"There is something in knowing what Is likely to be resonant, but there is also something in seeing it in action.."

In second episode of our series with Concordia's Black Perspectives Office, the BPO’s coordinator, Annick Maugile Flavien sits down with with Temi Akin-Aina, the Associate Director of Alumni Relations.

Listen in for an in-depth discussion around the themes that led Temi to her work, the creation of the Black Alumni Network and Council, the importance of Black Alumni engagement, and the role Alumni play in supporting students and the university.

Annick Maugile Flavien is a Black community advocate, a Black scholar, the founding coordinator of the Black Perspectives Office (BPO), and a Co-chair on the President's Task Force on Anti-Black Racism at Concordia University. She is a three-time graduate of Concordia and has been working on campus for the last ten years where she had the opportunity to participate in and support grassroots EDI and anti-racist initiatives across campus. She now offers anti-discriminatory consultations, workshops and trainings, and is developing trainings specifically for anti-Black racism at Concordia University. In her creative and academic research, Annick roots herself in communications, ageing studies, migration and geography in order to explore the transmission of intergenerational knowledge and identity for Black communities in Canada with the goal of addressing Black community isolation in Canada and fostering connections across Black Canadian communities.

Temilade (Temi) Akin-Aina is the Associate Director of Alumni Relations at Concordia University, Montreal, Quebec, a position she has held since 2015. With more than a decade of practice in higher education alumni relations, Temi’s experience includes alumni program strategy and community development, market research, virtual programming and change management. At Concordia, Temi has worked with student groups and student leaders, alumni volunteers and campus partners to advocate for an improved student experience. She has also spearheaded and refined engagement with key constituent groups including Women, Queer alumni, Black alumni and Asian alumni, and researched and launched institutionally relevant portfolios such as Alumni Career Services.

The Black Perspectives Live podcast series is a collaboration between Concordia’s Black Perspectives Office (BPO) and 4th Space. In the last year we have seen a true mobilization and congregation around Black advocacy, knowledge exchange, and collaboration at Concordia and we want continue to foster this collective engagement. With this podcast series the BPO and 4th Space will be highlighting and offering entry points to the impactful voices and knowledges from members of the Black communities across Concordia University and beyond.