Jenny Sequeira on the first IA2030 Accelerator: “You have a network of peers who are holding you up”

Jenny Sequeira, a global health consultant with over two decades of public health experience, joined the Geneva Learning Foundation’s Immunization Agenda 2030 (IA2030) Impact Accelerator on 8 November. Working with Charlotte Mbuh, she met with participants once a week for an IA2030 Hackathon, each time exploring a specific challenge being faced by one individual. Her role was startlingly different from that of a conventional technical advisor prescribing top-down solutions: she listened, facilitated the discussion, and gave feedback. Listen to Accelerator participants problem-solve an immunization challenge in the ITCH Hackathon https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=naKk6v2RD9U&t=0s On 10 December 2021, at the Commencement Event for this first Accelerator, we asked her to share her reflections about this experience. “I have just been so very impressed by everyone in this whole IA2030 Impact Accelerator Launch Pad. You know, when you look at intrinsic motivation, there are often three factors that are cited for what keeps people going: autonomy, mastery and purpose. And I think when we look at this team, that 700 plus people who joined the sessions, the General Assembly sessions and the hackathons, I saw people who were really sharing specific, smart ideas, going into the micro steps, not staying at the general level, where it's more of the standards and guidance; but going deeper and deeper into, this is what I did. This is what worked, this is what didn't work. And I think at the end of the day, it's this type of very specific feedback that can help other people in other countries or even in the same country, going through similar things. So like Dr. Folake was saying, you know, what matters is what do you do afterwards? What are the next steps? And I would like to challenge all of you, graduates. Thank you, this is an amazing, amazing experience. But what's next, we know that we're still in challenging, challenging times. And I just encourage everyone to stay motivated, and you have a network of peers around the world, who are holding you up. So thank you, again, it was a pleasure to work with you. And I look forward to ongoing discussions.” Request your invitation to join Teach to Reach: Connect, a unique quarterly event to meet, network, and learn with fellow immunization professionals from all over the world https://www.learning.foundation/teachtoreach