Just in time for International Development Week in Canada, Red River College is proud to host a self-guided exhibit showcasing how Manitobans are working to improve the world through their actions at home and abroad.

Global Citizens: Manitobans Working Together for a Better World is on display from Mon. to Fri., Feb. 1-5, in the Roblin Centre Atrium at the Exchange District Campus.

Presented by RRC’s Diversity and Intercultural Services department (in partnership with the Manitoba Council for International Cooperation), the exhibit features photographs, stories and videos showcasing international projects with Manitoba connections.

On Tue., Feb. 2, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., members of RRC’s local Student Refugee Program (SRP) committee will be on hand at the display to discuss their involvement in global citizenships efforts.

Two members of the committee — students Yves Ngendahimana and Emily Regehr (shown above) — recently returned from Ottawa, where they took part in the weekend-long World University Service of Canada (WUSC) International Forum.

“It’s an opportunity for students to come together and talk about international development issues, and how they can promote global citizenship on campus,” says Lauren Konrad, RRC’s Student Integration Coordinator, noting this year’s event featured presentations on such topics as Women’s Economic Empowerment, Youth Employment and Entrepreneurship and Enabling Inclusive Markets.

Konrad says the forum often services as a reunion of sorts for sponsored students and SRP committee members from across the country.

“I almost knew half of the conference (attendees) from back home,” says Ngendahimana, a former Malawi resident who was the first student to be sponsored by RRC’s SRP Committee last summer. “Even the ones who weren’t sponsored still come, because they knew they’d be seeing their friends.”

Both participating students say they gained valuable insights from their discussions with presenters and committee members at the conference, and both say they’re now armed with practical recruitment and fund-raising strategies to apply at home.

“I’ve been able to meet so many like-minded people, and working together has been a huge privilege,” says Regehr of her work with the local SRP committee. “Even though our committee is still quite small, being able to go to meetings and be a part of the discussion and decisions has ben really fun. Going to the international forum — and seeing what all the other schools have been doing — was a huge inspiration, and makes me very excited to see where our committee will go.”

For his part, Ngendahimana says he’s still enjoying his first winter in Winnipeg — noting he hasn’t had much time to be homesick on account of the warm welcome from his new friends and classmates.

“The people I’ve met and the people around me are my favourite part (of living here),” he says. “I haven’t really ended up missing home, because I’m always around people who don’t allow me to feel that way.”

If you’re interested in joining the College’s Student Refugee Program committee, contact Lauren Konrad at 204.631.3345.