Recruiting & Hiring

Hi everyone! We're doing an afternoon impromptu hangout at Chefs Hall. Location: 111 Richmond St W, Toronto, ON M5H 2G4 A sort walk from Osgoode subway station. head south on University till you reach Richmond St and head east along Richmond St. you should see Chefs Hall on the south side of Richmond. **First time meeting us and still not sure about the vibe?** Check out photos from **[past in-person events of 2023](https://www.meetup.com/artsrecto/photos/34212927/)** Bring your art supplies (mainly dry medium or small watercolour set), and order a warm drink and snacks. Looking forward to meeting you all :) === ================ **Support This Group 🥰🤩** We hope you're enjoying the Arts & Rec events! If you'd like to give support, please consider making a small Ko-fi donation of $5-10 USD at [https://www.ko-fi.com/artsnrectoronto](https://www.ko-fi.com/artsnrectoronto.) . This helps cover meetup and miscellaneous expenses with hosting events! For more inquiries, please PM me for more info! Thank you all so much!

## **Import & Export — Learn the Model, Remove the Risk, Build the Business** **Casual Learning & Support Session \| LeaderSHIFT Community** There is growing interest in import/export as a business — but most people get stuck on the same questions: * Where do I start? * How do I avoid getting burned? * How do I finance deals safely? * How do I find real clients (not tire-kickers)? This session is designed to answer those questions clearly and practically. ### **📌 Format (Two-Part Session)** **First Hour – Foundations (Beginner Friendly)** This is a structured walkthrough for anyone who wants to understand the business from the ground up. We will cover: * How the import/export business actually works * How to structure deals using government programs and banks to reduce or eliminate risk * How financing can be used properly (without putting yourself in danger) * How to find clients and generate deal flow * Common mistakes and traps to avoid All attendees will receive a **free booklet and resource package** with the information needed to begin setting up their own import/export business. **Second Hour – Open Support & Deal Discussion (Optional)** This portion is for: * People already working on deals * Those who understand the model and want deeper discussion * Anyone seeking feedback on a specific roadblock * Individuals who want to offer insight, support, or collaboration It becomes a collaborative, peer-supported environment rather than a formal presentation. ### **☕ Setting** This is a **casual, low-pressure meetup** held at Second Cup (Sheppard Centre, Yonge & Sheppard). Grab a coffee, bring your questions, and engage at your own pace. No pitches. No hype. Just real knowledge, real structure, and real conversation.

RSVP on TribalScale's RSVP Page: https://www.tribalscale.com/events/iwd-gdg-women-tech-makers Two workshops for women in tech ready to move their careers forward. Financial strategy + AI agent design. About This Event International Women's Day isn't about celebrating how far we've come. It's about building the skills that get you where you're going next. Join 50 women in tech for two practical workshops: 6:00 PM — Financial Strategy How to manage equity, negotiate better, and build wealth that lets you take career risksLed by Lesley-Anne Scorgie, financial expert featured on Oprah 6:35 PM — Designing AI Agents Hands-on technical learning in one of tech's fastest-moving areasSpeaker details coming soon Who This Is For Early to mid-career women in tech. Developers, designers, PMs, technical leaders. If you want tactical skills (not motivational speeches), this is for you. Schedule 5:30 PM — Doors open, networking 5:45 PM — Welcome 6:00 PM — Financial strategy workshop 6:35 PM — AI agents workshop 7:10 PM — Rapid networking 7:30 PM — Event concludes Drinks and snacks provided. What to Bring Yourself. Maybe a notebook if you like taking notes. Location The Combine 225 Wellington St W, Toronto, ON M5V 3G7, Canada Enter via 35 John St and take the elevator upstairs. Someone will meet you at 35 John St to let you in. Please note that all is subject to change by the organizer. Agenda --- Hosted By Solomon Hsu, GDG Organizer I believe in one mandate in the digital space: Crafting Authentic Digital Experiences for All People. With that vision, I value digital accessibility and user centric design as the core foundation for all my projects. It is within the users' insights and needs that allow us to build great apps. Hiral Thaker, Co-organizer Complete your event RSVP here: https://gdg.community.dev/events/details/google-gdg-toronto-presents-break-the-pattern-iwd-2026-with-gdg-toronto/.

