My work with Mavericks of Social Change had attracted the attention of the Mayor of Halifax who offered me a job as a Research Assistant. I decided to put my university education on pause for a year to take in the experience.

My research was focused on capturing municipal best practices from across the country on youth engagement and retention, community outreach, and violence prevention. This included large-scale reviews of a recreation subsidy program, of Youth Cabinet and Council representation structures, and coordinating a large-scale youth sector consultation process called Make Your Mark.

Additionally, I aided other policy research and analysis projects as needed, in areas as wide ranging as Ferry infrastructure investment in Atlantic Canada, business incentivization programs, community safety initiatives, internal procedural issues associated with municipal council communications, and preparatory work for the Mayor's involvement in the Canadian Association of Municipalities (Big City Mayors Caucus).

This proved to be a wholly unique experience, providing me with an intimate window into the intricacies of decision making processes that underpin politics, government and the public sector.