HERE'S WHAT WE'VE BEEN UP TO
NETWORK MEETING 19.0: Is Society Losing Masculine Men?
What makes a man? As a people, we have grown to be more vocal and open about the emotional struggles of men. However, we have also grown comfortable easily classifying the actions of men into toxic, fragile, misogynistic, etc. This conversation had us sitting down over warm cups of coffee to critically examine and discuss what masculinity is, if it is a quality that can be lost and what role, if any, feminism plays in this. You can find out more in our conversation guide.
NETWORK MEETING 18.0: On Environmental Sustainability: The 'Me' in Environment
Reduce, reuse, recycle. A famous triad, albeit less popular in Nigeria. In conjunction with Ecopac, we hosted a conversation around what we can do in our daily lives to save the planet. Our discussion ranged from whether people care enough about the environment and if it is worth prioritizing in third world countries to how we can strike a balance between environmental sustainability and technological needs. For more details, here is our conversation guide.
NETWORK MEETING 16.0: ON NOISE POLLUTION IN ABH; Conversations We're Not Having
Somebody lives on G block first floor, close to FCR. On Friday night, a vigil kept him up all night, an awards ceremony made sure he couldn't read on Saturday, and a birthday party had his head pounding through Saturday night. Another fellowship program on Sunday morning made sure he couldn't sleep, and his neighbor's stereo kept him up all night on Sunday night. It makes you wonder, doesn't it? How much noise one should and/or can tolerate? For more details, here's our conversation guide.
NETWORK MEETING 17.0: CONVERSATIONS WE'D RATHER NOT HAVE; Jungle Justice, Right to Bear Arms, Abortion.
They are hard topics on the tongue. Topics we would rather not go into because we might end up discovering that our friends hold opinions we think of as unforgivable.
Well, we discussed these topics, with mostly open minds and reluctant hearts. We touched on everything from who gets to decide who can bear arms and the pros and cons of jungle justice to if jungle justice is excusable and if women should have veto power when it comes to abortions. You can find more here.
NETWORK MEETING 15.0: Morality, Society and the Law: Prostitution as a Case Study
Prostitute. Sex worker. These are labels people avoid using because it seemingly carries a negative connotation. In certain cases, it is flung as an insult. But what really is prostitution? Commercial sex? Or does sharing personal images and videos of a sexual nature for money also count? Is money key to defining prostitution or do other forms of payment come into play? In this conversation, we explored all that, who a prostitute even is in the modern day society, what role morality plays, whether it is a job or vice, among several other questions that arose. You can find out more in our conversation guide.
NETWORK MEETING 14.0: OF FISTS AND WORDS: Is violence ever justified?
Will Smith slapping Chris Rock was an incident that surprised the world and created a divide. There are the people who condone his actions and those who do not.
It raised the question of when and if violence could ever be justified and even further, if artistic freedom required restrictions. We questioned what the appropriate response to abuse, verbal or physical, should be and how we can prevent these in our daily lives. To see more, check out our conversation guide.
NETWORK MEETING 13.0: Cancelled! How Far is Too Far?
Thanks to social media, we have real-time information from people all over the word at our fingertips, however unverified it may be. In a world where people can be cancelled in less than a minute for 'saying' or 'doing' the wrong thing, where do we draw the line? What are the pros and cons of Cancel Culture? What implication does it have on freedom of expression? How far is too far? Here's our conversation guide for more details.
NETWORK MEETING 12.0: The Anti-vaxxer Phenomenon
With the COVID-19 pandemic and the vaccine came what seemed like a fresh and even bigger wave of people averse to vaccination. Reasons for abstaining from vaccination ranged from fear of its unstudied long-term adverse effects to simply just not wanting it. We discussed what qualifies one as an anti-vaxxer, what drives the phenomenon, how it impacts the society among others. You can find the conversation guide here.
NETWORK MEETING 10.0: THE FUTURE OF UNIVERSITY EDUCATION
So, we figured each of us can probably count on one hand the number of people we know who pass through the university without lamenting at some point. We look at factors like the cost, grading systems and the stifling of creativity, and wonder what this portends for the future.
We had a conversation on The Future of University Education, looking at its different facets and at what we could do to rewrite that future, as it were. You can find the conversation guide here.
NETWORK MEETING 11.O: PREPARING FOR DEATH; THE CONVERSATION WE'RE NOT HAVING
Death seems to be quite an uncomfortable topic for many. It doesn't matter that it is something awaiting us all, we'd just rather not think or talk about it. But isn't it good that we do so? That we get past the discomfort of talking about our mortality to the questions it raises about life itself? Is anything really worth doing if it all comes to an end someday? Or is it worthwhile to live intently, with as much gusto as we can, given the limited time we have? How do we, how should we, prepare for death?
You can find the guide to this conversation here.
NETWORK MEETING 9.0: ON PARENTHOOD
The earliest role models most of us ever knew, our parents shapen the people we become, to a great extent. At this network meeting, we discussed how the relationship between parents and children change over time; and how parents in different societies adopt different values and ideas about parenting. Finally, we discussed the steps we, who may become parents someday, could take and how different parenting could be in say, 50 years.