**RSVP on [Eventbrite](https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/toronto-msp-dinner-meetup-project-service-managers-march-2026-tickets-1982992750698?aff=oddtdtcreator)** to confirm your spot! We're gathering at Alternative Payments' events venue for good food and real conversation about the challenges we all face - keeping projects on budget and on schedule, managing service delivery, coordinating teams, and everything in between. The focus is on connecting with peers who get what you're dealing with day to day. **Alternative Payments** and **SherWeb** are sponsoring the dinner, with tickets by donation to the Toronto Food Bank. Calgary raised $250 - let's see if we can beat that! Your host will be [Wim Kerkhoff](https://ca.linkedin.com/in/wimkerkhoff), founder of [TopLeft](https://www.topleft.team) and two MSPs. **What to Expect** * Dinner at Alternative Payments (on us) * Meet other MSP project managers, service managers, and operations leaders * Talk through shared challenges with project management, service delivery, and team coordination * Actual networking time to connect with people facing the same issues you are **Who Should Attend** Project managers, service managers, operations managers, and anyone at an MSP who's responsible for keeping projects on budget and on schedule, managing service delivery, and keeping teams productive. Feel free to bring others from your organization who'd be a good fit. **Where** Alternative Payments in Toronto (35 McCaul St #300). March 10th @ 5:30pm. Space is limited to keep conversations focused. **RSVP on [Eventbrite](https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/toronto-msp-dinner-meetup-project-service-managers-march-2026-tickets-1982992750698?aff=oddtdtcreator)** to confirm your spot. **About TopLeft** We build project and service management tools for MSPs. We're MSP people ourselves, so we get the daily challenges of balancing service tickets, project work, and keeping teams productive without the chaos. [https://www.topleft.team](https://www.topleft.team)

Please RSVP on our [Eventbrite page](https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/owasp-toronto-march-2026-tickets-1984518199356)! **Mastering Application Threat Detection & Response: A Hands-On Workshop** Elevate your cybersecurity skills with this hands-on workshop as you dive deep into critical application security challenges. In this workshop, you'll work directly in the Contrast Security platform to: * Uncover hidden application-layer threats that bypass conventional defenses like WAFs, EDR, and CNAPP solutions. * Execute real-time threat detection and streamline your response with pre-built runbooks. * Neutralize active attacks with confidence * Defend against zero-day exploits with behavior-based threat detection. This workshop is designed for: * AppSec Professionals * Security Engineers * Software Engineers * DevOps/DevSecOps Professionals * SOC Analysts & Managers

