UK delegation briefing:12-13 April

The six of us came together as a delegation for the first time in mid-April to begin our preparations for the World Conference.

Introducing ourselves on the Saturday morning, we each spoke about Guiding highlights. All of us referred to 'goosebump' moments which we've experienced at different events we've attended through Guiding, some international, some in the UK. When surrounded by hundreds of Guiding members, the energy and enthusiasm can feel overwhelming; I've no doubt that we'll get that same sensation at points during the Conference.

We spent time discussing the structure and work of WAGGGS and reviewing the World Conference papers received to date, looking in particular detail at the proposals for the Constitution of WAGGGS and the Membership Development Strategy. We were fortunate to have Nicola Grinstead, Vice Chair of the World Board and Girlguiding member, with us for part of the weekend, sharing her experience of past World Conferences and talking us through the priorities for WAGGGS. With the Association aiming to grow from 10 million to 12 million members by 2020 the strategy is exciting.

Getting the six of us from different parts of the UK across to Hong Kong with the right kit requires a fair bit of practical preparation. We talked about travel plans, what to wear, displays and equipment needed for parts of the programme, such as the International Evening. We also considered the roles that we'll need to take on while at the Conference - such as coordinating the discussions we'll have with candidates for the World Board to inform our votes, checking the UK 'pigeon hole' and keeping this blog updated.

For a bit of cultural preparation we went across to China Town for dinner on the Saturday evening. Crispy duck and sweet and sour chicken were on the menu - we have high expectations of the food in Hong Kong!

To access the papers for the World Conference, visit: http://www.wagggs.org/en/35worldconference/conferencedocuments

Meet the delegation - Catherine Irwin

As a County Commissioner in Ulster coming to the end of my 5-year term, I was looking for a new challenge within Girlguiding. And so I decided to apply to be part of the Girlguiding UK delegation to the World Conference in Hong Kong. I was so thrilled to be selected, I think that I cheered out loud when I received the phone call!
My most important role within Guiding is as a Guide and Senior Section leader for a rural unit in Monea, County Fermanagh. The girls in my unit are very excited about my wonderful opportunity, and as we were using the “World Guiding goes to Hong Kong” pack this year, it held an additional significance. I’m looking forward to sharing my experiences with them and within my region when I return.
Currently within guiding I am  chairperson for the leadership team on the Ulster International camp, Xplore14 which is planned for this coming summer.  I am working with a fantastic Ulster team, and we are really looking forward to hosting guides from all over the world.  This is a tremendous challenge as  it will be the first time that we have held such an event outside our TAC, Lorne.  But that's what guiding is all about - growing through challenge and opportunity!
In preparation for both the application and now for the Conference, it has been really interesting and invigorating to get back to our roots of Guiding and be part of helping form the future of the wider Guiding family, WAGGGS. It’s just amazing to be part of such a large International organisation for girls and young women!
Outside of my busy Guiding life, I do have a “day job”. My background is in Electrical Engineering and I work for the DuPont company as the Engineering and Research Technology manager for Europe, Middle East and Africa. In this job I travel extensively throughout Europe and the US predominantly, and I am used to working within different cultures. However, I have never travelled within Asia, or worked with such a culturally diverse group as will be at the World Conference, so that will be something to look forward to. Listening to other delegation members who have attended World Conference before, I don’t think it is possible to be totally prepared for the entire experience, though!  I am certain that I will return enriched, stimulated and with a whole new list of Guiding friends.  Thankyou GirlguidingUK for this fantastic opportunity!

Picture below: winner of the Xplore14 International Camp badge design competition, Senior section member Jade Ballentine, Enniskillen, accompanied by Carole Graham, Ulster Chief Commissioner (left) and Catherine Irwin(right). 

Meet the delegation - Jo Hobbs

Hi there!

My name is Jo and I am so excited about the WAGGGS World Conference in Hong Kong.

Jo (third from left, back row) with the Girlguiding UK team at the European Conference 2013

I am Director of Guiding Services at Girlguiding UK, leading the staff team at Headquarters supporting our volunteers to deliver great guiding to girls and young women across the UK. I work closely with Caroline, our International Commissioner, to ensure that members of Girlguiding UK understand about WAGGGS and the international dimension of guiding, as well as being responsible for our international projects such as the Big Brownie Birthday Eurohop and GOLD.

As well as being a member of staff, I am a volunteer with Girlguiding UK.  I used to run a Senior Section Unit, but with the day job I needed to step back and now support my local area, Girlguiding London South West, when I can.

