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OLC Tech

SFU Staff
OLC Tech


Submitted by OLC Tech on 22 June 2022

This episode we are joined by Christina Wong, who shares all her advice on following your curiosity in your job search and insight on founding a charity. Christina is the Executive Director and Co-Founder of Employ to Empower, an organization that provides access development and entrepreneurial resources to local residents. Using a “hand-up, not hand out” approach, Christina developed programs that offer affordable micro-loans and business mentorship to people facing work and social barriers. She was instrumental in developing the organization’s Basic Business Fundamentals for local artists and entrepreneurs. Employ to Empower advocates to bring about positive change for residents in the Downtown Eastside to create a community free of stigma, where residents are seen, heard and validated. To encourage dialogue, Christina created the Cardboard Project which seeks to engage local entrepreneurs in the Downtown Eastside with the other members of the public to raise awareness and showcase artists’ voices. Recently, she was nominated for the 2020 YWCA Women of Distinction in the Non-Profit category and selected as a recipient of the The Globe and Mail's Top 50 Business Change Makers in Canada

 

0:39 Tell us a little bit about you and your current role.

2:13 What were the defining steps that lead you to founding Employ to Empower?

6:31 How would you describe the experience of working as a charity?

7:42 Do you have any tips for students starting their job search or for students looking to pursue a similar path?


Originally published on the SFU Career and Volunteer Services Youtube on February 23rd, 2022. 

Participants and Contributors
Executive Director
Co-Founder

Christina is the Executive Director and Co-Founder of Employ to Empower, an organization that provides access to development and entrepreneurial resources to local residents.