GHANA TRIP: SUMMER 2016
LFW 2016 Ghana Trip
Week 1 (July 25, 2016 - August 1, 2016):
This portion of the program’s time will be spent in Accra. During this week, students will be acclimated to life in Ghana through a series of events and activities. The Fellows will visit two local business incubators, Impact Hub Accra & ISpace, and have the chance to meet with local entrepreneurs.
Highlights:
Week 2 (August 1, 2016 - August 7, 2016)
This portion of the program will be spent in Cape Coast. During this week, the LFW team will participate in community service activities led by NKWA Foundation, and visit Cape Coast Castle and Kakum National Park. Fellows will also participate in various cultural activities and take part in workshops led by University of Cape Coast faculty.
Highlights:
In- Country Logistics coordinated by NKWA Foundation. Nkwa Foundation is a non-profit organization that focuses on sustainable community development, health promotion, and rural education support in Cape Coast, Ghana. Founded in 2013, Nkwa works primarily on rural communities in Cape Coast to advocate, empower, and enable communities by providing a variety of opportunities to help sustain livelihoods and the well-being of community members. The foundation currently focuses all of its community-based projects in the neighboring villages in the Central Region, including Breman, Eguafo, and Ponkrom.
This portion of the program’s time will be spent in Accra. During this week, students will be acclimated to life in Ghana through a series of events and activities. The Fellows will visit two local business incubators, Impact Hub Accra & ISpace, and have the chance to meet with local entrepreneurs.
Highlights:
- Orientation/History of Ghana
- Tour of Accra
- Visit to Impact Hub Accra
"The hub is a really important resource for start-ups. For those who want to be entrepreneurs it provides a workspace that has like-minded individuals who contribute to the idea that starting a business venture is possible, and that there are no clear-cut rules as to how to go about it. Through Hackathons, Pitch Competitions, Design Thinking workshops, Impact Hub Accra stirs up new conversations and gets energetic entrepreneurs talking about the next big ideas." - Impact Hub website - Meeting with Sulley Amin Abubakar, Founder of Zaacoal and one of Forbes Africa's 30 Under 30 For 2016 of Africa's Most Promising Entrepreneurs.
- Visit to ISpace.
"ISpace is an expansion of a successful initiative that offers startups with a dedicated co-working space, community gathering point and network for driving entrepreneurial success. Their goal is to promote and support entrepreneurs and innovators in Ghana who are building new technologies for global markets." - ISpace website
Week 2 (August 1, 2016 - August 7, 2016)
This portion of the program will be spent in Cape Coast. During this week, the LFW team will participate in community service activities led by NKWA Foundation, and visit Cape Coast Castle and Kakum National Park. Fellows will also participate in various cultural activities and take part in workshops led by University of Cape Coast faculty.
Highlights:
- Orientation/Introduction to Cape Coast
- Brief on African Studies by Prof. Nnuroh, African Studies Department, University of Cape Coast, Ghana.
- Visit to Cape Coast Castle
Cape Coast Castle is one of about forty "slave castles", or large commercial forts, built on the Gold Coast of West Africa (now Ghana) by European traders. They were used to hold enslaved captives before they were loaded onto slave ships making the Middle Passage to the Americas. - Tour of NKWA Foundation’s Project sites
- Community Service with NKWA Foundation: Ponkrom Farming Project: School Feeding Project (A 2016 Nkwa Foundation initiative project for the school children of Ponkrom Village in Ghana)
- Presentation by Prof. Boohene of the University of Cape Coast, “How One Can Acquire Skills and Take Bold Decisions”
- A visit to GN GROUP of Companies
Groupe Nduom (GN), a multi-national company at Elmina in the Central region. The Estate consists of industries in manufacturing, assembly plant (electronics), printing and logistics. Fresh Park ltd, GN electronics, GN Logistics ltd and GN Projects, are all industries that have been opened for production in Elmina. - Visit to Kakum National Park
In- Country Logistics coordinated by NKWA Foundation. Nkwa Foundation is a non-profit organization that focuses on sustainable community development, health promotion, and rural education support in Cape Coast, Ghana. Founded in 2013, Nkwa works primarily on rural communities in Cape Coast to advocate, empower, and enable communities by providing a variety of opportunities to help sustain livelihoods and the well-being of community members. The foundation currently focuses all of its community-based projects in the neighboring villages in the Central Region, including Breman, Eguafo, and Ponkrom.
LFW Curriculum Highlights: Reflection Sessions
(In-country curriculum designed and facilitated by LFW Mentor and Coach, Lavar Thomas)
Each day, LFW Fellows will be given time to reflect on their experience through journal writing and facilitated discussion. These reflection sessions add to the LFW experience by allowing Fellows the space and opportunity to each process their experiences on a deeper more intentional level.
