SPARK Foundation Canada has hosted their, first of many, fully virtual conference Leaders Today! SPARK foundation is a non-profit organization made up of 16-23 year old leaders empowering the next generation through in person, and online life education: workshops, camps and community programs. They also work towards accomplishing the United Nations sustainable development goals: Quality Education, Sustainable Cities & Communities, Climate Action and Peace Justice and Strong Institutions!
The live event took place on Sunday November 15, with guest speakers Anjali Dhaliwal and Abhay Sachal. The audience hailed from all over the lower mainland ranging from students as young as 13 to 21.
Sarah Cheng, Volunteer Engagement Lead & Srusti Subash, Marketing Lead along with the efforts of Rochelle Prasad, CEO/ Co-Founder of SPARK Foundation, have meticulously organised this conference for youth in High School and University. It centered around an idea to inspire youth to engage in their communities amidst the pandemic despite the restrictions imposed on traditional volunteering opportunities.
Anjali Dhaliwal, CEO of Youth Helping Youth, was the first speaker introducing the importance of personal branding. She spoke intimately of personal experiences that led to her growth and success encouraging the conference attendees to explore new things and find their passion.
Abhay Sachal, spoke about his journey to the Arctic that incited the urge to create an international organization advocating for climate justice where he became Co-Founder of Break The Divide. Through various activities connecting with their audience, both speakers were exceptional in delivering their thoughts and empowering those watching.
The conference ran for 2 and a half hours with a fun activity midway through where participants were placed in breakout sessions and given the prompt: if your team owned a cookie shop, what would they name it? This activity brought about a variety of responses developed from imaginative or analytical points of view.
When the audience was asked what they thought of the event, responses were overwhelmingly positive. Viewers spoke on how the conference impacted them where they’ve realised “Climate change has inequitable impacts on marginalized and minority communities. Leadership requires truly genuine passion for building a better community, nation, and world because we want to make everything better than how we found it.”
Aside from this conference, SPARK Foundation has provided youth across Canada volunteering opportunities through their General Ambassador Program which focuses on media and marketing, a skill set that has become extremely important to this generation.
SPARK Foundation has also contributed to their communities by organizing several Covid Relief Projects by delivering over 300 care packages of essential items to low income families and over 200 meals to essential workers in Surrey, BC.
For future events or more information visit www.sparkfoundation.ca
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