I was lucky enough to be part of the delegation to the last WAGGGS Europe Conference, which was a great opportunity to really get stuck in top all things WAGGGS, share our successes and learning with other countries and learn about guiding in other countries.  Girlguiding UK hosted the last World Conference in 2011 and I was able to attend for a few days to help out the support team who made the event happen.

The World Conference this year is a great opportunity for us to help shape the future of WAGGGS, celebrate the successes of the Stop The Violence campaign, which Girlguiding UK has supported (read our Care vs Control research report), and to work together on spreading the word about Free Being Me, a new WAGGGS project in partnership with the global Dove Self-Esteem Project. Girlguiding UK has been championing body confidence for many years and so is delighted to be one of the first WAGGGS MOs engaged in this project, thanks to the support of Dove UK.

I'm also really excited to be returning to Hong Kong, a place I love. Whilst I'm looking forward to exploring the local sites and culture, the added excitement is the opportunity to meet local guides and volunteers and find out about their experience of guiding.

Meet the delegation - Helen Beecher Bryant

Greetings! I’m Helen Beecher Bryant and I am delighted to be part of the UK delegation to the WAGGGS World Conference.

I’ve been thinking about how on earth I introduce myself here.  I’m not known for my brevity, so here are 535 words to introduce this member of the delegation to the WAGGGS World Conference to you:

These are the things which I think make me, me: engagement, advocacy, comedy.  Now, what does that mean?

Engagement

I run 1^st Chislehurst Brownies and 1^st Chislehurst Guides in Greater London Kent County, LaSER and am hoping to open a Senior Section unit in the future.  I believe that all girls and young women should have the opportunity to be involved in Girlguiding, so the two units are large, with 40 or so members, with fantastic leadership teams who share the vision for growth.  I am the Growing Guiding Co-ordinator for my Division, which involves looking at how we can make Guiding more accessible. 

I really enjoy delivering training and am a Trainer in Girlguiding.  I have trained in all sorts of different subjects, ranging from the 'Travelling Abroad Training', to 'Dealing with Challenging Behaviour', to 'The Senior Section programme', to 'Introduction to Comedy Improvisation'.

International is a very important aspect of Guiding and I have had many opportunities to experience the incredible worldwide WAGGGS family to which Girlguiding members belong.  I have led trips to Finland, Namibia, Luxembourg, Mexico and am taking my unit to Iceland in October.  I also mentor international trip Leaders. 

In 2013, I was part of the UK delegation to the Fifth World Centre pilot in Rwanda, which was a ‘Stop the Violence’ conference.  I met Leaders from across Africa and the wider world.  The Guides du Rwanda are a complete inspiration and are embedded in their communities, providing services for women and children affected by violence.  Read this blog for the full story. 

Advocacy

In 2012, it was a privilege to be the Chaperone to the UK delegation to the Girls’ World Forum.  The two delegates were fantastic young women who embraced the opportunity of meeting young members from eighty-nine countries.  They wrote ‘Go For It! Be TheChange’ as a result of the event, which was published and is being used by units across the country.  Read the blog here.

I was recently appointed as Lead Volunteer for Advocacy for Girlguiding LaSER, which includes leading advocacy campaigns for our members and organising engagement events.  I’m about to recruit a team to help run Parliament Week in November.

Comedy

I am a stand-up comedian on the London fringe circuit and often use comedy improvisation techniques in my training.  I have run comedy improvisation workshops at two World Centres – Our Cabana and the Fifth World Centre pilot in Rwanda.  Improvisation is great for encouraging self-confidence and quick thinking.  The two rules are key to life generally – ‘listen’; ‘embrace the idea and see what happens’.

And my day job?

I work for Maternity Action, the national charity which champions the rights of pregnant women and new mothers.  I have contributed to Refugee Council literature and run a national training programme for midwives called ‘Improving Care for Refugees and Asylum Seekers’.

I am also a performance poet and run a poetry agency called Sublime Rhyme, where I write commissions to order and take poetic residencies in obscure places.

And finally…

Attending the WAGGGS World Conference is an amazing opportunity and I cannot wait.  To represent the views of half a million members of Girlguiding is a real privilege.  I am really looking forward to meeting members from the 145 member countries of WAGGGS and thinking together about the future.

