Back in Canada!

After an experience of a lifetime - a 6 month internship in Kolkata, India with renewable energy startup, ONergy, I've arrived safely back in Toronto! I visited friends in London and Germany for a few weeks before heading home, then made a beeline north to the cottage to spend a relaxing week with family. I decided to wait a few weeks before writing a final post on India, allowing me to clear my mind and sort out my thoughts about the fellowship and India in general.

Relaxation.

Georgian Bay - gotta love it

Working with ONergy was exactly the type of experience I was looking for- international, challenging, exciting, and in the renewable energy field. My work consisted primarily of project management and business development, and the opportunities for learning and responsibility I was given by far exceeded my expectations. I cannot thank the ONergy team enough- the three co-founders, all under 30, are some of the most inspiring and hardworking entrepreneurs I've ever met, and I have no doubt they'll be successful and meet their goals.

In the past 2-3 years I've been to 30 countries, studied in Sweden, cycled across Europe, climbed mountains, and worked in an exciting industry in India, while meeting lifelong friends along the way. 

I loved everything about being nomadic and 'on the road'- constantly exposed to new surroundings, seeing both the best and worst of humanity, observing how economics and social structure varies from one place to another, experiencing different cultures, meeting incredible people, and encountering extreme environments. 

I didn't mind sleeping in airports, frantically rushing to catch the next place/train/bus/rickshaw/ferry, going multiple nights with next to zero sleep, wearing clothes more than a few times before washing, and even the few bouts of sickness I encountered in India weren't so bad in hindsight! They're all part of the experience and looking back are hilarious memories.   

Despite all the excitement the road has to offer I'm thrilled to be back in Canada and appreciate it more than ever. My travelling days are not over, but for the time being I plan to keep my feet firmly planted on Canadian soil. I missed the NHL playoffs AND the federal election this year, so am quite excited to catch up on news and see what 2012 has to offer. The current European financial crisis is proving to be pretty intense, and it will be interesting to see how Canadian banks manage to weather the storm this time, after emerging relatively unscathed during the last recession in 2008. 

I think I can fairly say that I've encountered and overcome quite a few physical and mental challenges these past few years, and doubt I'll ever forget these kinds of memories. 

Now for my next equally tough challenge- finding a job in Canada! I plan on staying in Toronto or possibly going out west so if you know of anything or anyone, hit me up with connections! I love renewable energy, finance and banking, and marketing. 

Hope everyone enjoys the rest of their summer and I'm sure I'll catch up with you at some point in the near or not-so-near future! 

Red squirrels have taken over the bird house!

Into Thin Air: A mini Himalayan Adventure

5:30am wakeups to witness the sunrise, an everlasting hope the clouds would clear and give a glimpse of the mighty Kangchenjunga massif, staring in awe when they did, chai breaks in remote settlements, strings of colourful prayer flags, being out of breath, gulping fresh thin air, sounds of silence, scent of evergreens, thin clouds flowing right past my face… 

I recently got the chance to take some time off work to head to northern India for a week of trekking in the Himalayan Mountains. An overnight train followed by a 3 hour jeep ride up countless switchbacks brought us to Darjeeling, ‘Queen of the Hills’. The fresh, cold air of the mountains was a glorious relief from the heavy heat of Kolkata summer (40C these days with monsoon season fast approaching).

rooftop restaurant

Darjeeling is a fairly developed and bustling town near the Nepali border, sitting at 2100m with spectacular views of the surrounding mountain ranges. Largely developed by the Brits in the 1800’s as a hill station and tea distribution centre, it’s now widely famous for the quality of the tea which grows on its steep hills (and the Sherpa community). This region is comprised of a very diverse culture with a unique way of living (primarily agriculture). The majority of the current occupants are Nepali, along with many other communities such as Bengalis, Bhutias, and Tibetans, with Buddhists and Hindus forming the religious majority.

