BMG – Building Stronger Communities

With the arrival of summer, and especially a summer that everyone has been anticipating for the past two years, the BMG team decided to take a break from its Program & Services.

However, the team is taking advantage of this opportunity to "Connect" and "Engage" with other like-minded organizations for the purpose of "Building Stronger Communities" in order to create Pathways for the "Newcomer" and "International Student" communities to reach their full potential in Canada.

Here is what the team accomplished this month.

1.??????Review of the first half of 2022 and preparation for the second half

On Sunday, July 17, the team gathered for a Strategic Review session to go over the first half of 2022. The team was very pleased with its performance in the first half. To avoid resting on its laurels and becoming complacent, the team held in-depth discussions and identified key action items for the second half of 2022.

2.??????IWB Event - Women Empowerment - Social Impact Diversity & Entrepreneurship - July 15

On July 15, the BMG team of Dan Lawrence, Vaideh Bhagati, and Dinesh Sharma attended the IWB event. A highly successful event was held at Toronto City Hall, with participants from various industries, women entrepreneurs, newcomers, and so on. BMG is gaining a strong community partner in IWB. While IWB focuses on women entrepreneurs, the BMG team supplements them by providing programs and services for their socioeconomic development.

3.??????Networking Happy Hour - Toronto Chapter of Punjabi Chamber of Commerce event - July 20

The Punjabi Chamber of Commerce (PCC) is a global community of Punjabi professionals with the goal of strengthening overall community development by focusing on the three Cs: community building, capacity building, and capital building.

The BMG team, represented by Vaidehi Bhagat and Dinesh Sharma, attended the Happy Hour Networking event organized by the PCC Toronto Chapter and met professionals from various backgrounds who share the same vision of supporting one another as we build the community.

Professionals from financial institutions, community organizations, and the business community were present at the well-attended event. BMG intends to maintain its excellent relationship with PCC because a large number of "Newcomers" and "International students" come from Punjab, and there is a great need to service these people.

?Brilliant Minds Group's First Family Gathering - July 24th

On the afternoon of Sunday, July 24, the Brilliant Minds Group team hosted its first "Family Get-Together."

Family support is essential for any initiative in which we participate. It is critical for families (including children) to learn about and understand the important work that the Brilliant Minds Group team is doing to help the "Newcomer" and "International Student" communities reach their full potential in Canada.

The families had a great time getting to know each other and hearing about the team's great work and future plans.

Sheridan College - International Student Summit - July 25 & July 26, 2022

Because of the challenges they face, the International Student community has become a greater focus for everyone in Canada.

The BMG team, comprised of Dan Lawrence, Aamir Amla, and Dinesh Sharma, actively participated in the summit organised by Sheridan College in collaboration with the City of Brampton to better understand the challenges faced by the International Student Community and to develop a charter to address these issues.

Aamir Amla, BMG Student Relations Director, shared his experiences during the first panel discussion on the topic "International Student Experiences - Issues & Challenges" kicking off a great start to a very successful panel discussion for the summit.

Dinesh spoke later in the afternoon about "Workplace Experiences and Employment - Precarity, Challenges, and Workers Rights."

We gained a lot of attention by attending this summit and contributing our perspectives on a very important topic, as key stakeholders came together to create a charter for resolving issues related to this topic.

The BMG team has ambitious plans to strengthen communities by participating in other community events throughout the month of August.

Please continue to follow us on social media to stay up to date on BMG's activities.