ISOW Ottawa 2024: Team Insights on Why ISOW Matters and What We Seek to Learn

ISOW’s Pledge for the Global Refugee Forum 2023 At ISOW, our mission is to promote active student engagement and learning through the study of the human realities of international conflict today as well as to provide scholarships to students affected by conflict. Our pledges align with Objectives One, Two and Three of the Global Compact on Refugees as we strive to promote self-reliance and sustainable solutions through further education.

Taryn Tufford is a Laurier Alumna who has been a student leader with ISOW since 2017. She holds an Honours Bachelor of Arts degree with a major in Languages and Literatures from Wilfrid Laurier University and has two years of work experience in immigration law. "The community engagement and willingness of all Laurier students to help in a small way goes much further than what they think. Each person, whether that’s team members, Scholars, Laurier administration or students all make ISOW what it is." We interviewed ISOW Intern Taryn Tufford (2018/2019 Vice President & Director of Scholar Support) about Scholar Support and the Laurier community during her time in ISOW. Check out this blog post to find out how the Initiative has provided her with opportunities to engage in various leadership opportunities and enhance her professional development within and beyond ISOW at Wilfrid Laurier University .

Oshish Ungras is a graduate student at the Balsillie School of International Affairs in the Master of Arts in Global Governance program. She holds an Honours Bachelor of Arts degree with a major in Global Studies from Wilfrid Laurier University. "ISOW represents the intersection of my passion for education as a human right and my research interest in peace, conflict, and forcibly displaced populations." We interviewed ISOW Intern Oshish Ungras (2020/2021 President) about experiential learning during her time in ISOW. Check out this blog post to find out how the Initiative has provided her with opportunities for leadership within and beyond ISOW.

“ISOW truly is a unique volunteering experience where you can craft your own experience based on your interests” Stephanie Lee was the 2018-2019 ISOW President, where she was heavily involved in the Public Affairs portfolio materials. She is currently beginning her digital marketing career at Surgery 101 as a Digital Marketing Intern. Could you tell us about your academic background, current role, and a fun fact about yourself? Sure. I did my BA in Global Studies and Political Science at Wilfrid Laurier University, and I’m in my last term of a Digital Media Marketing post-grad certificate at George Brown College. I‘m currently on my co-op term working as a Digital Marketing Intern for Surgery 101 . As a non-profit organization based out of the University of Alberta’s Department of Surgery in Edmonton, Surgery 101 provides free online learning resources related to surgery topics and procedures to medical students and surgical residents all around the world. Fun fact about myself: I have never had chicken pox! It is so cool that you are working for Surgery 101! Tell us more about your co-op position, what projects are you currently working on? One of my first tasks when I joined the team was to design a summer social media strategy to guide Surgery 101’s summer social media activities. My daily tasks at Surgery 101 include daily community management of its Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn profiles, and reviewing and updating its newly created social media content calendar as necessary. I also work with another summer student with social media content production and to support her in updated branding efforts. How did you join ISOW and what is your favourite memory? After learning about ISOW’s humanitarian work, I joined ISOW as the Assistant Secretary in my second year. I ended up staying involved in ISOW for four years, eventually taking up the Secretary, Director at Large, and President role. There are so many, but one of my favorite memories of ISOW was its annual Middle Eastern Cultural Festival hosted each fall. It’s such a fun and casual event that helps celebrate the Middle Eastern culture of many ISOW Scholars through food, dance, and art. It’s always a fun evening! What did you find most challenging while being on the Public Affairs team? Managing your time well and remembering that when external communication is sent out to the wider ISOW audience, you are not speaking in a student’s voice, instead you are speaking from a non-profit organization that is partnered with prestigious brands and organizations. It’s a different mindset from a student posting on their personal social media account or submitting an essay that’s only for their professor’s eyes. What was your favourite Public Affairs project or moment? My pick would be updating the ISOW website in 2018! It was so much fun because I worked with Innovasium , ISOW’s website developer, to completely re-organize the website’s layout by adding new website copy, pages and updated images. I could be as creative as I wanted to be and I had the team’s trust that I would complete the project to the highest quality. Were you able to apply what you have learn while with ISOW into your career post-graduation? If so, how? For sure! My experience with ISOW as a student volunteer lead to different opportunities after graduation. One of them was a paid opportunity to promote ISOW’s Educators in Emergencies conference in March 2019 because of my proven track record as a Public Affairs volunteer. As the conference’s Lead Digital Marketing Strategist, I designed and executed a campaign strategy that included social media tactics and email marketing to promote the conference and encourage signups. I also designed the conference’s digital and print materials, including two conference posters and the event program. This opportunity gave me the chance to put what I learned as a volunteer into further practice and with a new target audience. My experience leading the Educators in Emergencies conference communications strategy helped solidify my passion for digital marketing prior to starting the Digital Media Marketing program at George Brown College. Why should students become involved in ISOW and volunteer their time as a busy university student? ISOW allows you to make a difference in your own community, whether at Laurier, the City of Waterloo, or abroad. Your every commitment reaches so many people and it makes such a big impact, whether you fully understand the reach or not. ISOW gives you the space to develop your professional reputation – as a student, individual and a worker. There will be so many opportunities to prove to yourself, others, and your future employers that you have developed initiative, leadership, and time management skills. ISOW’s team is like a family, and you’ll meet so many wonderful friends while making ISOW memories. Do you have any advice to someone who may be applying to an Assistant Director of Public Affairs position? If you are considering joining, do it! However, being part of ISOW is a large time commitment with a lot of responsibility, so be prepared to commit your attention and focus to your team. ISOW is more than a club, and if you join the team with an open mindset and a willingness to learn, you’ll be able to craft your own experience with ISOW into a unique experience based on your own interests and goals. You don’t need to know everything, all you have to do is: show up, work hard and put effort into learning! Your commitment would reach so many people and it makes such a big impact, whether you fully understand the reach or not Interested in joining ISOW? Please email isow@wlu.ca for more information!

Emily Grass is a Development Assistant with Alumni Relations & Development at the Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry at Western University, and a former ISOW student leader. “Whether you're interested in politics, finance, social media, you name it, ISOW can provide you with that experience.” Check out this blog post featuring Emily Grass , a former ISOW Scholarship Initiative student leader, who chats about her transition to becoming a working professional after graduation, and how volunteering with ISOW helped her with career planning.

Middle Eastern Cultural Festival

ISOW Day, 2019

Second Ottawa Trip to Parliament Hill