UBCO hopes to ‘break boundaries’ this International Women’s Day

KELOWNA – Tuesday marks a day to reflect on the progress made by women and identify the areas that need improvements. In Kelowna, those topics are discussed at the first-ever Breaking Boundaries conference.

The event is the brainchild of Kelly Taverner, who’s the Vice President of External Affairs at the UBC Students’ Union Okanagan.

“I’m the first woman to be in office in a few years, so upon being elected, I wanted to do something to represent women, run by women and for women,” she says.

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "I'm the first woman to be in office in a few years, so upon being elected, I wanted to do something to represent women, run by women and for women," she says.

The conference is broken into sessions, touching on topics of work-life balance, the power of language and entrepreneurship.

It’s also an opportunity to network and foster mentorships.

“I love connecting with students and inspiring them to stay in the Okanagan, start their own company or potentially be a new hire as well,” says Ariele Parker, an entrepreneur.

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "I love connecting with students and inspiring them to stay in the Okanagan, start their own company or potentially be a new hire as well," says Ariele Parker, an entrepreneur.

Despite the fact the event is geared towards women, it is not exclusive to women.

Lone-male attendee Alan Blackwell says the conference has been eye-opening to the issues his female counterparts face.

“There were a lot of things that as a male I’m oblivious to, that I don’t know really happen in the working environment for a female. I think it was interesting to sit and listen to those issues that as a man, I never would’ve even considered,” says Blackwell.

Taverner hopes the next group of UBCSUO executives will continue the tradition of organizing this conference.