The past few weeks saw me making some behind the scenes changes to my career, business and most especially this website. You can expect the coming weeks and months to reveal some of those changes at their appropriate times. Nevertheless, first of these would be the launch of my event report series where I intend to give a report on events I attend, either as a speaker or participant. I will be starting with my first public event which I attended as a speaker.

My aim with the series is to achieve two goals at once. First is sharing with others what my experience at the event was, and second is saddling myself with the responsibility of maximizing my experience at these events. Not forgetting some concentrated networking.

Before getting actively involved in the decentralized space and getting to join a few projects as a blockchain lawyer, I had never been a public speaker of any sort. My first ever attempt, the usual High School debate team, ended up a disaster and is one of my most embarrassing moments to date. Over time, I can say things have gotten better, with every subsequent event being my best yet.

This post will briefly summarize the topics I covered in several events so far. Where necessary, there will be a full-blown article for some events.

 

2018

ConsenSys Ethereum MeetUp Lagos: Thursday, 22 March 2018

This was my first public speaking engagement in a blockchain and crypto event which I attended as a blockchain lawyer. I was privileged to be on a panel discussing the functionality of Ethereum tools and how it could benefit the layman who knew nothing about technology. One of the questions that stood out among the few I was asked, was on the enforceability of smart contracts. I can’t remember exactly what I said, hahaha, but likely something similar: in most jurisdictions, smart contracts are not enforceable because they are not legally recognized as proof of the transaction between two people.

CoinFest Abuja: Thursday, 5 April 2018

Nigeria’s capital city happened to be my next destination on the task of spreading the SatoshiLight gospel. This time around, Kayode Babarinde of KayBabs Consult hosted the popular CoinFest which holds simultaneously in different cities around the world. I already have a report of the happenings at the CoinFest 2018 conference up on this blog.

As Chief Legal Officer and representing ChainAfrica, an indigenous incubation hub specifically tailored for blockchain and crypto startups, I joined other panellists to do a joint AMA on what the projects we represent were all about.

Anglican Diocese Lagos: Saturday, 21 April 2018

If you don’t count Sunday School teachings and cell meetings, this was the first time I got an official invite to speak at a church-organized event. I joined others on a panel to discuss the use of Technology and Social Media for business. On my part, I focused on freelance jobs youths could begin with things they already have, rather than wasting away hours on social media looking at other people’s pictures. I emphasized how with a smartphone or laptop, and an internet connection, they could make a decent living from freelance writing, editing, transcribing, consulting, graphics design, etc.

Lagos Blockchain Meetup: Saturday, 28 April 2018

In a bid to promote awareness and education on blockchain and crypto, Munachi Ogueke, the CEO of Cryset, organized an island meetup for blockchain enthusiasts. I was one of the speakers and made a presentation on Regulations for Nigerian Blockchain Startups. Among other things, I explored the different areas we can expect regulators to focus on. First on the list is a statutory/legal definition of cryptocurrency. The complete slides can be found on Slideshare or in PDF for your reading pleasure.

Lagos Blockchain Week 2018: Monday, 10 September to Saturday, 15 September 2018

Rather than the usual pitch fest, most blockchain and crypto events are known for, this particular event, in partnership with Work Station Nigeria and a few others in the ecosystem, was a week-long hands-on training on different aspects of the fourth revolution. Participants were given a thorough introduction to blockchain, given live demos on trading on different exchanges, and even aspiring blockchain developers were not left out. I was invited to take a session on legal implications of blockchain and cryptocurrency. Here is my presentation on Slideshare and in PDF.

AWIT Nairobi: Thursday, 19 July to Saturday, 21 July 2018

So, yeah, I was gradually going international, hahaha. My trip to Nairobi, Kenya, was one of many firsts. My first international trip outside my home country. My first international event, and as a plus, I was also speaking! There were also several other firsts, but I won’t bore you. It was a privilege to join other talented ladies in the STEM space at AWIT Nairobi 2018, to speak on a panel discussing “Cybersecurity Strategies and Trends.” We explored how a nation can stay cyber safe, how to respond to cyber attacks and safety tips for those involved in cryptography, actually, cryptocurrencies.