Who Are You & Why Are You Here?
Designed to discuss self-awareness and assessing & understanding the self. This session is intended to explore the deeper layers of our identities and what each of those identities bring to the world.
Controlling Inner Conversation
What we say to ourselves often shapes our belief in what is and isn't possible. This session is designed to help participants recognize the negative internal conversation that can strike when we set goals and take calculated risks to achieve our dreams.
Personal Branding & Leadership
Designed to help fellows identify and articulate their assets and strengths. Through self-awareness and an understanding of their characters and personality types, Fellows will gain the skills to better advocate for and market themselves, both while in college and after graduation.
Defining the Future You
Designed to help Fellows shift the paradigm of who they are to whom they want to become. This session will allow participants to design their future selves: who they want to become, what they want to have, what they want to do, and how they want to give back. This session will help fellows understand and articulate their goals and visions.
What’s Got You Programmed?
Designed to identify the external factors that subconsciously program us, this session helps Fellows recognize subconscious triggers for self-doubt and self-sabotage.
What is your Greatest Fear?
Are you running away from yourself or your environment? This session is designed to discuss vulnerability and pinpointing the fears that can lead to procrastination and complacency.
Persevering Through Defeat
This session is designed to help participants prepare for re-entry once they return from Ghana. This session will help participants discuss ways to overcome setbacks in pursuit of their goals. Fellows will discuss appropriate coping skills to avoid giving in when negative circumstances arise.
Navigating Difference and Challenging Societal Stigma
This discussion will focus on how to rewrite the definitions created by society. Mindful of the contemporary racial issues plaguing young men of color, the conversation will focus on understanding self-worth and the tough questions that surround being a Black man, both internationally and in the U.S.
Becoming a Global Citizen
Designed to help participants understand the definition of a global leader and how they fit into global leadership roles. The discussion will highlight the importance of understanding global issues and being able to provide insights about topics such as poverty, nutrition, education, business, and race.
What’s Holding you Back?
Designed to dig deep and understand what past experiences and associations may be holding you back. This session will discuss making necessary habit adjustments to help align actions with values.
(In-country curriculum designed and facilitated by LFW Mentor and Coach, Lavar Thomas)
Each day, LFW Fellows will be given time to reflect on their experience through journal writing and facilitated discussion. These reflection sessions add to the LFW experience by allowing Fellows the space and opportunity to each process their experiences on a deeper more intentional level.
Who Are You & Why Are You Here?
Designed to discuss self-awareness and assessing & understanding the self. This session is intended to explore the deeper layers of our identities and what each of those identities bring to the world.
Controlling Inner Conversation
What we say to ourselves often shapes our belief in what is and isn't possible. This session is designed to help participants recognize the negative internal conversation that can strike when we set goals and take calculated risks to achieve our dreams.
Personal Branding & Leadership
Designed to help fellows identify and articulate their assets and strengths. Through self-awareness and an understanding of their characters and personality types, Fellows will gain the skills to better advocate for and market themselves, both while in college and after graduation.
Defining the Future You
Designed to help Fellows shift the paradigm of who they are to whom they want to become. This session will allow participants to design their future selves: who they want to become, what they want to have, what they want to do, and how they want to give back. This session will help fellows understand and articulate their goals and visions.
What’s Got You Programmed?
Designed to identify the external factors that subconsciously program us, this session helps Fellows recognize subconscious triggers for self-doubt and self-sabotage.
What is your Greatest Fear?
Are you running away from yourself or your environment? This session is designed to discuss vulnerability and pinpointing the fears that can lead to procrastination and complacency.
Persevering Through Defeat
This session is designed to help participants prepare for re-entry once they return from Ghana. This session will help participants discuss ways to overcome setbacks in pursuit of their goals. Fellows will discuss appropriate coping skills to avoid giving in when negative circumstances arise.
Navigating Difference and Challenging Societal Stigma
This discussion will focus on how to rewrite the definitions created by society. Mindful of the contemporary racial issues plaguing young men of color, the conversation will focus on understanding self-worth and the tough questions that surround being a Black man, both internationally and in the U.S.
Becoming a Global Citizen
Designed to help participants understand the definition of a global leader and how they fit into global leadership roles. The discussion will highlight the importance of understanding global issues and being able to provide insights about topics such as poverty, nutrition, education, business, and race.
What’s Holding you Back?
Designed to dig deep and understand what past experiences and associations may be holding you back. This session will discuss making necessary habit adjustments to help align actions with values.