{"id":8476,"date":"2025-04-03T13:14:00","date_gmt":"2025-04-03T17:14:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ashleycaron.com\/personal-development\/?p=8476"},"modified":"2025-04-03T13:18:37","modified_gmt":"2025-04-03T17:18:37","slug":"my-experience-at-the-2024-idb-lab-forum","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ashleycaron.com\/personal-development\/my-experience-at-the-2024-idb-lab-forum\/","title":{"rendered":"My Experience at the 2024 IDB Lab Forum"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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My Transformative Experience at the 2024 IDBLab Forum<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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The 2024 IDBLab Forum was not just another conference, it was a shift in the right direction.\u00a0 Walking into the conference area of Hilton Buenos Aires felt like a breath of fresh air in more ways than one.\u00a0<\/p>

I\u2019ve attended my fair share of technology and innovation events and they\u2019ve often been male-dominated spaces. But this event was different.\u00a0I immediately felt welcomed and celebrated as a woman, not only because of the pink decor but because of the increased presence of women. <\/span><\/p>

This continued throughout the event with women presenting, contributing, and shaping the conversations of every major plenary session. There was also a presentation and workshop, facilitated by WISE, which provided a practical exercise for women founders to utilize AI in their businesses.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Key Themes and Takeaways<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Artificial Intelligence:<\/b> AI dominated conversations, with experts acknowledging its potential to boost global GDP by up to 10% while cautioning about its double-edged nature. I particularly appreciated Raquel Jorge Ricart’s presentation on the EU’s five-point policy framework for sustainable AI adoption.<\/span><\/p>

Innovation in Small States:<\/b> Jonathan Reid from Barbados offered powerful insights on the challenges small island states face: limited talent pools, insufficient funding, and the need to build a culture that supports entrepreneurship. His message that “small states have a responsibility to use technology in order to scale” resonated deeply with me.<\/span><\/p>

Blockchain for Financial Inclusion:<\/b> The potential of blockchain to increase financial access was eye-opening. Raadhika Sihin’s “Same Service, Same Rules” framework\u2014creating regulatory sandboxes for innovative businesses\u2014seems particularly promising for Caribbean implementation.<\/span><\/p>

Climate Resilience:<\/b> The eco-entrepreneurship panel highlighted opportunities with the Green Climate Fund and emphasized the importance of focusing on specific problems rather than tackling “climate change” broadly.<\/span><\/p>

Women in STEM:<\/b> The WeXchange Pitch Competition celebrated women innovators across Latin America. I was particularly impressed with Sommos from Bolivia, whose app uses cultural financial tools like Trinidad and Tobago’s traditional SouSou to help build financial credit and improve access to financing.<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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\"Raadhika<\/figure><\/div>
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The True Highlight: Connections<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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As incredible as the plenary sessions and discussions were, the most impactful part of the 2024 IDB Lab Forum for me was the networking. The chance to connect with such an inspiring and diverse group of people made this experience unforgettable. <\/span><\/p>

I had the privilege of meeting individuals I\u2019ve admired for years, like our former IDB Representative Carina Cockburn, whose leadership and vision continue to inspire. I also spoke\u00a0 with people whose work will undoubtedly influence my own, like Raadhika Sihin, whose insights on technological inclusion still has me thinking about their application in the Caribbean.<\/span><\/p>

But what truly stood out was the sense of connection and camaraderie I found with a group of phenomenal women from the Caribbean. These conversations felt like the beginning of lifelong friendships and collaborations. They reminded me how powerful it is to come together as a region to share ideas, support one another, and drive change.<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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Personal Transformation<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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This conference wasn’t just professionally enriching\u2014it was personally transformative. As someone who grew up in poverty, being in spaces like this once seemed impossible. Yet everyone I met made me feel like I belonged, that my voice mattered.<\/span><\/p>

I left Argentina with more than new knowledge and connections; I left with a deeper belief in my own potential. The IDBLab Forum reminded me that no matter where we start in life, there’s space for us at the table if we’re willing to dream big and seize opportunities.<\/span><\/p>

The key lesson I’m taking away? Technology is a tool, not a solution. How we use it to generate profit while protecting people and the planet is what truly matters. I’m excited to apply these insights as I continue developing my education app, Leverage TT, and look forward to contributing to the digital transformation of our region.<\/span><\/p>

I\u2019m so grateful to WeXchange, CARIBEquity and the IDBLab for sponsoring this life-changing experience<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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My Transformative Experience at the 2024 IDBLab Forum The 2024 IDBLab Forum was not just another conference, it was a shift in the right direction.\u00a0 Walking into the conference area of Hilton Buenos Aires felt like a breath of fresh air in more ways than one. I\u2019ve attended my fair share of technology and innovation […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":8481,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13],"tags":[121,122],"class_list":["post-8476","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blog","tag-2024-idblab","tag-caribbean-women-in-business"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ashleycaron.com\/personal-development\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8476","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ashleycaron.com\/personal-development\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ashleycaron.com\/personal-development\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ashleycaron.com\/personal-development\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ashleycaron.com\/personal-development\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8476"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/ashleycaron.com\/personal-development\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8476\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8492,"href":"https:\/\/ashleycaron.com\/personal-development\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8476\/revisions\/8492"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ashleycaron.com\/personal-development\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8481"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ashleycaron.com\/personal-development\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8476"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ashleycaron.com\/personal-development\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8476"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ashleycaron.com\/personal-development\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8476"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}