OPEN CONVERSATION & COFFEE TASTING 2
The second edition of our annual coffee tasting event was one of the highlights of 2019! To close out the Liquid Network year, we celebrated one of the oldest and most important coffee traditions ever and added our own exciting twist to it. Guests had the opportunity to try our 3 unique coffee recipes while discussing 3 themes from the year: Mental Health, Domestic Abuse and Social Media. It was a unique opportunity to get feedback and gear up for the coming year.
NETWORK MEETING 8.0 : ON SOCIAL MEDIA
We live in a highly connected world! And so it's interesting that in some ways we are less connected than ever. It was important to talk about how the digital age has shaped our lives, work and relationships. We also discussed how as young leaders we can move from social media to social impact.
NETWORK MEETING 7.0 : ON DOMESTIC ABUSE
Domestic Violence is often regarded as a gender issue. At this meeting, we explored what it is, the forms it can come in and how it is not just a crime against women but against us all. Like any act of terror, domestic violence leaves damage in it's wake. We reminded ourselves that our lives are all interconnected and why "hurt people, hurt people". We also discussed solutions and how we cannot stop until we're all safe and protected.
NETWORK MEETING 6.0: RETHINKING MENTAL HEALTH
At this meeting, we explored the best ways to start the conversation about mental health and why it is important to keep the conversation going. We also discussed some of the complexities that surround different mental conditions and some of the negative and positive influences social media has had on mental health in recent times. Finally, we found out how a conversation culture can promote mental well being and how we can promote supportive environments for one another.
OPEN CONVERSATION AND COFFEE TASTING
On December 19th, we had a chance to reflect on our last 5 meetings and try out some fine coffee recipes. it was an awesome way to end the year and we will definitely be doing it again!
NETWORK MEETING 5.0: ON GENDER EQUALITY
We discussed roles over the last century, across generations and among different cultures on the basis of gender. Who makes the rules and how much does the very fabric on which our society is woven depend on these rules? What would changing them mean? and are we prepared for the work it'll take? the consequences?
NETWORK MEETING 4.0: THE CONVERSATION ABOUT SEX & SEXUALITY
Some of the biggest issues that affect us and our societies are those we do not talk about (enough). We must continue to have these conversations if we're to understand the complexities that surround them. At this meeting, we sought to go beyond the birds and bees and identify several themes surrounding sex and sexuality. We highlighted the common progressive and confusing experiences that often define coming to terms with one's sexuality and explored how sexuality affects and is affected by the kinds of societies we build and value. We also explored how our collective discomfort with sex, sexuality, gender, sexual identity and related concepts manifests in many complex problems and if our cultural and religious beliefs about sex impact our health and well being.
NETWORK MEETING 3.0
Topic: On Finances and Entrepreneurship (The Money Talk)
The Liquid Network discusses money using the following scenario:
Rachael is a 400 level Veterinary Medicine student at Bayero University, Kano. She likes to think that she is prudent because the monthly allowance her middle-income earning parents from Lagos send to her, is usually enough to cover her needs. Recently, Rachael has been having difficulty with her finances. She attempted to analyze her spending and learnt that she is still as prudent as she ever was, only that her expenditure is now more than her income due to inflation and economic recession. Her parents had made it clear to her that they couldn't afford to increase her monthly allowance and that she has to learn how to 'manage'. She wonders how much longer she can spread herself thin. She spoke about her dilemma to her friend Mary who is a student of Human Physiology and who appears to be unshaken by the sudden turn of economic events. Mary informed Rachael that she started an online business recently where she sells local soaps and that it is pretty lucrative. She encouraged Rachael to think of a business she could start that will complement the month allowance she receives from home.
Questions
- Veterinary Medicine is a pretty
demanding course, would you advise Rachael to start a business knowing that it
could negatively affect her education?
- If the answer to 1 above is yes, what are the business options that you think are available to Rachael that wouldn't affect her education negatively?
- If the answer to 1 above is no, what are your reasons?
- Do you think starting a business is the only means through which Rachael can make more money? If no, what are the other options that you think are available to her?
- What are the initial steps Rachael must take before establishing a business?
- Do you think she should inform her parents about her decision to start a business? What do you think their reactions will be?
- Can you think of the various ways networking may be useful when it comes to establishing a business?
- Do you think Rachael should have invested instead? But can she invest without having a capital?
NETWORK MEETING 2.0
Topic: On Changing the world.
The conversation about changing the world is one we should have everyday. We try to find out what has been done, what's possible and if what we do truly makes a difference on the long run.
NETWORK MEETING 1.O
Topic: On Independence
One day, under normal circumstances, everyone will leave home and attain some level of independence. It's what we look forward to when an "adult" tells us what to do, the ability to do whatever we want when and how we want it-often exaggerated as a form of invincibility. But then is independence in that sense all that we imagine it to be? Soon, we realize that when parental or adult control steps aside, a more merciless system takes over, we wish we had someone to tell us what to do but we are suddenly the most adult person in the room, "the adultest adult". The Liquid Network finds out if we must face independence and the real world the same way those before us did- with naive anticipation and then growing dread; somewhat like teaching someone how to swim by shoving him in a pool the first time, or if there's another way and if it'll be worth exploring.