On March 11th, Startup Grind Toronto is bringing together a founder, a venture capitalist, and an angel investor to tackle the real challenges of building and fundraising in FemTech. Join us for an honest, tactical look at navigating the market, closing the funding gap, and scaling companies in FemTech today. Meet the Panel Parnian Majd (Founder and CEO, Fibra): A pioneer in the FemTech space, Parnian is navigating the front lines of health-tech innovation and breaking the taboos of women's health. Mellie Chow (Venture Partner, Archangel Axion & Techstars Toronto): An engineer-turned-venture capitalist, Mellie is deeply committed to closing the gender equity funding gap, with a portfolio featuring 27% women-led companies. Orchid Jahanshahi (Founder and Angel Investor, ThinkrBelle): A seasoned founder and angel investor, Orchid brings a unique perspective on scaling in overlooked sectors and navigating the challenges of early-stage growth. Meredith Bacal (Partner, Dentons): Our moderator, ensuring we bridge the gap between legal strategy and founder reality. AGENDA: 5:30 PM: Registration & Networking 6:15 PM: Panel & Audience Q&A 6:45 PM: The Mixer (Refreshments and curated networking) WHO SHOULD BE IN THE ROOM? Founders & Builders: If you are currently raising capital or growing a company—especially in complex sectors like HealthTech or FemTech—this is your peer group. Investors & Angels: VCs and private investors looking to connect with high-growth, female-led ventures and stay pulse-checked on 2026 trends. Ecosystem Leaders: Advisors and operators who want to engage in straightforward knowledge-sharing rather than just standard networking. WHAT YOU'LL LEARN The 2026 Fundraising Market: A transparent look from Mellie Chow (Venture Partner, Archangel Axion & Techstars Toronto) and Orchid Jahanshahi (Angel Investor and Founder, ThinkrBelle) on what investors are actually looking for in the current climate. Scaling in Overlooked Sectors: Parnian Majd (CEO of Fibra) shares the reality of building a company in a market that traditional investors often misunderstand. Effective Support Systems: How to move away from trying to solve every problem on your own. Our speakers will share the specific advice and introductions that actually moved the needle for them. Curated Networking: Following the panel, we’re hosting a mixer designed to help you meet the right investors, mentors, or future partners. Capacity at Dentons is limited to ensure everyone has a chance to make quality connections. Secure your spot today. About Our Venue Partner, Dentons Dentons is the world's largest law firm. Our legal and business solutions benefit from deep roots in our communities and award-winning advancements in client service, including the Dentons Venture Hub, an innovative and informative online resource centre. Dentons’ polycentric and purpose-driven approach, commitment to inclusion and diversity, and world-class talent challenge the status quo to advance client and public interests in a rapidly changing world. Agenda --- Moderator Meredith Bacal - Dentons (Partner) Meredith Bacal is a partner in the Firm’s Intellectual Property, and Litigation and Dispute Resolution groups. Meredith has extensive experience litigating media, entertainment, defamation, and technology disputes. She has acted on several leading cases on Canadian copyright and personality rights in the course of her career. In addition, she has appeared before many levels of court, including… Hosts Lydia Emanuel - Startup Grind Toronto (Events Lead) Daria Tilikanova - Winner Capital (Startup Coach and Mentor) Daria Tilikanova is a business and startup coach who helps founders and service-based entrepreneurs build scalable businesses with clear strategy, strong positioning, and predictable revenue systems. Originally from Russia, she founded and sold two education companies before moving to Canada, where she shifted into full-time mentoring for early-stage and growing foun… --- Global Partner Carta (http://www.carta.com/launch?utm_campaign=20240423-nam-general-smb-startup_grind_partnership&utm_medium=social&utm_source=startup_grind) Carta helps people manage equity, build businesses, and invest in the companies of tomorrow. Carta Launch is the only free cap table product, helping new founders get started. The company is trusted by more than 40,000 companies, over 7,000 funds and SPVs, and over two million equity holders to manage cap tables, compensation, valuations, liquidity, and more. For more information, visit carta.com. Partners Winner Capital (https://winner.capital) Winner Capital is an early stage to growth stage syndicate fund investing across North America Dentons (https://www.dentons.com/en/) Dentons Venture Tech Group --- Startup Grind is a global startup community designed to educate, inspire, and connect entrepreneurs. We host monthly events in more than 600 cities and 125+ countries featuring successful local founders, innovators, educators and investors who share personal stories and lessons learned on the road to building great companies. Our monthly fireside chat interviews, startup mixers and annual conferences provide ample opportunities to connect with amazing startups and the people behind them, tap into a strong support network, form meaningful connections and gain inspiration for the startup journey ahead. For more information visit StartupGrind.com or follow us on twitter @StartupGrind. --- Complete your event RSVP here: https://www.startupgrind.com/events/details/startup-grind-toronto-presents-international-womens-day-2026-founder-investor-panel-and-mixer-givetogain/.

