May 6, 2004 OTTAWA – Her Excellency the Right Honourable Adrienne Clarkson, Governor General of Canada, will officially open the 2004 Governor General's Canadian Leadership Conference, under the theme Leadership and Diversity, at the Fairmont Winnipeg Hotel on Friday, May 7, 2004, at 3:30 p.m. The Governor General's Canadian Leadership Conference was created in 1983 and is held every four years. It brings together 225 Canadians from different regions of the country who are in positions of responsibility or destined for leadership in business, the labour movement or government. All members are high-potential individuals expected to achieve senior leadership positions in their organizations and communities. The overall purpose of the conference is to improve and enhance the quality of decision making and leadership in Canada. For the first time in the history of the conference, international speakers will take part in the opening session. "The Canadian Leadership Conference is a unique opportunity to understand what defines us as Canadians with our differences and our similarities," said the Governor General. "This year's participants have been chosen because it is believed that they will exercise great leadership roles in the next 20 to 25 years. The Conference will give them an irreplaceable chance to broaden their perspectives, to open their minds and encourage them to view diversity in new ways." "Leadership is not about elitism," said the Governor General. "Leadership is about taking responsibility. And I hope that this experience is going to enable the participants to be more responsible." The delegates will be divided into groups, each of which will travel to a designated area of the country to discuss issues related to the conference theme with civic leaders, union representatives and Canadians from all walks of life. It is designed to pack the most intense experiences of life in Canadian industry and community into a two-week program. This year, the delegates will gather in Ottawa at the end of the conference, where each group will present its conclusions to the Governor General and engage in a final discussion of what has been learned. Internationally acclaimed speakers will address the delegates over the two-week conference; among them, Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu, Chief Justice Beverley McLachlin, Guy Laliberté, Bernard Kouchner, Michael Ignatieff, and Marco Aurélio Garcia. For more information on the conference, please visit the web site at: www.leadership2004.ca. -30- Media information Randy Mylyk Press Secretary to the Governor General Tel.: (613) 993-8167 or pager: (613) 751-7978 Rideau Hall Press Office (613) 998-0287 or (613) 993-8157 or (613) 998-7280 www.gg.ca Pierre Leduc 2004 Governor General's Canadian Leadership Conference (416) 360-6183 x 225 cell: (416) 859-8562 www.leadership2004.ca
