Living what they believe
You can’t say these folk don’t walk their talk.
World-renowned environmentalist David Suzuki; Stephen Lewis, former United Nations Special Envoy for HIV/AIDS in Africa; Michaëlle Jean, former Governor General of Canada; and Craig Kielburger, founder and chair of Free The Children, have all established eponymous foundations dedicated to carrying on the projects they hold dear.
And those projects happen to be in line with the theme of Youth Action Montreal’s second conference, entitled Living Your Legacy: A Youth Summit on Community Engagement, and aimed at young people who are passionate about civic engagement, human rights, volunteerism and community development. It takes place April 28 at the Palais des congrès.
Suzuki’s foundation aims to protect the diversity of nature and our quality of life by providing science-based education, advocacy and policy work, and acting as a catalyst for social change.
Lewis is board chair of the Stephen Lewis Foundation, which is dedicated to turning the tide of HIV/AIDS in Africa, and he is co-founder and co-director of AIDS-Free World in the United States.
Jean and her husband, Jean-Daniel Lafond, are co-presidents of the Michaëlle Jean Foundation, which encourages grassroots youth and arts initiatives for social change. (Jean will address the audience via a prerecorded video, while Lafond will be present.)
Kielburger is the founder and chair of Free The Children, a unique international development and youth empowerment organization. Since 1995, Free The Children has become the world’s leading youth-driven charity, inspiring an entire generation to stand up and have their voices heard.
As well as these keynote speakers, the conference will showcase several successful student-led projects, including the Concordia Volunteer Abroad Program, which creates opportunities for students to volunteer in Africa, and 5 Days for the Homeless, a charity campaign founded by University of Alberta students (and adopted by John Molson School of Business students), during which students effectively live on the streets while raising money for the homeless.
The student-focused, non-profit organization was founded by Concordia students. Their first conference (Less Talk, More Action: A Youth Summit on Climate Change) was in 2007 and featured Nobel laureate and former US vice-president Al Gore as a keynote speaker. More than 5,000 students from Montreal-area CEGEPs and universities attended.
When: April 28, 2011
Where: Palais des congrès de Montréal (1001 Jean-Paul-Riopelle Pl.)
Tickets are available through Alumni Relations. Admission for Concordia students is $20; for faculty and staff tickets are $55.
(Please note: Nobel Peace Prize Laureate and former Secretary-General of the United Nations, Kofi Annan, will no longer be able to attend the conference since his diplomatic expertise is required on a peace mission to the Ivory Coast.)
Related links:
• Register (faculty, staff and students)
• "Students spill on who inspires them" - Now, April 19, 2011
• Youth Action Montreal
• Concordia Volunteer Abroad Program
• 5 Days for the Homeless
• David Suzuki Foundation
• Michaëlle Jean Foundation
• Stephen Lewis Foundation
• Free The Children