Four Westmeath students were among a group of nearly 300 young adults from across the world who attended the Albert Schweitzer’s Leadership for Life (ASLFL ) conference last week. The conference was run by Foróige, the National Youth Development Organisation, and ICCUSA Foundation Inc (Irish Chamber of Commerce, USA ) at NUI Maynooth. Nathan Byrne (Kinnegad ), Deirdre Campbell (Moate ), and Sarah Claffey and Grace Farrell (both from Rosemount ) secured a place for the week-long conference based on the strength of their written application supported by a nomination to attend from a youth worker or volunteer leader from the county.
The programme for the conference is based on Foróige’s youth leadership programme and is run in partnership with ICCUSA Foundation Inc. Students have been learning about the importance of community service, inter-culturalism, and health and well-being, among others. The conference included lectures by eminent leaders in the business, health, and community sectors as well as workshops on team building, critical thinking, and communication skills and peer discussions on matters of global importance.
The Westmeath natives were chosen for their innate sense of justice, determination, passion, and ability to lead and make positive changes in their own community.