Meet the delegation - Angela Milln

Back in 2008, I was privileged to be part of the UK delegation to the World Conference in Johanesburg, South Africa. Another amazing and unforgettable guiding opportunity - but such opportunities often come with a catch! At the time, I was the chairman of the national marketing and communications committtee - and I guess that qualified me for the task of leading the UK's bid to bring the World Conference to the UK in 2011. No pressure then!

The conference itself was an unforgettable experience - when else do you get the chance to sit down to breakfast every day with someone from a different country - with 140 odd countries to choose from?! And of course, because we were bidding to host the next conference, every meal time presented another opportunity to talk informally to other delegates about what we had to offer.

Our bid culminated in a presentation to the whole conference, which I fronted up. Rather rashly, I had agreed to try to kill a few stereotypes by addressing the conference in all three of the WAGGGS official languages - English, French and Spanish. Only a few words of greeting at the start of the presentation (simultanious interpretation of all sessions is available to all conference participants) and a few Q&As at the end. As a linguist, this shouldn't have been a problem - but the first question, posed in French in the stongest West African accent you can imagine, came closer to defeating me than I care to admit! Fortunately, it didn't - but we were up against strong competition - so it was impossible to tell whether we had done enough!

I cannot begin to describe the nerves that preceeded the next day's announcement of the winning bid - or the elation of being declared the winners! There were tears (yes - I mean it!), cheering - and a frenzy of texting to people who had supported us back home. One of my proudest guiding moments to date is going up onto the world conference stage to receive the world flag from the South African chief commissioner - ready to be flown again in Edinburgh in 2011!

While not a member of the delegation in 2011, it was wonderful to be able to attend the opening ceremony - and to see in person the culmination of our efforts in South Africa three years earlier. I had, however, thought that that would be the end of my involvement in this amazing aspect of guiding. Little did I realise that, as Deputy Chief Guide, I would be heading for Hong Kong this year as the Chief Guide's representative on the delegation. This time, I have a better sense of what is in store - and am looking forward to supporting new members of the delegation in engaging with what I know will be an unforgettable experience!

I'm also going to be trying to engage my own Guide and Senior Section units in the experience - with the World Guiding goes to Hong Kong resource to help me.

Meet the delegation - Caroline Davis

Three years ago Girlguiding was preparing to welcome the world to Edinburgh. As the fabulous organising committee finessed plans for the 34th World Conference, seemingly taking every new challenge within their stride, I admit to feeling pretty daunted. I had been International Commissioner for just five months and, although my knowledge of the workings of WAGGGS was increasing, the Conference did feel a little like being thrown in at the deep end...

I was immensely grateful for the support and guidance of members of the UK delegation and others who had attended World Conferences previously. In all honesty, though, no amount of briefing could have fully prepared me for the experience to come. The World Conference is a unique event. There's serious business to discuss, and delegations demonstrate their commitment to achieving the best outcomes for the organisations they represent. That can feel a bit of a whirlwind. There are also tremendous opportunities throughout each day to learn - about Guiding, about the diversity of our World Association and about daily life in different countries. 

Now we are getting ready for the next instalment and it is a huge privilege to be leading the UK delegation to the 35th World Conference - the next destination on an amazing journey through Guiding. From learning about the uniforms worn by Brownies in other countries, Guiding has taken me to international camps in The Netherlands and Poland, on GOLD projects to Poland, Pakistan and Madagascar, to Our Chalet and Sangam, and to WAGGGS events in Belgium, Ireland, Greece and, most recently, Berlin. 

I very much enjoy returning to 1st Wimbledon Park Guides to help out the leadership team when I can. Last month I had a fantastic evening with the girls running activities from the World Guiding Goes to Hong Kong pack - the relay involving chopsticks and marshmallows was a particular highlight.

Outside of Guiding I am Head of Communications for Imperial College London. My team is responsible for communications with the university's 7,500 staff and 14,000 students, we engage with the media about developments at Imperial and we support events in the UK and overseas. The Mayor of London and the President of South Korea are among those who have been at Imperial over the past year - Guiding skills certainly came in useful when making plans for their visits.

Through this blog we hope to share our experiences of the 35th World Conference - please do let us know if you've particular questions about Hong Kong, WAGGGS or the mechanics of the World Conference. We'd also love to hear your comments on what you read.

The last chapter - the delegation to the 34th World Conference

Front (L-R) Kirsty Kakanskas and Nicola Grinstead

Back (L-R) Alexa Laurence, Caroline Davis, Denise King, Gill Slocombe