*EDIT: Sorry for all the spelling errors >_< I can't believe I posted so many of them! They are all corrected now. Sorry again!*
First of all...
Confab: n. A casual talk; short for confabulation.
And that is basically what I'm going to do here in this blog entry, discuss the workshop that Chris, Lee and I went to a week ago at Saint Mary's University.
So here is my take of our day... in a rather large nutshell...
Well, as 'our' day started last Tuesday, 'my' experience started about two weeks prior, just before March Break. I'll tell you, I jumped on the opportunity to do something new and different, and not only did I jumped the opportunity, I pretty much knocked it over and drug it along with me. I so stoked, I hoped that March Break would end so that Tuesday would come faster, and I'll tell you, it didn't come near fast enough! So, now that I splurged on that one, I'll start on my take of the actual day.
So, not only did Tuesday not come fast enough, when it did come, our transportation didn't... of course, right? When you really want something, and are totally anticipating it, it never seems to come, just like that pot on the stove. Anyways, we finally got there, just as registration was finishing up, and everyone was heading into the auditorium to listen to our first speakers. Perfect timing!
Our first presentation was delivered by Jeff and Debora Moore from Just Us! coffee. They discussed their business of free trade coffees and recently expanded to other beverages and sweets. Before I expand here, I just want to clear up free trade. Fair trade is a set of standards so that producers were treated identically, for both the workers, the environment and the people. In other words, when you buy a free trade product, you know that everything that was implemented in producing it for purchase was done in an honest and fair manner, to everyone, from the labourer to the workers who, in this case, brews the coffee and puts it in your cup. Another point I found quite interesting is that when they started this, they never really planned on becoming a business so to speak. They just wanted to do something with coffee and fair trade. I think that their success as a business just goes to show that good people (that being honest and fair people), can be just as successful and just as well recognized as any other company, but not only that, they are also look highly upon, and thought of as role models for anyone and everyone. 
Our next speaker, Lynn Patterson, who is with the Royal Bank of Canada, came in to talk about being socially responsible as a company. Personally, I had a bit of trouble relating directly to her topic, but I definitely learned some interesting tidbits about companies, banks and some of what goes on behind the scenes in relation to being socially responsible. What I found to be the most interesting in her speech was the Socially Responsible Investments (SRI), what they were and how they were analysed. I also didn't realize that investments made to certain companies, that include, but aren't limited to, tobacco, alcohol and pornography were all investments that were actually frowned upon by other companies and banks, and cause SRI ratings to drop. Specifically speaking, the example that Lynn provided us with was with the Rain forest Action Network, and CITI banks. 
The goal of the Rain forest Action Network (www.ran.org) is to attempt to save the environment by deteriorating banks and other stakeholders to put their money into non green companies. The example Lynn gave us with CITI banks, were pretty hard core. The campaigns were to get CITI banks as well as the Bank of America to stop contributing to the investment of coal mining, because of it's dirty nature, and how its burning is not healthy for the environment. However, as extreme as they were though, they were all non-violent, and legal. The other thing that I felt I could relate to was when Lynn mentioned how consumers don't just trust anyone with their money, however, they do trust the person "over the counter" who they hand their money to... kind of like what I do at Sobeys. Another cool point I took to is that people are starting to take charge and have an opinion on what is right and what is wrong, such as what investments companies should be making, and if they should support companions that invest in those 'taboo' companies. It's kind of impressive to see that more and more people are starting to see that caring for the environment and the people who work for little pay, because it really is up to us to look at this and try and fix it. We are the 'developed' countries, and in my opinion, it is up to us to try and help as much as we can. To demonstrate how RBC is contributing to the 'right causes', Lynn explained the RBC Bluewater fund (www.rbc.com/bluewater), as well as their methods of reducing waste including some of these factors; reducing paper energy by offering online statements and bills rather than on paper, working on getting to the point of having 'paperless' offices, as well as not offering bottled water at meetings (where applicable, due to different standards in countries for filtering water). Pretty impressive really, because looking at this, makes me kind of 'proud' in a sense to call RBC, 'My Bank'.
Our next session was the breakout secession which was given to us by the CEO of Etruscan, Gerry McConnell. Etruscan is a mining company that is based right here in Nova Scotia. As we were told, Etruscan had a very humble beginning, so humble in fact, that this is the first time in 20 years that they have been getting any real profit from their mining expeditions. With Etruscan, doing the right thing wasn't something they were pressured to do, nor was it a requirement, they just felt that they realized that if their workers were happy, they actually enjoyed their work, and did a better job. This turned into helping out the communities by making not only the workers lives better, but the women and the children who lived in that community. This included projects like building school, getting wells brought closer so that children, particularly the girls, could also attend school, and building medical centres for the villages. Personally, I can see how this would make the people feel, how it really makes them feel as though they deserve this as much as anyone else does. It's also nice to see that a local business is able to lend a hand where it's needed, out in the third world. There was also a hand lent from the Dartmouth Rotary, another local organization, for all the building. But again, it's nice to see people in our own community working on making sure that just because we use the resources, we make sure to treat everyone with equal respect.The final speech was the Keynote given by Mickey McDonald. He was the former owner of DownEast Mobile. His beginnings were really humble, and his mother was his greatest idol, which is really nice to see. His talk was really about how money really doesn't equal success, and how to treat your competition, but most importantly, if you really want it and you work for it, you are going to get it. Basically, his talk was about some important notes, that everyone should have as part of their morals. So I'll basically quote him here, just in point form, because really, the elaboration is right in the points, and like I said, should really be part of every person's moral;
1. Attitude is an important factor of your personal success
2. You learn more when you listen then when you talk
3. Treating customers with the respect that they deserve
4. Be sure to be honest with you customers.
5. Know when to hold them, and know when to fold them. Playing your cards right is important.
6. Customers trust the people 'behind the counter' because they wouldn't hand their hard earned money to anyone, especially someone they don't trust.
7. Always promote your company, never look back.
8. Know how to deal with your competition, know how to push their buttons, in the most polite way(s) possible.
9. Always give back to community what you took out from it. This will make your business successful beyond compare.
So there we are, an awesome day, full of awesome people, and it took all this time to post, which again, I'm really sorry about. I'm totally happy that I got this opportunity to go and hear what all these successful people had to say. It's also nice to know that there are still people in the world that do care about the things most of us don't think about everyday. Anyways, I hope I get another opportunity like this again soon because I really did learn a whole lot!
A bientot!
Rebecca
