Hi everyone, hope you’ve all been well ;)
April was a pretty exciting month filled with travel, technology, sustainability, and some really meaningful community projects. Here are a few highlights from the past few weeks:
What I’ve Been Up To 📈
🇮🇪 Took a quick trip to Ireland for a funeral.
💻 Continued working on upgrading technology infrastructure for the West End Seniors’ Network.
🚀 Attended Vancouver Startup Week 2026 and had the opportunity to meet some incredible founders, entrepreneurs, and innovators from across the city.
Achievements & Highlights 🚀
TEDx Talk Officially Published 🎤
My TEDx talk has officially been published on YouTube! It’s surreal seeing something that started as an idea finally out in the world. If you haven’t watched it yet, feel free to check it out:
Partnership with WESN 🌱
We launched a major partnership with the West End Seniors’ Network (WESN), where we helped plant 900 avocado trees in Kenya.
Projects like this remind me how technology, sustainability, and community can all work together to create meaningful impact around the world.
Persea americana (avocado) trees were planted in partnership with the West End Seniors’ Network. A fast-growing, non-allelopathic species that supports food security and produces nutrient-rich fruit containing vitamins and compounds beneficial to human health. Helping Make the Internet More Accessible ♿
This month, I joined AccessibilityChecker.org as a Sales & Account Manager. It has been exciting getting involved with a company focused on helping make the internet more accessible for people with disabilities and improving accessibility standards across the web.
Modernizing the WESN Computer Lab 🖥️
I finally finished setting up many of the computers in the West End Seniors’ Network computer lab. Some of the systems were still running software that was over a decade old, so it’s been rewarding to help modernize the space and improve digital access for seniors in the community. More photos and updates will be coming in next month’s newsletter!
Rebuilt the Breathwave Website for Better Performance & Sustainability 🌊
This month, I rebuilt the Breathwave website on a new platform and hosting setup, leading to major improvements in speed, accessibility, and overall performance. After re-optimizing the site in April using Google PageSpeed Insights, here were the results:
Mobile
Performance: 39 → 90 (+131%)
Best Practices: 77 → 100 (+30%)
Accessibility: 92 → 95 (+3%)
Desktop
Performance: 47 → 100 (+113%)
Best Practices: 77 → 100 (+30%)
Accessibility: 92 → 95 (+3%)
The website now loads in about one second on mobile instead of nearly twenty seconds, making it roughly 95% faster than before. It’s exciting to see how sustainable web design can improve both user experience and environmental impact at the same time.
Top Lessons From This Month 💡
One thing I learned this month is that there are actually a surprising number of federal government grants available for projects related to technology, accessibility, sustainability, and social impact.
That’s something I explored while supporting the West End Seniors’ Network, and it opened my eyes to how many opportunities exist if you’re willing to research and apply for them.
If you’re passionate about technology or social justice, it’s definitely something worth looking into.
Curious about my past adventures?
Catch up on all my previous updates in the newsletter archive. You never know what gem you might find!
Shoutouts 👏
Huge shout-out to Pranav at The Knowledge Society (TKS) for providing access to Vancouver Startup Week. The return on investment from my experience with TKS has honestly been incredible, and I genuinely wish more teenagers had the opportunity to experience programs like it.
I truly believe it can change lives when students fully commit themselves to the experience.
Another big thank you to Ashna, Jillian, Andre, and the entire team at The Dais for creating such an amazing experience while I was working there.
I learned a tremendous amount during my time with the organization, and I’m grateful for the opportunity. Social media announcement coming soon.
What’s Next? 🚀
I recently finished my work term with The Dais at Toronto Metropolitan University, so next month I’ll be sharing more about that experience — along with some exciting recognition I received from a senator from the Government of Canada.
I also had the opportunity to participate in an aviation program at Vancouver International Airport through the Vancouver School Board, which was an amazing experience and gave me a behind-the-scenes look into the aviation industry.
Working on an upgrade to the Oasis of Change website. We are building out new versions and focusing on making it significantly more sustainable, improving both performance and environmental impact.
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Onwards and upwards,
Gabriel Dalton
P.S. Want more behind-the-scenes? For more in-depth discussions, check out my LinkedIn or Medium profiles.