I have to reserve the restaurant so please RSVP before the event so l can know for how much Guest. Drinking at your own discretion please use Uber or Taxi if you will be drinking. Please drink responsible. Food and drink no limit you pay for your food and beverage of choice. A $5 deposit so l know you will show up i/o no show. You will get back in cash. Step into Evviva and experience a space where comfort meets style. The Ontario locations blends modern design with a welcoming, lively energy, perfect for brunch with friends, family gatherings, or casual business meetings. Natural light, cozy seating, and upbeat music create the ideal backdrop for great conversations and even better food. Whether you’re visiting for your morning latte or a weekend brunch, Evviva’s inviting atmosphere makes every visit feel like home.

We're excited to bring the community together for an evening of learning and connection! Come support your fellow developers, learn something new, and meet others who are passionate about search, observability, and security. **Date and Time:** Thursday, March, 12th from 5:30-7:30 pm **Agenda:** * 5:30 pm: Doors open; say hi, grab a seat, and eat some food. * 6:00 pm: Building Agentic AI on ELK stack, by **Gleb Gadyatskiy**, Principal Engineer at PointClickCare * 6:30 pm: Q&A * 6:40 pm: "One Does Not Simply Query a Stream", by **Viktor Gamov** is a Principal Developer Advocate at Confluent * 7:10 pm: Q&A * 7:20-7:30 pm: Networking & refreshments **Talk Abstracts:** **"Building Agentic AI on ELK stack"** Story how I built AI Agent using pure ELK + LLM to automate incidents investigations 1. What is AI Agent, ELK and why I decided to build AI Agent using only ELK 2. Building simple AI Agent using pure Logstash pipelines 3. Building advance AI Agent using Ruby plugin 4. Connecting AI Agent to Elastic AI Assistant **Gleb Gadyatskiy** is a Principal Engineer at PointClickCare. He is a part of the Infrastructure Architecture team and describes his role as “the first line in attack and the last line in defense”. Gleb provides support for all teams to aggregate logs from various apps into Elasticsearch, use AI to get insights from logs and actively promotes Elastic stack in PointClickCare. Gleb enjoys outdoor traveling with his wife and two kids in a camper. **"One Does Not Simply Query a Stream"** Streaming data with Apache Kafka® has become the backbone of modern applications. While streams are ideal for continuous data flow, they lack built-in querying capabilities. Unlike databases with indexed lookups, Kafka’s append-only logs are designed for high-throughput processing—not for on-demand queries. This necessitates additional infrastructure to query streaming data effectively. Traditional approaches replicate stream data into external stores: relational databases like PostgreSQL for operational queries, object storage like S3 accessed via Flink, Spark, or Trino for analytics, and Elasticsearch for full-text search and log analytics. Each serves a purpose—but they also introduce silos, schema mismatches, freshness issues, and complex ETL pipelines that increase system fragility. In this session, we’ll explore solutions that aim to unify operational, analytical, and search workloads across real-time data. We'll demonstrate stream processing with Kafka Streams, Apache Flink®, and SQL engines; real-time analytics with Apache Pinot®; search capabilities with Elasticsearch; and modern lakehouse approaches using Apache Iceberg® with Tableflow to represent Kafka topics as queryable tables. While there's no one-size-fits-all solution, understanding the tools and trade-offs will help you design more robust and flexible architectures. **Viktor Gamov** is a Principal Developer Advocate at Confluent, founded by the original creators of Apache Kafka®. With a rich background in implementing and advocating for distributed systems and cloud-native architectures, Viktor excels in open-source technologies. He is passionate about assisting architects, developers, and operators in crafting systems that are not only low in latency and scalable but also highly available. As a Java Champion and an esteemed speaker, Viktor is known for his insightful presentations at top industry events like JavaOne, Devoxx, Kafka Summit, and QCon. His expertise spans distributed systems, real-time data streaming, JVM, and DevOps. Viktor has co-authored "Enterprise Web Development" from O'Reilly and "Apache Kafka® in Action" from Manning. Follow Viktor on X - @gamussa to stay updated with Viktor's latest thoughts on technology, his gym and food adventures, and insights into open-source and developer advocacy. **Location:** Improving Office 171 East Liberty St Unit 235 Toronto, Ontario M6K 3P6 **Directions (171 E Liberty St - Suite 235)** **By transit** Streetcars 504 and 509 both travel close to the office (less than 10 minute walk to the office from either), the lakeshore GO train is also a 5 minute walk from the office. **By car/parking** On street parking is available - there are a handful of paid parking spots directly in front of the entrance - with a large city parking lot across the street. **Entrance** The entrance to the office is beside the Bulk Barn entrance facing Hannah Street. There is an Improving logo on the door.

