2011 Watson Fellow Conference

The 2011 Watson Conference was probably one of the most amazing experiences of the trip for me.  This is for many reasons, but mainly because of the amazing people that I met there.  Although we weren’t allowed to talk or network with each other while “in the field” there was an instant bond that formed between us as soon as we met.  Due to the huge amount of “shared experience” that happened during our Watson years, friendships were forged within minutes.  After a few hours many of us felt as if we’d known each other for years and stories started to go beyond the superficial layers to talk about the less-glamorous parts of the trip that many of us had glossed over in conversations with most people on our travels.  In addition to all of the personal interactions each fellow had the opportunity to present their project to the group, although all of us struggled to relate the full scale of the project to the conference within the allotted time.

The 2010-2011 Thomas J. Watson Fellows.  Photo taken by Burleigh Morton.

The video that I made for the presentation was very well received and I even got a chance to lead a very brief training session on the grass outside the presentation hall during our break period.

The director of the Watson Foundation, Chris Kasabach, trying out parkour during some down time.  Photo Courtesy of my fellow Watsons.