The third Nelson Mandela Youth Leadership Summit takes place next month in an online forum hosted from Shepparton.
The annual event aims to inspire a diverse youth population from refugee, migrant and Australian-born backgrounds to create connected future leaders of the region and Australia.
This year's online format means it will be open to youth from around Australia and the world.
Summit joint-convener Rashidi Sumaili of the Shepparton-based not-for-profit Future Voices said this year's event would gather several notable speakers together under the theme Young People Leading with Optimism Through the Pandemic and Beyond.
Mr Sumaili said changes had been made to previous formats to allow participants to engage using Zoom and sidebar chats.
“We'll have shorter speeches, break-outs for the participants to share their reflections, and sufficient time for Q&A and student replies,” Mr Sumaili said.
The annual summit is run by Future Voices together with educator and author of The Ghandi Experiment Margaret Hepworth and partnered by Victor Perton of the Centre for Optimism.
This year's speakers and panelists include leading Victorian scientist Dr Amanda Caples, Victorian Chamber of Commerce president Karyn Sobels, US Consul General officer Michael F Leine, State Director of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade Andrew Cumpston, and Wanganui campus principal of the Greater Shepparton Secondary College Ken Murray.
This year's summit will again be supported by schools and educational institutions in the Shepparton area including the Greater Shepparton Secondary College, Goulburn Valley Grammar School, Shepparton Christian College, Notre Dame Secondary College and La Trobe University.
The 2020 Nelson Mandela Youth Leadership Summit takes place on Tuesday, September 15 from 10 am - 12 pm.
To register, go to https://www.centreforoptimism.com/event-3938261
For more information, go to
https://www.centreforoptimism.com/The-third-Nelson-Mandela-Regional-Youth-Summit/