The 5 day, 55km trek to Sandakphu at 3600m took us along the Singalilla ridge which followed the Indian/Nepali border. A few of the days were spent in Nepal, which was monumental personally as it was country #30 visited for me, one of my major goals. Also, it was a step up from 2600m which previously was the highest altitude I had reached in Austria on my European cycle tour last summer. Getting up in the clouds was unreal – I want more! Looking forward to heading back up to this region in a few months time on my way home to Canada. 

Got clear skies our first morning - Kangchenjunga Range 
(Everest to the left of this range) 

Sherpa lodge in Sandakphu

4:30am, 3600m, waiting

here comes the sun...

glorious.

I put a bunch more photos up on my Picasa Photostream as well, the link can be found on the right side of this page.

Looking for an exciting work experience? Internships in India and how I ended up here

If you are in a situation anything like I was over one year ago: graduated university and not ready to settle right into a career at home, I've got good news! If you are at all interested in living in another country for 6 months-1 year to gain relevant work experience, here's some currently available Internship opportunities in India:

• mDhil Internship (AIESEC-Artemisia) -  social media and SEO marketing related
• Babajob - 6 to 12 month long internships from Computer Science students, graduate students in economics, development, informal sector labor, etc. and MBA candidates who wish to work at our offices in Bangalore.
• Waste Ventures - business development position

The deadlines for these may be quite soon, but AIESEC internships are always available, and Artemisia has two rounds per year for both India and Brazil. 


This is a monster post that outlines what I've been doing the past few years and how I ended up working in India in a business development role with ONergy.

Looking back to a year ago (May, 2010), I had just arrived in Europe preparing to start a self-supported bike tour that would take my friend and I across the continent. I finished my undergrad a few months prior and was in planning mode for the upcoming year of adventurous travel. 

During my entire 4 years at university I was mostly unsure of what path I wanted to take career wise. Well, by unsure I mean I was sure I didn't want a conventional 'office job' that I may end up despising, but was unsure about what other options were even available for business students (did I pick the wrong major?). But now that I had my degree I knew that 1:  I had some more travel and adventure goals to fulfill first before I started a 'real' job (thanks to my semester on exchange in Sweden during 4th year for giving me the travel bug!), and 2: The job that I eventually did get would not just be a 'job', but something I was passionate about and in a field I wanted to get fully immersed in. 

So, I hit the road and hoped that the career thing would sort itself out along the way. I somehow decided it would be a good idea to cycle across Europe, riding 6200km from Lisbon, Portugal, to Istanbul, Turkey through 15 countries over 70 days.  It was an extreme challenge that allowed me to learn a lot about myself over the countless hours spent on the bike while breezing by beautiful landscapes. I learned what my limits were both mentally and physically, and then proceeded to push way beyond them day in and day out while facing adversity over what was sometimes grueling terrain and hot summer days. I never would have made it without my cycling buddy Colin who kept us pedaling and is one of the most intense and motivated people I've ever met. 

One of the main insights I took away from that tour was how great the bike was as a form of sustainable transportation. Switzerland was especially impressing as they have bike paths that crisscross the entire country, including dedicated bicycle lanes in the cities, something which Toronto is in desperate need of (*cough, Mayor Rob Ford). 

After the bike tour I made a brief trip back to Canada in August for just 3 weeks. It was kind of tough to go home only to immediately leave again, especially because my university roommate Hattie was recovering from a double lung transplant at the time. I was there to attend the Couture Fashion for a Cure Found, a fashion show organized by Hatts that would combine her passion for fashion (she designs rad vintage jewelery and writes a fashion blog) with fundraising for Cystic Fibrosis. An amazing group of girls dedicated heaps of their time over the summer to planning the event, which was extremely successful - selling out the venue and raising over $30,000 for the Canadian Cystic Fibrosis Foundation! 

Then I hit the road again, this time to New Zealand with a working-holiday visa. I worked at Burn Cottage Vineyard, an organic, biodynamic vineyard run by awesome people who treated us exceptionally well. I had a blast living with our crew of backpackers, spending weekends road tripping, rock climbing, hiking, trail running and mountain biking. I was blown away by the sheer beauty of the country and friendliness of the people, can't wait to return. 

