THEY MAY be the youth of today but a group of teenagers attending a conference in Dublin this week are planning to be the leaders of the future.
Some 215 young people from across the globe are attending the Albert Schweitzer’s Leadership for Life conference which finishes today.
One man and his catchphrase motto were on the lips of many of the young people attending the leadership conference.
Bradley Skolozdra (15) from Warrington in England is one of the many participants who said that he has been inspired by Barack Obama and his “yes we can” approach. “I admire him because he says he can do things and help change people and that’s what I’d like to do myself,” she said.
Charley O’Reilly (16) from Carnew, Co Wicklow, also aspires to Mr Obama’s ideals. “I just think he’s brilliant,” she said. “The stuff he says it just makes you think . . . you can achieve anything you want to if you put your mind to it.”
It is this can-do attitude that has set these young people apart from their peers. They have all shown a desire to become youth leaders in their own communities and were subsequently nominated to take part in the conference by Foróige in Ireland, Co-operation Ireland in Northern Ireland and Hoby International in the US, the UK, Korea, and Nigeria.
Over the course of the week they have participated in leadership workshops and debates. They have also been addressed by inspirational speakers including Jacqueline Murekatete, a Rwandan genocide survivor and human rights activist; Galway hurler Alan Kerins, who has raised over a quarter of a million euro for causes in South Africa; and Pádraig Ó Céidigh, managing director of Aer Arann.
Chief executive of Foróige Seán Campbell said the conference, which was developed by Foróige in partnership with the Irish Chamber of Commerce (USA), was designed to promote skills such as good communication, strategic thinking, goal-setting and teamwork.
“The whole idea behind it is to try and teach young people real leadership skills,” he said. “We’re really trying to inspire a new generation to look beyond themselves.”
However, many of the teenagers already possess this principle. Diane Joung (17) from South Korea is studying for her Leaving Cert in Mount Sackville in Dublin. “I’m particularly interested in social welfare,” she said. “I would really like to work in the UN after I graduate from college so I can help poor people.”
Nmeri Olivia Nwafor (16) from Nigeria hopes that the skills she is learning at the conference will eventually help her to set up her own NGO in order to help others. However, she says that everybody can help make a difference including those who say that they don’t have the time. “You have to try to squeeze time out of no time to achieve change,” she said.
Others said the course had helped their personal development. Maria Burns (16) is from Belcoo in Co Fermanagh where she is a leader in her local youth club. She said the conference had furthered her sense of responsibility.