Six Young Australians to Represent Australian Youth at APEC – Voices of the Future 2016
Six young Australians consisting of five youth participants and one educator will represent Australian youth at this year’s Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Voices of the Future 2016 summit from November 14 – 20 2016 in Lima, Peru, Organised by the Adele Feletto Publicity.
Isobel McDonald of Greenwich, NSW, Zoe Neil of Grose Wold, NSW, Larry Unguroiu of Parramatta, NSW, MacCallum Johnson of Forrester’s Beach, NSW, Toni Pachernegg of Franklin, ACT and the group’s educator on the trip Philip Chan of Hurstville NSW will be joining 120 youth delegates from 21 APEC Economies.
Founded in 2007, APEC Voices of the Future is a youth meeting for exchanges among young students from each economy held concurrently with the APEC Summit, aiming to let young students know more about APEC, expand their horizons, stimulate their enthusiasm for taking on the roles of leaders, and promote in-depth cultural exchanges among countries.
The purpose of this year’s event themed ‘Quality Growth and Human Development’ is to provide a platform for interaction and networking for youth from the APEC 21 Economies to encourage mutual understanding and cooperation; encourage the active participation of young people on APEC-related issues and policies; cultivate a deeper appreciation of APEC and its work in the 21 economies; provide learning opportunities for youth to interact with APEC leaders and business leaders; and prepare future leaders of APEC economies.
“I am thrilled The Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award – Australia has again been able to select a talented and motivated team of young Australians. As Gold Awardees and Award Alumni Isobel, Zoe, Larry, MacCallum, Toni and Philip have demonstrated academically and personally the attributes of future leaders and we welcome their involvement in encouraging mutual global understanding and cooperation, APEC related issues and for them to gain a greater insight into the work of APEC” said The Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award – Australia CEO, Peter Kaye AM.
Empowering all young people to explore their full potential, regardless of their location or circumstance, the Award encourages young people aged 14-25 to learn a life-skill, improve their physical wellbeing, volunteer in their community and experience a team adventure in a new environment.
With a rich global heritage, The Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award program was set up in 1956 by HRH Prince Philip, German educationalist Kurt Hahn and Lord Hunt, leader of the first successful ascent of the world’s tallest mountain, Mount Everest. The design of the Award is underpinned with strong, well tested educational and youth development principles.