Blockchain for Kids: August 2018

As a legal adviser for a STEM NGO, and one involved in blockchain, the founder presented me with an opportunity to teach kids about blockchain at their summer BootCamp. The tech Bootcamp which ran for a few weeks was a practical hands-on program to teach kids aged 6-18 on STEM areas like robotics, coding, animation, etc. My session with the kids was an introduction to blockchain and cryptocurrency, so I focused on what blockchain is, how it works and what it can be used for. I have my slides up on Slideshare and in PDF, so you can share with others or pick some points while teaching kids about blockchain. At this juncture, I would like to appreciate a friend, Telly Onu, for telling me about the Chinese Whispers game which had some elements of lessons about decentralization.

Republica Accra: Friday, 14 December to Saturday, 15 December 2018

Circumstances leading to the re:publica event had a bit of humour. One could say I had ‘closed shop’ for the year. So, you can imagine how elated I was to receive an email inviting me to speak outside my home country, all expenses paid, in addition to an honorarium. I joined a few heavyweights in the blockchain and supply chain management industry to discuss in a panel how these two diverse worlds converge. We were invited to partake in the Tech for Good topic under the heading: “Dude, Where is my Container?! Leveraging Blockchain Technology for Global Supply Chains.”

 

My fellow panellists were senior executives, David Ocholi at Maersk and Daniela Zehentner-Capell at the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).

 

2019

Business of Law Conference: Tuesday, 29 January 2019

Law is probably the only profession on earth with strict restrictions on advertising legal services, at least in my part of the world. Lawyers generally don’t consider their legal profession a business that should be marketed in full gear, consequences of this being living from brief to brief, charging measly fees and an unsatisfying career. Busola Ajala, founder of Strictly Law Biz decided to engineer discussions about this road less travelled resulting in the Business of Law Conference. Dubbed the “Trailblazers,” fellow panellists and I expounded more on “the impact of business strategies, social media and technology on our legal practice.”

AfroTech Girls Lagos: Saturday, 30 March 2019

As said by Kofi Annan, paraphrased: “When you empower a woman, you empower a nation”. It was with great joy I accepted the invitation to take some teenage girls on a decentralized voyage in the realm of the fourth revolution. In the one-day “introduction to blockchain and cryptocurrency” training, I broke down the concepts of blockchain, how it works, and what it can be used for. Most importantly, in an interactive session, we explored the different career paths they could consider in the decentralized space. The highlight of the day was a live demo where we opened a crypto wallet on blockchain.info, the most popular and secure online wallet for storing cryptos. My presentation slides which I used for the training is up on Slideshare and in PDF.

Christ Embassy Lagos: Sunday, 31 March 2019

My second invite to speak at a church. This time around, I was asked to enlighten youths on how they could adopt technology to usher themselves and their loved ones into financial freedom. Statistics show that Nigeria is in the top 10 on the poverty index, what this means is that 87 million people are living on less than $2 daily. Poverty is very expensive, one pays interest in bad health, unhygienic environment and poor education, perpetually fuelling the vicious cycle of the poor becoming poorer. You can check out my presentation, on Slideshare or in PDF, on helpful tips, both for those already in a stable career and those in search of a new path.

CoinFest Port Harcourt: Thursday, 4 April to Friday, 5 April 2019

It’s been five years since I last visited The Garden City, although I had lived there for about sixteen years since I was two years old. A lot happened within the half-decade: I got called to the Nigerian Bar; had a vehicular accident which I was lucky to survive and rendered me bedridden for two years, and went from an obscure lawyer to a trailblazer in blockchain law practice in Nigeria. Well, the latter was what brought me back again to the Garden City as a panellist at CoinFest 2019. Panel discussions were on “Crypto Trading, the future of Cryptocurrency, and How to Avoid Scams.” Questions directed to me by the moderator dwelled on the legal and regulations aspect. My preparatory notes are being converted to an article and will be published on this blog.

BlockTech Women Conference Lagos: Friday, 12 April 2019

First of its kind in this part of the world. A blockchain conference where primary participants were expected to be female. This is a breath of fresh air from the usual 1% females one finds in blockchain events. I was privileged to join other amazing female speakers to shed more light on the question: “Why aren’t there more women in blockchain?” I intend turning my preparation notes into an article to be published in the coming week.

 

If you would like me to present or speak to your company, or church or students, or even as an individual or group, feel free to contact me for more details.

So, there you have it!

Future events will have a blog post of their own. Have recommendations and suggestions? Please drop them in the comment box below. Thank you!

 

Gallery

Here are some photos of the above-mentioned events.