Foróige Releases

The 4th annual Foróige Albert Schweitzer Leadership for Life International Youth Conference was launched earlier today (July 30th) by young delegates from Ireland, the UK, USA, Canada, Palestine, India and Nigeria along with Hollywood star Matt McCoy, Ambassador to the conference. Some of the 270 young delegates from around the world gathered at Dublin's Spire on O'Connell Street, carrying their country's flags.

Matt McCoy is currently appearing in 'Touch' on TV3 and 'The Mentalist' on RTÉ but he is probably best known for starring in two 'Police Academy' films, 'L.A. Confidential' and also the highly acclaimed film, 'The hand that rocks the cradle'. Commenting on the conference, Matt said:

"It warms my heart to once again be heavily involved in this fabulous event. What we are seeing here cannot and should not be underestimated.

"These young people have a genuine drive and passion to become great leaders. In fact, they already are in so many ways. We are just encouraging them to develop their full potential.

"At the end of the day, hundreds of communities around the world benefit from this effort each year. The contributions being made by these young people maybe small on the wider scale of things, but if every teenager did what they're doing, the world would be a different place."

The ASLFL international leadership programme is operated by Foróige in partnership with the Irish Chamber of Commerce, United States of America (ICCUSA).

The Chief Executive of Foróige is Seán Campbell:

"We are extremely proud of the Albert Schweitzer Leadership Programme. At the end of this week we always see tears and that is because these young people form strong bonds and also because they have made a real connection with the concept, they simply don't want to let go.

"They leave here with a real sense of purpose. They believe they can make a difference and instead of standing back and watching someone else do it, they step up to the mark and do it themselves."

The 270 international delegates, aged 15 to 18, will graduate from the Foróige Albert Schweitzer Leadership for Life Programme on Thursday evening (Aug 2nd) having completed a 12 month, three-module programme designed to inspire them to become great leaders.

On Tuesday, (July 31st) Jedward's Tour Manager, Liam McKenna, will speak to the young people about the pitfalls associated with fame.

The week long conference will also include contributions on Thursday (Aug 2nd) from 16-year-old Joanne O'Riordan, the Cork teenager who was born without any limbs. Entrepreneur Seán Gallagher will also share his experiences with the young delegates on Thursday.

For further information please contact: 

Jerome Hughes, Foróige Media Officer

086 197 4392

Foróige is the leading and largest youth organisation in Ireland. The charity works with 64,000 young people and 5,500 adult volunteers annually, through a network of more than 600 youth clubs & cafés, 154 targeted projects and national programmes such as Citizenship, Entrepreneurship and Leadership.

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