Young leaders give impoverished something to sing about

Wednesday, September 26, 2012

World Vision Australia chief executive Tim Costello has commended two young Australians for leading this weekend’s Global Citizen Festival in Central Park, New York.

More than 60,000 activists will gather on the Great Lawn this Saturday night to see performances by Neil Young, the Black Keys and the Foo Fighters. The event aims to be the biggest syndicated music charity webcast and broadcast ever and has been timed to raise awareness of poverty issues as the UN General Assembly meets in New York.

World Vision is one of ten non-profit organisations partnering with the Global Poverty Project to support the concert.

Mr Costello said the Australian founders of the Global Poverty Project – Hugh Evans and Simon Moss – were outstanding examples of young leaders determined to improve the world.

“Over the past decade or more, I have had the honour of watching these two young men grow into extraordinary examples of global citizens,” Mr Costello said. “It makes me proud to see young Australians really making a difference on the international stage.”

Mr Evans first witnessed the plight of the poor as a 14-year-old on a trip to Manila’s slums with World Vision. In 2002, he travelled to South Africa as a World Vision Australia youth ambassador.

Mr Costello said the GPP founders highlighted the importance of investing in young leaders.

World Vision Australia, through its youth program VGen – Vision Generation – has made a strong commitment to nurturing the passion of young people with a determination to eradicate child poverty.

World Vision’s Global Campaigns Director Andrew Hassett says the Global Citizen Festival is a chance to draw attention to the important issues of child and maternal health.

“Every year around 7 million children die before reaching their fifth birthday. By partnering with the Global Festival, World Vision is calling on leaders to take action to prevent needless child deaths,” said Mr Hassett. “We want to ensure that more children can survive to their fifth birthday and live to achieve their full potential."

The Global Citizen Festival is free. To attend, people must first register as a ‘Global Citizen,’ and then earn points by learning about, sharing information on or taking action to tackle extreme poverty.

Media contact: Kate Rose – 0418 528 683 / kate.rose@worldvision.com.au

Media Releases, Tim Costello, Vgen, Young People

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