Join your community of fellow Intuitives and MBTI nerds for a casual evening of engaging conversation. We get together every second Sunday – with a mix of regulars and new friends. There is no fee to attend, though we ask that you support the venue by ordering something to eat or drink. **Feel free to contact event host B. via Facebook/Meetup messenger, or text/call 416-712-8635 for directions**. About the venue: The Pint Public House Nearest Subway: Union Station Map / Directions: https://maps.app.goo.gl/G5GfXDSQXeifJ5ot5 We make an effort to find pubs that are quiet and introvert friendly, with a section to ourselves. We make no effort to muffle our extroverts, but should they get out of hand, our resident INTJ will use their death stare, to pull them back in line.

Important Register on the [event website](https://www.aicamp.ai/event/eventdetails/W2026031214) (Due to room capacity and building security, you must pre-register at the link for admission) **Description:** Welcome to the AI meetup in Toronto. Join us for deep dive tech talks on AI, GenAI, LLMs and Agent, hands-on experiences on code labs, workshops, and networking with speakers and fellow developers. **Speakers/Topics:** \- Eli Aleyner \(Docker\) Stay tuned as we are updating speakers and schedules. If you have a keen interest in speaking to our community, we invite you to submit topics for consideration: [Submit Topics](https://forms.gle/JkMt91CZRtoJBSFUA) **Sponsors:** We are actively seeking sponsors to support AI developers community. Whether it is by offering venue spaces, providing food, or cash sponsorship. Sponsors will not only speak at the meetups, receive prominent recognition, but also gain exposure to our extensive membership base of 10,000+ AI developers in Toronto or 500K+ worldwide.

Please sure to purchase a ticket on Eventbrite or e transfer to rosue@hotmail.com password speed dating. Reach out before sending e-transfer to make sure tickets are still available. The number of attendees is not reflected accurately as I have other means to advertise tickets. **Will we be seeing you at one of our March events?** We have had 10 couples meet at our events... will you be the next? **March 12th - Men ages 30-42 and Women ages 27-38** https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/made-for-jew-tos-find-a-match-for-the-spring-speed-dating-ages-26-42-tickets-1982540000510?aff=oddtdtcreator RSVP by March 11th, 2026 or while tickets are still available These events will include It includes a series of 10 5-minute speed dates (could increase based on requests). Your first drink and shared apps are on us! **Here’s how it works** The tables are numbered and the women are assigned a table. Women will stay at the same table and the men will rotate for a quick 5-minute date. You will be considered a match when both parties select "Yes" on their dating cards. After the event, we will provide you with each others contact information only in the instances that you are a match. After the speed dates we encourage you to stick around and mingle downstairs at the Irish Pub! What better way to meet 10 - 15 potential matches all in one night!! You will have a chance to mingle with the full group during the break. Price: $45 Time: 7:15 PM-9:30 PM (dates will start at 7:30 pm sharp) Location: Location: Nevizade, 1954 Yonge St unit# 1, Toronto, ON M4S 3E5 (second floor) Please note - signing up for the waitlist does not guarantee a spot at this event. No refunds will be provided unless we are able to find another person to fill the spot. Hope to meet you at one of our events!!!

