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I recently read a theory that going for 50 coffees with people you've never met is the entrepreneurs equivalent to the theory that doing anything for 10,000 hours will make you an expert on it. While I get the idea, 50 coffees is far easier than practicing something for ten years, and while I'm far from lazy I've decided to set out on a fairly simple mission: over the next 50 weeks I'm going to invite 50 interesting Vancouverites, most of whom I have never met before, to go for coffee. I'm going to use this as an exercise in networking for myself and for V.I.A. while also using it as a platform to introduce you to some people who are doing really cool stuff in the city you live in. |
Meet Meriko Kubota. Manager of Partnerships & Public Engagement at the Vancouver Foundation, a non-profit organization that distributes over $40 million each year across BC. Established in 1943, essentially what they do is work with the public to help get philanthropic donations into all types of charities in the community. Meriko manages a number of the programs that they do, including the Neighbourhood Small Grants Program, the Generation Green Awards (of which I was on the Public Engagement Committee for), the DTES Small Arts Grants program, Enterprising Non Profits and other arts and culture grants for charities across the province. She's the first of these 50 Coffees I'm taking you on where I actually knew the person before hitting them up for a meeting, and I am proud to introduce her as my friend.
We sat down at the JJ Bean at Woodwards and to be perfectly honest I don't remember much of the work stuff we talked about but I do remember her telling me that her and her dude (also a friend of mine) recently got a canoe and that when it's not out on the water they store it in the parking stall where she used to park her scooter. Those are my kind of Vancouverites right there.
You might not have known it but you've already seen the fruits of her labour in your community. Being aware of them I see them all the time and I look forward to seeing more in the future. Now you can too.
Not much for the limelight, Meriko enjoys being shrouded behind the green tea
