Interesting Vancouver Presents: Where Are They Now? Monique Sherrett, IV09
“It’s a valuable skill: to listen intently, to listen with empathy. I have richer conversations as result.”
In celebration of Interesting Vancouver’s 10th anniversary, we’ve been reconnecting with a speaker from each year to find out where they are now.
This week, we’re featuring Monique Sherrett (though you may recognize her by her IV09 handle: Monique Trottier).
Monique is an online marketing consultant and professor at Simon Fraser University, where she teaches an ‘online publishing for marketers’ course. She’s also a literature blogger, and writes book reviews for So Misguided.
Since her participation in Interesting Vancouver, Monique has gotten married, had a baby, moved to Ireland with two months’ notice, travelled around Europe and Iceland, and is now on her way back to Vancouver. Sound slightly familiar? That’s because she married our ‘Where Are They Now’ feature from last week, James Sherrett.
Living in a different country has taught Monique a lot about resilience. Settling in was harder than she anticipated (and as an English-speaking white woman, she acknowledges how her privilege made it even easier). Monique really admires those who travel to study a different language, live in a country without family or friends, or need to navigate any country’s immigration system. “It’s hard to imagine how hard it must be for Syrian refugees,” she says.
Recently, she had the opportunity to meet proudly made in Africa fellow, Dr. Penelope Muzanenhamo. With a background in Business and Development, she presented a case study about the cultural sector in Africa. One of the things she said to Monique and her class stood out:
“It’s not [always] immediately clear how or when that knowledge [you’re learning] will be useful. What is most important is that you learn something and retain it.”
This resonated directly with Monique’s experience at Interesting Vancouver — she found value in taking part as a speaker as well as a member of the audience. In both roles, she learned the importance of being an active listener and staying interested.
For her full IV09 talk about the intricacies of our olfactory sense, check out the video below:
*Feature photo by Trevor Jansen
The 10th anniversary for Interesting Vancouver event is happening on November 10th. Right now, we’re looking for ideas from you about who you’d like to see speak at this year’s event. Share your ideas with us here.