Please sure to purchase a ticket on Eventbrite or e transfer to [rosue@hotmail.com](http://rosue@hotmail.com/). Reach out before sending e transfer to make sure tickets are still available. The number of attendees is not reflected accurately as I have other means to advertise tickets. **Will we be seeing you at one of our March events?** We have had 10 couples meet at our events... will you be the next? **March 12th - Men ages 30-42 and Women ages 27-38** https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/made-for-jew-tos-find-a-match-for-the-spring-speed-dating-ages-26-42-tickets-1982540000510?aff=oddtdtcreator RSVP by March 11th, 2026 or while tickets are still available These events will include It includes a series of 10 5-minute speed dates (could increase based on requests). Your first drink and shared apps are on us! **Here’s how it works** The tables are numbered and the women are assigned a table. Women will stay at the same table and the men will rotate for a quick 5-minute date. You will be considered a match when both parties select "Yes" on their dating cards. After the event, we will provide you with each others contact information only in the instances that you are a match. After the speed dates we encourage you to stick around and mingle downstairs at the Irish Pub! What better way to meet 10 - 15 potential matches all in one night!! You will have a chance to mingle with the full group during the break. Price: $45 Time: 7:15 PM-9:30 PM (dates will start at 7:30 pm sharp) Location: Location: Nevizade, 1954 Yonge St unit# 1, Toronto, ON M4S 3E5 (second floor) Please note - signing up for the waitlist does not guarantee a spot at this event. No refunds will be provided unless we are able to find another person to fill the spot. Hope to meet you at one of our events!!!ubmission forms.

One of the most valuable parts of this community is the opportunity to think out loud with other product professionals. This session is built for exactly that. As we wrap up the quarter, it’s a great time to pause and reflect. What’s on track? What needs adjustment? Where could a small shift create bigger impact? Join fellow product professionals for a focused, interactive conversation designed to help you recalibrate for the next quarter. You’ll have the opportunity to share where you are, hear how others are thinking through similar challenges, and gain fresh perspective you can bring back to your team and organization. We’ll gather at 8:00AM, with discussion starting promptly at 8:15AM. 📍 First Watch - 7227 N High St Located in: The Shops at Worthington Ample parking is available. Food and beverages will be available for purchase. Start your morning with clarity and connection — we hope to see you there! ☀️

