You spoke up. You asked Q’s. The PM heard us. What’s next?

Thank you for being a part of#IDW2017 with Engineers Without Borders! Last week was a flurry of activity as you along with so many others across the country spoke up and spoke to each other about international development. And the Prime Minister heard us.

Duncan Kirby of EWB’s University of Saskatchewan Chapter was the one in the video asking PM Trudeau the tough question on funding for global development. Read Duncan’s blog here on why he insisted on asking the PM this policy question (and how he managed to get picked being seated in the last row…way to go, Duncan!).

Between all the stories, survey results and stats, chats, and Twitter Q&As, we grew our collective voice and support from young Canadians for action by the our government.

Here are some of the amazing things you guys did with us last week:

  • Over 450 tweets using #AskEWB, reaching 229,000+ people
  • Over 50 tweets to @JustinTrudeau
  • Engaged over 3,300 supporters on Facebook, reaching 193,000+ people

In all our conversations, one question stood out: In an outrage-fuelled media climate, how can we effectively communicate on #GlobalDev with hope & optimism?

Jennifer Hollett offered some short and sweet words of advice:

At the beginning of #IDW2017, the Prime Minister released a statement saying “Canada will continue to show global leadership in bringing people together to help achieve lasting progress.” We support this and are waiting and watching for him to turn these words into actions.

These are uncertain, tumultuous times. Trump and Trudeau met earlier this week. The federal budget will be released soon. We have to make our voice heard, not just for one week out of the year but everyday. Not just on social media but on the streets and on the phones. We can see this as a crisis or as an opportunity to rise to the challenge. This applies to us and to our leaders.

Next stop: the release of Budget 2017. In order to hold our government accountable, we’re asking you share the survey results at your campuses and communities, and to stay on top of the news and latest announcements from our government over the next few weeks.

Friends: stay informed, stay engaged, and speak up.

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