February 28, 2007

by Her Excellency Michaëlle Jean

A few weeks ago, in Calgary, I took part in an extraordinary Engineers Without Borders event with 500 young engineering graduates from universities all across Canada. The room was alive with energy! Here were people who act on their ability to build the world and make a contribution to developing communities all over the planet. Parker Mitchell and George Roter, the organization’s co-founders, were part of the delegation that accompanied me to Africa, and as a result, I was able to see these young people in action, especially in Ghana.

And in Halifax, I spoke to nearly one thousand students from high schools and colleges across Nova Scotia. They had been invited by the Coady International Institute to take part in a round-table discussion with 10 interns who had just returned from various African countries after working several months on humanitarian projects.

 At both events, I noted that young people see the world as a whole, one big community that needs to be cared for collectively, and that the only reasonable and sustainable solution for humanity is to work together, in solidarity, by sharing knowledge and experiences. I was also quite pleased to hear a number of young people say that their commitment began—and continues—in their communities, their neighbourhoods, and their schools here in Canada. In so doing, they confirmed my belief that we need to focus on the importance of working together and forming constructive partnerships to help communities, right here in Canada, that also have very urgent needs. I hope, for example, that many young people will offer their assistance to Aboriginal communities without access to clean drinking water, or with glaring housing and health problems. In our cities too, homelessness and poverty are problems that require joint citizen action. We have a third or fourth world in our own backyard that we cannot ignore. Acting locally and globally should go hand in hand.