Conference set to attract cream of UK’s young business leaders

YORKSHIRE’s leading role in the revival of a mentoring organisation that included John F Kennedy among its members will be recognised next year, when a major conference comes to Leeds.
By The Newsroom
Published 2nd Oct 2012, 10:03 BST

Members of JCI (Junior Chamber International) in Leeds are celebrating after they submitted a winning bid to host the national JCI convention, which will take place from Friday, November 22 until Sunday, November 24 next year.

Next year, both the president and deputy president of JCI UK will come from Yorkshire, which reflects the fact that 160 out of JCI’s 400 British members come from Yorkshire and Lincolnshire.

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The 2013 national conference, which will have a Downton Abbey theme, is expected to attract dozens of young business leaders from around Britain.

It’s hoped that the event will provide an economic boost for the region, by encouraging the business leaders of the future to invest in Yorkshire.

The JCI UK national president for 2013 is Emma Eastwood 
from JCI Leeds, while her deputy will be Kate Senter from JCI Sheffield.

The conference director is Heather McShannon, the 2012 JCI Leeds president. She said yesterday: “We’re really proud to have won the bid to host the JCI UK National Convention in Yorkshire next year. It’s particularly exciting given that both the national president and deputy are from the region too. We look forward to welcoming members to Leeds in 2013.”

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JCI – a volunteer network for people in their twenties and thirties – was founded in 1915 in St Louis, Missouri. It spread to the UK in 1925.

Yorkshire’s role in the rebirth of the JCI movement was recognised in February last year, when the global head of JCI visited the county. JCI world president Bertolt Daems held talks with JCI members in Sheffield during a three-day tour of Britain.

Over the years, JCI in Yorkshire has provided mentoring for young people who have gone on to achieve national prominence. Bernard Hogan-Howe, the new Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police, is a former member of JCI Sheffield.

Former US Presidents Al Gore, Bill Clinton and John F Kennedy were all members of JCI in the US.

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In Leeds, JCI members have been doing their bit to fight malaria as part of a national campaign. Members produced a charity calendar to support the United Nations Foundation’s Nothing But Nets campaign.

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Related topics:LeedsYorkshire