and helped me developed outside of my day job and profession. It has relit that community flame that I had as a child in Trinidad.

Child is the Father of Man – William Wordsworth

I was made redundant about four years ago when I needed to re-focus my energies and give back to the place where I live once again. Luckily I had the time to volunteer in my neighbourhood residents associations when we were planning our London 2012 ‘Milimpics’ street party. We have our own Poets’ Corner blog and social media channels that have been going since 2012. We have since rebranded to Poets’ Corner E17, as there are streets named after Poets and we are on a corner. We have been constantly engaged in transformational regeneration initiatives that are happening on our doorsteps!

We are also very keen to support local businesses and love our high street. I have seen derelict shops being taken over as pop-up shops to permanent retail outlets. In the last few months – there are several new high street shops emerging such as coffee shops, art shop, craft beer, chocolate shop, giftware, Italian deli and hairdressers. Local venues Ye Olde Rose and Crown, The Bell Pub and Mirth Marvel Maud are used as meeting social places and also are at the heart of the nightlife. The last five years have been amazing, heart-warming, social and definitely local.

10369605_10203719881467732_1345985400225628703_n — Little Free Library Project – in Poets’ Corner.

We have continued the spirit of London 2012 Olympics with many activities including an annual street party simultaneous as the national Big Lunch celebrations, spring cleaning (which has made me obsessive about dumped rubbish and litter!), crime-watching, Halloween Party, Puppet Show and fabulous Christmas Carolling on the street. We have also taken part in the magnificent E17 Art Trail which has made us work collaboratively to display Estate Agents boards as ‘Poets for Sale’ with poems in our front gardens. For the 2015 project, we created ‘I want to tell you a story…’ stories on places on Walthamstow. Residents Barry and Lesley Coidan have been the driving force for a lot of these initiatives and deserve special recognition and appreciation. Before I forget to mention – we also have two Little Free Libraries in the neighbourhood, which started in Walthamstow for the United Kingdom (original idea is from the USA).

Why am I telling you this? I enjoy taking part in community events. I also think there is a special energy that I have been lucky to experience in my homeland of Trinidad many years ago, and here now in Walthamstow. It is very fulfilling and reassuring that we have neighbours and people in the community that we can rely on, pull together and to contribute to our society on wider urban issues, such as crime prevention, sustainability, environment, economy, culture, festivities and general awesomeness. You just have to remember the terrible London riots of 2011 to recall what it is like when neighbourhoods fall apart and communities are at threat when you take your eyes of the ball.

I don’t have my own business but if I did – it would be based on the arts, crafts or food in the community. Volunteering has made me certain about that and myself. With Utopian and socially ethical views, I would feel compelled to consider where I live, the people it is going to affect, how we can work together to make our part of the world better for ourselves but also for my immediate neighbours.

Anyway, I really love taking part in the fun, and all the exciting energy and buzz of Walthamstow. We are celebrating our next Brazilian theme street party soon in tuned to the Brazil 2016 Olympics. And so the beat goes on, and on.

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