CECI Cooperation Program Offers Students Hands-on Experience
Webinar with CECI: Remote Volunteer Cooperation Program with Longo Faculty of Business
Author: Renata Comin, Fashion Management Postgraduate student, Humber College.
Leadership, project management, teamwork, self-management, and intercultural skills were some of the main capacities that Humber students had the chance to develop during their assignments as remote volunteers during CECI’s (Centre for International Studies and Cooperation) Cooperation Program, this past summer.
On November 22nd, Humber Global organized a 1-hour webinar for more than 20 international students giving them a chance to learn more about the program and volunteer experience through Fashion Management postgraduate alumna Renata Comin. They were also presented to CECI’s work in Canada and Bolivia by members from the organization itself - Laurence Dubuc-Valentine, CECI Canada Youth Programming Officer, and Maria Crespo, CECI Bolivia Knowledge and Learning Manager & Volunteer Coordinator.
CECI’s volunteer cooperation program started at Humber as an initiative by Fashion Management Program Coordinator Rossie Kadiyska. The program aims to improve the economic and social well-being of 2 million of the world’s poorest and most vulnerable people, including at least 1.5 million women and young women. Their program offers several different ways to volunteer – from online to in-person options. Students can be recruited to work from 3 to 12 months developing many different roles such as Fashion Design Officers. During the webinar, Renata explained the main activities developed during the program as a Fashion Design Officer herself, such as the development of a social media strategy and customer journey analysis for CECI’s Bolivia partner organization RED Oepaic, which represents thousands of artisans and aims to preserve their Bolivian cultural identity. Renata also shared the experience of Bhaswati Saikia, another Fashion Management student at Humber. Bhaswati was able to design a collection of luxury accessories for MISTURA, the partner organization that she worked with during the volunteer mandate, formed by a group of Bolivian entrepreneurs and designers who aim to promote national materials and design. The webinar was an amazing experience to promote CECI’s work and Humber students’ placement activities, presenting itself as an opportunity for future volunteers.
CECI’s Partner Organization – MISTURA brick and mortar store
RED Oepaic products, CECI Bolivia partner organization