Young people in Newcastle have officially launched the first Global Shapers Hub in the region, with NewcastleGateshead Initiative (NGI) employees, Elizabeth Laurent and Anna Kerr, being two of the organisation’s founding members.
An initiative of the World Economic Forum, the Global Shapers Community is a network of inspiring young people under the age of 30 working together to address local, regional, and global challenges. Known by world leaders as the “outstanding under 30”, Shapers self-organise to address community issues. Across the globe, Hubs have addressed challenges such as improving access to clean water, developing local infrastructure, and supporting the development of future-generation skills.
Global Shapers focus on six key impact areas when devising projects:
1) Protecting the Planet 2) Reskilling for the Future 3) Strengthen Civic Engagement 4) Creating inclusive Communities 5) Improving Health and Wellbeing 6) Delivering Basic Needs.
To focus on delivering projects that directly align with these impact areas, Global Shapers Newcastle are keen to attract young people from a diverse range of backgrounds to tackle issues in an inclusive way, with recruitment now open, details below.
Hélder Costa, selected by the World Economic Forum as the Founding-Curator at the Newcastle Hub, welcomed the opportunity and said:
“The launch of the Newcastle Hub is an opportunity for local young people to take an active role in shaping their communities and the world. The North East has an outstanding history of global impact, and the new Hub will play an active part in supporting our young people to become powerful advocates for a better tomorrow”.
As part of the activities leading up to the launch, representatives of the Newcastle Hub received strong support from different local business leaders, who expressed their support for the group of dynamic young leaders coming together to positively impact the city and wider region. Sarah Green, CEO of NGI said:
“I’m proud to say that two of our team at NGI have helped establish the Global Shapers Newcastle Hub, demonstrating their commitment to making the North East a better place to live, work and invest by engaging in projects with tangible social and economic impact on local communities.
“It is critical for young people in our region to have the space and support to address the local, regional, and global challenges that are important to them whilst boosting their personal and professional development. I look forward to seeing what Anna, Liz and the Global Shapers team achieve over the coming months.”
Under 27s are now being invited to apply to join the Hub. Elizabeth Laurent, Impact Officer at the Newcastle Hub, said:
“I am very excited to be a part of the building blocks of the organisation. Being a part of this initiative enables me to continue my engagement with key regional issues. I look forward to working with local and international stakeholders to bring young people into decision-making and build a better tomorrow”.
Anyone interested can apply here Newcastle Global Shapers – Application Form (google.com) and reach out to the current Shapers through social media, by emailing newcastle@globalshapers.org , or by the official Global Shapers Channels