November 14, 2008
OTTAWA-Her Excellency the Right Honourable Michaëlle Jean, Governor General of Canada, will visit the Youth Services Bureau of Ottawa (2675 Queensview Drive, Ottawa) to engage street-involved youth in a Youth Dialogue from 2:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m., on Monday, November 17, 2008.
The Governor General will discuss with close to 40 youth from the region as well as with social services professionals. They will engage in a discussion on the social challenges street-involved youth face on a daily basis, and identify the appropriate strategies to meet their needs.
"Whether combating social exclusion or helping to protect the environment, it amazes me to see the imagination and tenacity with which young people find innovative approaches to mobilize millions of people around the world and to build hope for a better world in which anything is possible, even when there is little willingness to act," said the Governor General in a past Youth Dialogue.
About the Governor General's Youth Program
Having made youth one of the main priorities of her mandate, the Governor General inaugurated, in 2007, the Youth Dialogues series, providing young Canadians with a space to voice their opinions on social transformation, and to pursue this dialogue on the Citizen Voices Web site (www.citizenvoices.gg.ca). Her Excellency shares the ideas and perspectives presented during the dialogues with decision makers. Past Youth Dialogues have covered themes such as the Abolition of the Slave Trade, the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, and youth involvement in democracy.
For more information on the Governor General's youth program, please visit www.gg.ca/gg/youth/index_e.asp.
About the Youth Services Bureau of Ottawa
The Youth Services Bureau of Ottawa serves youth aged 12 and older with difficulties affecting their physical and/or emotional well-being and development. At 20 locations throughout Ottawa, the organization offers a wide range of programs: from emergency shelters to mental health crisis support; from employment programs to custody facilities for those in conflict with the law; from drop-in centres to permanent housing; and from school programs to individual and family counselling.
For more information about the Youth Services Bureau of Ottawa, visit their Web site at http://www.ysb.on.ca/english/index.php.
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Media information:
Marie-Ève Létourneau
Rideau Hall Press Office
613-998-0287
www.gg.ca
www.citizenvoices.gg.ca
Derek Antoine
Communications
Youth Services Bureau of Ottawa
613-729-1000, ext. 1203
613-889-6893 (cell.)
dantoine@ysb.on.ca
