David Miliband: The G7 needs to show its relevance to the aspirations and voices of people seeking a more cooperative, sustainable, equitable way of living
In his remarks at the ‘What is the G7?’ roundtable event to be held later today, 1 December 2020, former U.K. Foreign Secretary and current CEO and President of International Rescue Committee, David Miliband, will call on the G7 to demonstrate its relevance and ability to be accurately representative across society, as the Presidency of the organisation begins its annual transition.
The U.K. assumes the G7 Presidency at the beginning of January 2021 and, as part of that body of work, will convene 7 engagement groups in order to ensure that its Presidency works for all sections of society. Youth G7 is one of those seven engagement groups, the others being Women 7, C7 (non-governmental organizations), Labour 7, Business 7, Think Tanks 7 and Science 7.
The engagement groups are involved at every level of G7 activities, including meetings with the Sherpas, Ministers and expert groups, through to the Leaders’ Summit, meaning that the opportunity to influence for young people is a substantial one.
In order to support this process, Future Leaders Network will undertake the U.K’s largest ever youth consultation in 2021. In addition, as it does every year, the network will select delegates to represent the United Kingdom at the Youth G7 and will, in 2021, host the Youth G7 Summit, on behalf of the U.K. In order to launch the 2021 selection process, Future Leaders Network has convened the ‘What is the G7?’ roundtable event.
Commenting, Rt Hon David Miliband, CEO and President of International Rescue Committee, said:
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The world needs a strong and united democratic world more than ever. The G7 needs to show its relevance to the aspirations and voices of people seeking a more cooperative, sustainable, equitable way of living. I hope Future Leaders Network helps raise some of these voices.
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Commenting, Sophie Daud, Chief Executive of Future Leaders Network says:
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With the global pandemic dramatically disrupting young people's education, restricting their current and future employment prospects and diverting attention from tackling the issues that will most impact their future, such as the climate emergency, the Youth G7 2021 is a significant chance to champion the voice of the 'forgotten generation' at the highest level, influencing national and international response and recovery priorities.
I encourage every young person in the UK to get involved in this process if you would like to influence the kind of world you would like to live in.
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Mr Miliband will be joined at the roundtable by Sir Jon Cunliffe Deputy Governor, Financial Stability at the Bank of England (and former U.K. G8/G20 Sherpa), and a panel of academics and G7 specialists, including:
● Julia Kulik, Director of Research for the G7 Research Group;
● Dr Tristen Naylor, LSE Fellow in International Relations; and
● Spogmay Ahmed, Global Policy Advocate at the International Center for Research on Women.
Notes to the Editor:
• For more information about the support available to young people in the UK, particularly our Youth 7 opportunity, please visit our website: https://futureleaders.network.
• For interviews or more information, including details of how you can attend the event, please contact Sophie Daud – Chief Executive, directly on +44 7788 990041 or at sophie.daud@futureleaders.network.
About Future Leaders Network
Future Leaders Network is a not-for-profit organisation, founded with the goal of discovering and developing the next generation of political, economic and social leaders. Our network of talented, ambitious young people, from all walks of life and all parts of the country, represent the United Kingdom at Global Summits, participate in expert panels and articulate research findings and policy proposals to policy makers both at home and overseas. Our diverse community incubates policy positions through intensive research, debate, engagement and collaboration.
Website: https://futureleaders.network
About the Youth G7 (Y7)
Youth G7 is one of seven engagement groups of the Group of 7 (G7) international intergovernmental economic organization, the others being Women 7, C7 (non-governmental organizations), Labour 7, Business 7, Think Tanks 7 and Science 7. The engagement groups are involved at every level of G7 activities, including meetings with the Sherpas, Ministers and expert groups, through to the Leaders’ Summit. They prepare recommendations for each G7 Presidency.
About David Miliband:
David Miliband is President and CEO of the International Rescue Committee (IRC), where he oversees the agency’s humanitarian relief operations in more than 40 war-affected countries and its refugee resettlement and assistance programs in over 20 United States cities.
Under Miliband’s leadership, the IRC has expanded its ability to rapidly respond to humanitarian crises and meet the needs of an unprecedented number of people uprooted by conflict, war and disaster. The organization is implementing an ambitious global strategy to bring clear outcomes, strong evidence and systematic research to the humanitarian programs through collaborative partnerships with the public and private sectors.
From 2007 to 2010, Miliband was the 74th Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs of the United Kingdom, driving advancements in human rights and representing the U.K. throughout the world. In 2006, as Secretary of State for the Environment, he pioneered the world’s first legally binding emissions reduction requirements. He was Member of Parliament for South Shields from 2001 to 2013.
Miliband graduated from Oxford University in 1987 with a first class honours degree in philosophy, politics and economics, and received a master’s degree in political science in 1989 from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, which he attended as a Kennedy Scholar.
L: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dmiliband/
About Sophie Daud:
Sophie is the Chief Executive of Future Leaders Network.
Sophie Daud is an award-winning public servant, who is passionate about youth empowerment and leadership development. She began her career in the U.K. Government, where she combined her scientific training with problem solving skills to tackle some of the country's most challenging social policy issues, ranging from long-term unemployment to child poverty.
In 2016, she was selected to represent the United Kingdom at the Youth G7, the official youth engagement group for the G7 Heads of State summit in Tokyo, Japan. Since then, Sophie has campaigned tirelessly to support the development of a new cadre of young leaders, and championing their voices in national and international decision making.
She was appointed Chief Executive Officer of Future Leaders Network in January 2019 and is looking forward to hosting the Youth G7 in 2021 when the U.K. hosts the G7 Presidency. Sophie was recently announced as a “Rising Star in the Public Sector”, awarded by WeAreTheCity in 2019.