OTTAWA (November 17, 2009) - The British Council in Trinidad and Tobago has invited Canadian students Shona Couturier from Kingston, Ontario and Julie D’Aoust from Montreal, Quebec to participate as delegates in the Commonwealth Youth Forum in Trinidad and Tobago from November 21st to 27th, 2009. The forum will focus on youth leadership and will be a lead-up to the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting from November 27th to 29th.

The students will take part in plenary sessions involving youth involvement in decision making, peace building, climate change and promoting sustainable livelihoods. They will act as facilitators in sessions relating to the environment and have the opportunity to collaborate with students internationally and share their knowledge and experiences.

The Commonwealth Youth Forum will focus on engaging youth to have an active and direct role in the decision making process. During the Commonwealth Forum, the youth will have the opportunity to have a dialogue with foreign ministers and heads of state.

The British Council is the United Kingdom’s international organization to promote education and cultural relations.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:

Margret Brady Nankivell, Programmes & Communications Manager

tel: 1(613)364-6237 or cell: 1(613)301-5922 or margret.brady@britishcouncil.org

BACKGROUNDER:

Shona Couturier, Royal Military College of Canada, Kingston Ontario

Shona is a student at the Royal Military College of Canada in Kingston Ontario. She is enrolled in the college’s arts program working towards a degree in business administration and a minor in political science. Originally from the Montreal area, Shona attended Heritage Regional High School where she completed the International Baccalaureate Middle Years Programme. During high school, she was active in her school’s student council and house system and helped create a leadership program. In her final year, she was one of three Canadians who participated in the Cape Farewell 2007 Arctic Youth Expedition. After the voyage she shared her experiences with her school and attended various conferences and functions to speak of her voyage and to initiate youth activism and leadership. Shona created a seven-piece photography exhibit to represent her time in the Arctic. Three of her photos were displayed for six months at the Ontario Science Centre in Toronto, Canada’s largest science museum. Shona attended Dawson College in Montreal, Quebec for a year where she studied health sciences and was involved in Science Participating with the Arts in Education, a leadership and educational project. Her most recent conferences include the 5th World Environmental Educational Congress in Montrea,l Quebec, and the national launch of the 2008 Cape Farewell Youth Expedition in Toronto, Ontario.

Julie D’Aoust, Marianopolis College, Montreal, Quebec

Julie D’Aoust is a student at Marianopolis College in Montreal, Quebec. In spring of 2008, she was trained to become one of Al Gore’s Climate Project presenters. Since then, she has given presentations to elementary and high school students with the aim of raising awareness and encouraging action on the topic of climate change. As a 2008 British Council Climate Champion, she has had the opportunity to build a network with other young people from across Canada and share ideas about how to engage youth to make ‘green’ changes in their own lives. The ICCommit project, designed with the goal of showing students that small lifestyle changes could send a larger message, was the direct result of these shared ideas. Apart from her commitment to slowing the effects of climate change, Julie is also kept busy with volunteer work in her community and playing the piano. She has won several awards including the 2007 Regional Science Fair Gold Medal and the 2008 Shalheveth Freier Physics Tournament