Discover Kiro, AWS’s innovative development environment that adapts to your workflow. Whether you prefer specification-driven development or a more intuitive, vibe-based approach, Kiro empowers you to build applications your way. In this session, speakers will explore Kiro’s core functionality and its evolution through re:Invent 2025, along with demonstrations of prompts used to create APIs, hooks, and steering documents. In the latter part of the session, watch as we build a complete example from scratch, showcasing Kiro’s agentic AI workflow in action for spec-driven development and vibe coding. What You'll Learn - Core Kiro concepts and development philosophy Feature evolution: pre and post re:Invent 2025 Practical examples: API creation, hooks, and steering docs Live coding demonstration with real-time problem solving Who Should Attend - Developers, solutions architects, and technical leaders interested in modern AWS development tools and AI-assisted coding workflows. **Speakers Bio:** Matthew Jorat: Matthew Jorat is a Customer Solutions Manager at AWS with nearly three decades of expertise in AI, cloud transformation, migration, modernization, IT, technology, and business. His career spans infrastructure engineer, solutions architect, security auditor, customer success director, support and services director, and operations officer. He was an early adopter of AWS services as a customer, and his current role at AWS uniquely blends his technical and business skills as he partners with executive teams to translate strategic priorities into measurable business outcomes through cloud adoption, AI implementation, and operational excellence. Matt leads end-to-end AI initiatives for enterprise customers, identifying high-impact use cases and maintaining relentless focus on measurable ROI. He holds eight AWS certifications and serves as Adjunct Professor at Franklin University teaching cloud computing and AWS architecture. His expertise encompasses GenAI, agentic AI systems, migration, modernization, and optimization strategies that drive transformation at scale. [https://www.linkedin.com/in/mattjorat/](https://www.linkedin.com/in/mattjorat/) Girish Bhatia: Girish Bhatia is a seasoned technology delivery leader with deep expertise in cross-domain program management. He holds multiple AWS certifications, including AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Associate, AWS Certified Developer – Associate, and AWS Generative AI Practitioner, and is also an AWS Community Builder. Girish brings over two decades of experience in the information technology industry. Throughout his career, Girish has led major technology-driven business transformation from modernizing on-premises applications to driving large-scale cloud migrations. His work includes API-based integration platforms, data-center and mainframe modernization, and enterprise cloud adoption initiatives. Based in Columbus, Ohio, Girish works at a tech-forward fintech company. He is passionate about AWS serverless architectures, Generative AI and emerging cloud technologies. An avid learner and builder, he continues to explore and apply the latest innovations in AWS to help organizations accelerate their digital transformation. https://www.linkedin.com/in/girishbhatia/[https://www.linkedin.com/in/girishbhatia/](https://www.linkedin.com/in/girishbhatia/) **THANK YOU** *Franklin University* for hosting our meetup! To learn more about *Franklin University*, please visit their website: https://www.franklin.edu/ **DIRECTIONS** Franklin University Fisher Hall 300 E. Main St, Columbus, OH 43215 Map: https://maps.app.goo.gl/jxjBA2hUmS5qrvhq8 Parking is FREE! Please park in Lot C in front of Fisher Hall. See attached map. NOTE: Map the address only. When mapping with Google Maps it may use the Fisher Hall at OSU, which is NOT correct. **Want to sponsor the pizza and/or bar tab?** Please contact me if you would like to sponsor this meetup's pizza and/or bar tab: angelo@mandato.com

We are recruiting new group leaders for virtual men's groups! Our primary groups are outdoor movement groups, but we are launching virtual groups for the state of Ohio and beyond and the groups will move outside in the spring, creating room for men's groups, women's groups and coed groups all over the country. Read below to learn about our groups and click the links at the bottom to apply. ### **What is an Outdoor Empowerment Group?** Our Outdoor Movement & Community Empowerment Groups are simple, guided experiences designed to help people reconnect with nature, themselves, and others. We combine some form of movement (hike, walk, run, bike, yoga, workout) and meaningful conversation within a simple community circle to create a space where individuals can support each other while prioritizing mental and physical well-being. Whether you’re seeking stress relief, personal growth, or community, our groups offer everyone a unique and welcoming environment. ## **Why Join?** * **Improve Mental & Physical Well-Being** – Movement, nature, and supportive conversations reduce stress and promote balance. * **Feel Less Alone** – Build genuine connections with like-minded people in a safe, welcoming space. * **Gain Clarity & Perspective** – Step outside daily routines and into a space designed for personal growth and reflection. ## **The Ideal Group Leader** The ideal group leader * Has a born-in passion for mental health, movement, connecting with nature and building community. * Has 5 extra hours per week to dedicate to a meaningful cause for at least one year. Yes, you can leave any organization at any time and we can also ask you to leave, but we are building with legacy in mind and we need people who can commit and be ALL IN on this mission to build with us. * Is independently financially stable with the ability to volunteer with no expectation of pay. This is a deeply beautiful journey of service that all participants commit to at Speak Your Mind. * An ability to manage groups with high emotional intelligence and desire for human connection. * An ability to self-motivate and market/promote their group on Facebook and other social platforms. * Nature informed therapy or clinical therapists/psychologists a plus. ## **Our Impact**  Since launching, we have helped thousands find support, connection, and healing through our Outdoor Movement Groups. 100% of participants surveyed have reported: * A noticeable improvement in mental clarity and emotional well-being. * An increase in social connection and a sense of belonging. * Said they would return again. We believe mental health should be accessible, community-driven, and rooted in nature. Join us and take the first step toward a more connected, grounded, and supported version of yourself. ### **Why Our Groups are Donation-Based** Our Outdoor Movement Groups are made possible through a donation-based model. This approach allows us to keep our events accessible to everyone, regardless of financial circumstances, while also ensuring that we can continue expanding our reach. It’s a great way to pay it forward and support the growth of this beautiful mission! Every contribution helps us: * **Cover Essential Costs** – Donations allow us to pay essential legal, marketing, insurance, and admin costs as well as nourish the important people who run the organization. * **Grow Our Mission** – With your support, we can bring these healing experiences to thousands more people in the future and execute our long term plan to expand across the USA, affecting up to 500,000 people per year. By choosing to contribute, you’re not just leading an event—you’re helping build a mental health movement that supports long-term well-being and connection for all during a severe mental health epidemic. ## **Come Join Us!** We’d love to have you be part of this growing community of people prioritizing their mental health, movement, and connection. 🔹 **Visit Our Website to Learn More:** https://speakyourmind.men/joinusoutside 🔹 **Apply Here to Lead Your Own Group!** – https://form.jotform.com/taketimespeakyourmind/sym-group-leader-application 🔹 **Support the mission**: If you resonate with the mission and want to support, feel free to join a group before applying or donate to help us reach our goals to help more people! You can donate here: https://secure.givelively.org/donate/angels-for-angels/speak-your-mind Please text Mario with any questions: (808) 855-8831

