OTTAWA-Her Excellency the Right Honourable Michaëlle Jean, Governor General of Canada, will welcome the delegates of the 2008 Governor General's Canadian Leadership Conference at Rideau Hall, on Thursday, June 19, 2008, at 6:30 p.m. The participants are returning to the nation's capital for final two days of discussions on the conference's theme, Leadership and the Community.
The Governor General will briefly address how the arts and culture can be used to empower youth to effect social change in their communities. She will then introduce the delegates to a dynamic hip hop-based youth outreach organization, called BluePrintforLife, which played an instrumental role in the Governor General's urban arts forums initiative.
To illustrate their work, a breakdancing performance will bring together members from BluePrintforLife, lead by Buddha and Smoothand, with the Canadian Floor Masters. They will be joined by young Aboriginal dancers from Clyde River, Nunavut, who have recently benefited from workshops in their community offered by this cutting-edge organization.
Following two weeks of intensive work in many communities across the country, the 2008 conference delegates have gathered in Ottawa for two days of workshops, and will report to the Governor General on what they have learned and experienced while traveling to different regions.
The Governor General's Canadian Leadership Conference was created in 1983 by then-governor general Edward Schreyer. It is held every four years and brings together 230 Canadians from different regions of the country, who are emerging leaders in the business, government, labour and community sectors.
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Media wishing to attend should arrive by 6:15 p.m. via the Princess Anne Gate. This special event will be held outdoors, weather permitting.
Media Information:
Lucie Caron
Rideau Hall Press Office
613-993-8158
613-301-7344 (cellular)
www.gg.ca
www.citizenvoices.gg.ca
Marthe Blouin
Official Spokesperson to the Governor General
613-301-3379 (cellular)
mblouin@gg.ca
