I rarely go to local events. I spend more time reading blogs and interacting with people either at the beach or online than actually making it to a specific social gathering.

I have to find valuable reasons and connections to go out and meet-up with people these days. I love music and going to an event like El Independiente created by my friends over at Puerto Rico Indie, connects me with folks who love all types of music and can provide their perspectives on the messages the artists are conveying.

The other event is when Angiemille Latorre sends me an invite to Seriously Creative’s Pecha Kucha events. Since the event focuses on solving some of Puerto Rico’s overall issues, I want to be present to meet people doing many things for our well being.

In the first and second Pecha Kucha I attended, I took lots of notes. But on this occasion, I really wanted to absorb what was being shared. For that reason, I am sharing a quick recap of what I took away from the Pecha Kucha.

Books Politicians should read

The first Pecha Kucha, “The Bedtime Story”, was given by Dana Montenegro. Once again, he did an excellent job of setting the tone and suggesting a list of books that our future governor should read.  I will put a few of them into my own reading list.

Unfit for Print

Next was Gianpaolo Pietri who presented and spoke about his platform Yasta.pr. Gianpaolo had many ideas to share with the public but the short presentation format worked against him. I did get to know more about his background as an architect, which helped me understand his presentation a bit more.

I would have liked learning a few the issues Yasta.pr is trying to resolve from the aspect of news sharing. Maybe I can catch up with Gianpaolo and get more detail into what he does in the near future.

Eat and Request Quality Food

Tara Rodriguez, Founder of El Departamento de la Comida, presented the third Pecha Kucha of the night. She gave a continuation of her TedX talk San Juan talk. She mentioned some of the efforts she is working on to make healthy food options more accessible.

One statement she made that resonated with me was how local restaurants want to give customers what THEY feel like offering not what the customer wants or needs.

The same example she provided happened to me a few days ago on my last visit to PF Changs here in San Juan. They did not want to modify one of their plates that I have asked for on many occasions into a Vegan option. After talking to the Manager on duty and the chef, they ultimately created the plate I wanted and not what they wanted to serve me.

Creating Bad Ass Scientists by Educating with Music

Ignacio Peña gave the fourth presentation called, “El Gran Debate del Planeta Tierra”. Ignacio, a Puerto Rican Musician, is using his creativity and musical talent to educate kids about science and integrating it to pop culture. He is working towards helping kids see that the real challenges come from trying to get more knowledge into our daily lives.

Ignacio wants to make sure kids understand that being bad ass is being a scientist; someone who is going to find solutions and be disruptive while reaching a goal ultimately helping others with a solution.

I also had the chance to talk to Ignacio about our Blog Papaheroes and he invited me to his event El Gran Debate de la Planeta Tierra that I will be attending thanks to an invite from the producer Simon Carillo.

Another Pecha Kucha Style Experience

Overall it was another night where I got to meet some awesome new people from a diversity of backgrounds and I hope to stay up to date on the projects they are involved in.

PS – Before I left that night I found a very harmless Ghost in one of the chalkboards in the restroom. Creativity at its best.

Vegan Ghost