The Final Clinton Global Initiative Annual Meeting

Over the past few months I have been keeping pretty productive. This past September I had the opportunity to be selected as a volunteer for the final Annual Meeting of The Clinton Global Initiative along with other individuals from all over the world. Mind you, the process just to apply to be a volunteer was a lengthy one but what do you expect when dealing with such a big organization. As it has been a few moments since the actual event I will briefly recollect memories to share with you.

The Clinton Global Initiative is under the Clinton Foundation, powered by former President Clinton and daughter Chelsea Clinton. The philanthropic network is part government and part private-sector. In the media, the Initiative has faced criticism but since 2005 it "has facilitated programs that aided more than 430 million people in 180 countries, with government, private and civil-society entities working together in 90 percent of the programs." The Annual Meeting is the big event of the Initiative where the members and invited speakers come together on a global stage to put the focus on the members' Commitments to Action. The plenary sessions are for members to share their expertise on challenges faced throughout the world. Some of these challenges include gender equity(equality for girls and women around the world), the battle against climate change and youth development.

Shortly after receiving my acceptance letter to be a volunteer President Clinton announced this would be the final annual meeting due to the Clintons focusing on Mrs. Clinton's presidency run. This made this year even more special. The final Annual Meeting took place on Monday September 19 to Wednesday, September 21. All volunteers met the day before, on Sunday, the 18th for orientation at the event’s venue, the Sheraton New York Times Square Hotel. I was chosen as Marketing support for the main marketing team. My role basically consisted of me assisting the photographers in anyway needed. The photographers were quite self-sufficient so it allowed myself some extra time to volunteer in other roles and explore.

So let us get into the meat and potatoes of my experience. Man oh man, what an experience it was. On Monday through Wednesday, I briskly arrived at the Sheraton: security was tight. I presented my credentials each and every time I left the premises, oh didn’t I feel official. I would then check-in at the volunteer lounge. Of course, light refreshments were served and it was a chance to socialize. I met some great people and the volunteers’ ages ranged from early 20’s to early 60’s. Trust me when I say, it was great to meet such a diverse and ambitious group of people. I also met a young lady from Nigeria. Her name is Adenike Akinsemolu and she turned out to be my exploring partner. I can be so reserved when it comes to meeting new people so it was great to have such a force like Adenike to help me step outside of my comfort zone and introduce myself to some amazing people. I was also able to stand-in on a few of the plenary sessions. I think of all the sessions I saw, the fact that by 2050 there will be more plastics in the ocean than fish shook me quite a bit.

As always it is fun to see famous faces, especially when they are so close to you. Hmm, I was in close proximity to Doutzen Kroes, Iman, Ben Affleck, Bono, President Bill Clinton (the ultimate charmer, no wonder…), Chelsea Clinton, Forest Whitaker and Jesse Jackson. I also had the privilege to watch Jon Bon Jovi perform. However, the icing on the cake for me was to see Andrea Bocelli perform live as “Con Te Partirò” is one of my all time favorite songs. He brought along the “Voices Of Haiti” Youth Choir; it was beyond beautiful. Speaking of famous faces, the celebrities were not just guests, one was also a volunteer. Erika Alexander who famously played Maxine on the hit 90’s sitcom, ‘Living Single’ was one of the volunteers. I approached her and when I tell you this lady has such a kind soul, that is a literal statement; I was taken aback by her kindness. I sat with her for about a half hour and just conversed. Oh, what a time to be alive.

The three days I spent volunteering for the final CGI Annual Meeting was certainly a memorable one. At the end of it all President Clinton took photos with all the teams that helped to make this year’s Annual Meeting a success. You know moments like these make life so surreal and remind me to keep on pushing forward and to realize that wherever I end up I will be successful. I left The Bahamas to better myself, become successful and one day return to give back and here again, this was one of those moments that reminded me that I am doing just fine.

The entire volunteer team. Oh, hello Mr. President.