Russ Morgan is a Telfer School of Management alumnus that likes to keep busy. Aside from his professional life as a strategy and marketing professional, over the last three years he has started and run a non-profit alongside his brother and a small board. Dedicated to eliminating poverty in the developing world, Building Walls of Wisdom (BuildWoW) has been committed to creating educational opportunities through the construction of schools.
During his tenure at the Telfer School of Management, Russ was the president of the winning Undergraduate Business Games team [This link is no longer available], as well as a four-year executive on the University of Ottawa Marketing Association, now the Telfer Marketing Association. Russ learned early on that going above and beyond what is expected of you can be incredibly rewarding.
One of the biggest rewards Russ received was on a recent trip to visit all BuildWoW projects underway in Africa. He was able to see first-hand the very real difference that his organization, inclusive of its numerous contributors, has made in various communities. In a recent reflection of his trip, he wrote the following:
“At the end of the day we are all people; people that work, people that laugh, and people that want the best for their children. The only difference is where we are born and the resources that are available. For those of us who live in a country where resources and education are abundant, we have a responsibility to help those communities with less.”
Russ is a firm believer that his business education has greatly contributed to his organization's success. With a BCom in Marketing, Russ has been able to apply a number of strategic frameworks to help BuildWoW grow. In addition, Russ continues to support doing more -“Everyone within our organization, myself included, work on a volunteer basis. I have seen first-hand that individuals can provoke change no matter what profession they choose.”
To see Russ in action, we invite you to watch the video explaining the current Building Walls of Wisdom project in Northern Ghana.
About Building Walls of Wisdom
Launched on April 1st, 2009, Building Walls of Wisdom was created in an effort to make a small impact in the world of extreme poverty. The construction of schools is one of the most significant ways to tackle this issue. Building Walls of Wisdom creates educational opportunities one school at a time. Its original and very modest goal was to build 10 schools in 10 years. Today, they are in the midst of raising funds for their 7th project. To date, Building Walls of Wisdom has been responsible for the construction of schools in Kenya, Ecuador, Sri Lanka, and Ghana.
For more information on Building Walls of Wisdom, please visit www.buildwow.com.
To contact Russ Morgan directly, please
