Local teens attend Boston summit

MEMBERS of the Foróige Clubhouse project in Blanchardstown were in Boston, Massachusetts for The Clubhouse Network’s 2018 Teen Summit last week.

Adam King, (17), Amir Serajpour, (15) and Patrick O’Sullivan, (17) joined up with over 150 other teenagers from 16 countries for the Clubhouse Network’s biannual teen summit that took place from July 31 to August 5.

The three locals have been members of the Foróige Clubhouse for a number of years and were chosen to attend the summit because of their enthusiasm and commitment to learning and for their work in mentoring younger members.

The Clubhouse Network is an international community of 100 Clubhouses located in 19 countries, providing youth with life-changing opportunities for 25 years.

During the summit representatives from countries including Colombia, Ireland, Israel, Jordan, New Zealand, the Philippines, South Africa, and the United States came together to explore creative technologies and see how they can be applied to important social issues, both now and in the future.

The youth ambassadors were all chosen for their outstanding peer leadership and efforts to give back to their community.

The theme for the 2018 Teen Summit was ‘Stand Up, Speak Out, Change the World’ encouraging youth to engage in collaborative, cross-cultural activities that contribute to their personal growth.

After another recent teen summit, 91 percent of the youth attendees felt that the experience improved their cultural and racial understanding of others.

This year, the summit took take place at Boston University, where students participated in daily community meetings, topic tracks, and evening activities.

“The goal of the Teen Summit is to inspire Clubhouse youth not only to build hands-on fluency in technology but also to become self-motivated, confident learners through collaborative experiences that spark their interest, expand life skills, and help them become global citizens,” said Clubhouse Network Executive Director, Gail Breslow.

“We are both thrilled and honoured to have these young leaders from all over the world joining us in Boston for what is sure to be an inspiring week.”

Foróige is the leading youth organisation in Ireland.

The charity works with over 50,000 young people and 5,500 adult volunteers annually, through a network of more than 650 youth clubs & cafés, 160 targeted projects and national programmes such as Entrepreneurship (NFTE), Health & Wellbeing, Citizenship and Entrepreneurship.