Waiting out the storm before heading up Rob Roy Glacier

While in NZ I was going through the process of applying to AIESEC, a student-run global internship organization (most universities around the world have a chapter on campus- check it out!). I completed skype interviews with the review board from my alumni university, was accepted, and began searching the international jobs available. I was looking for an unconventional experience that would combine skills gained from my B.Comm degree with my interest in sustainability and renewable technologies, and on top of that take me to a new, exciting place. 

Then I found it- the Artemisia Social Business Program! At first I was confused by the term Social Business (basically a fusion of the business and development fields), what does this mean and why was it not in any of our textbooks or mentioned in university? Wait, a business can follow market driven for-profit models with the intent of effectively solving social/development/environmental/health issues? Sign me up! 

I was browsing the openings for the upcoming round of Artemisia-AIESEC internships and saw ONergy, a renewable energy venture specializing in distributing solar lighting to rural off-grid communities in India. Fortunately, I made the shortlist, received an interview, and found out on Christmas day that I got the job! I changed the dates of my round-the-world ticket, left NZ, stopped in Australia for a few weeks, and once again found myself back in Canada for a short 3 week stint. Sorted out my visa, vaccinations, did some snowplowing for extra cash, said hellos and goodbyes, then rocked over to India. 

The clincher for me being selected was the bike tour I had just completed, confirming to myself that doing unconventional things are effective in standing out against the mass of business students that have the same entry-level banking or marketing experience. Luckily, I've got a great father who is always supportive of my next adventure, the odd jobs I work to finance them, and not pushing me to immediately settle into a career.


I credit many of the personal development bloggers that I follow in nudging me along this path. They aim to motivate people to do something unconventional, put in a real effort, stand out, don't settle for the norm, and quit whining about how hard it is to get a job or save money. It's not hard to do, but people think it is and therefore do not try (making it easier for those who do!). 


Blogs I follow:

• Chris Guillebeau - The Art of Non Conformity
• Seth Godin - blogger and author of many great development books such as Linchpin and most recently, Poke the Box
• Tim Ferriss - another great blogger to follow regarding making your life awesome
• Ramit Sethi - I Will Teach You To Be Rich
• Charlie Hoehn and his Recession-Proof Graduate free ebook

This internship has been an incredible experience for me so far as I've been learning so much about the industry, exposed to companies working in the social business field, and am continually meeting inspirational people who have left their Wall Street jobs and brought their MBAs with them to solve social and development problems in innovative, financially sustainable ways. Many companies, and the social business field in general, are still facing many challenges  in proving long-term financial viability which makes working with them to drive progress all the more rewarding. Talking with fellow interns we all agree that its both inspiring and intimidating at the same time, which is totally a positive thing because being surrounded by such intelligent and successful people/organizations has served to set the bar higher for ourselves.

I'm still unsure exactly what I'll be doing after my internship which is about half-way done, and am just taking it one step at a time. I've certainly found an area I'm passionate about and intend to pursue. I'll squeeze some more travel out of my bank account (thank you tax return!) before heading home in the fall, where I'm looking forward to keeping my feet planted firmly on Canadian soil... at least for the short term. 

If you scrolled through this post, here's a too long; didn't read summary: 

In the past two years I've: spent a semester on exchange in Sweden, biked across Europe, worked on a vineyard in New Zealand, now interning with an exciting social enterprise in India while meeting super cool people and couchsurfing along the way

You can do this too! There are current job postings for AIESEC-Artemisia internships in India, or if you want to work in a different country, still check out AIESEC as they hook up interns with jobs in over 100 countries! Artemisia also runs the social business program in Brazil as well. 


Thunder and lighting storm as I've been writing this-

While listening to new Explosions in the Sky album

Take Care, Take Care, Take Care.