Drake Lundstrom is presenting: Code Anywhere by Talking to your Phone Abstract: Have you heard the trend of people deploying code anywhere from checkout lines to doctors' offices? In this talk, you will learn how to talk to your phone and have an app on Azure to show your friend 5 minutes later. The basic DevOps tools you already know, plus a little bit of AI magic, are all you need! If you want to follow along, the demo will be in Azure with GitHub Actions and GitHub Copilot, and you can have it set up on your phone by the end of the session. Just come in with an Azure account and a GitHub repo. Join us for pizza, drinks, and networking @ Improving's office. Doors open at 5:45.

This month, we are in-person at GameArena!!! We will also be joined by students and their games from [Shawnee State](https://www.shawnee.edu/game-design-programs)! \-\-\- Join us for our our monthly COGG Prototype and Play event @GameArena! Come to play and showcase your games. We're back in the upper levels of the catwalk mezzanine area. It'll be packed with lots of camaraderie playing your game(s) and other's games on the 2nd floor as well as the 1st floor in the gaming room below the mezzanine. Light snacks and water provided but you can buy food and drinks at the bar (alcoholic drink ID required). [https://www.game-arena.co/menu](https://www.game-arena.co/menu) **Attendees:** Don't have a game to show? Not a problem! All are welcomed and invited from all ages and backgrounds. The more we can have to play test our games the better! **Developers:** Do you have a game that you would like to get critical feedback on? Would you like an excuse to work on a game with other talented artists, programmers, musicians, designers, and writers? Digital, table-top, non-experienced developers, and the like are welcomed! We'll provide signage for your game to help others learn more about your work. Wifi, outlets, tables, and seats (though standing tables also) are available. Come to the Prototype and Play workshop to collaborate and meet local game developers for an evening of epic and raw game play fun! Play works-in-progress, show off your own game, work with others to add polish to a game, or even lend your talents to other fellow developers. Can use South Garage at the Gateway with a $5 voucher on your way out. 75 E 11th Ave, Columbus, OH 43201 [https://maps.app.goo.gl/UwgveUYG37Jy7RtS9](https://maps.app.goo.gl/UwgveUYG37Jy7RtS9) If you have any questions or comments, as always, feel free to reach out to us at [info@thecogg.com!](http://info@thecogg.com!/)