LEARNING FOR A SUSTAINABLE FUTURE AT YORK U PRESENTS EDUCATING FOR RESPONSIBLE CITIZENSHIP SYMPOSIUM

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TORONTO, May 10 2013 – What do children and youth need to know, do, and value in order to ensure they are responsible, active, and contributing citizens? And how can formal education be reoriented to meet these goals? These questions and more will be addressed at a symposium on Monday, May 13, hosted by Learning for a Sustainable Future at the YMCA of Greater Toronto.

The What's Worth Knowing: Educating for Responsible Citizenship Symposiumwill bring together senior decision makers from the education, government, business, and non-profit sectors – as well as high school and postsecondary students – to raise awareness about challenges facing youth citizenship and identify strategies to promote positive action.

Highlights include:

9:10am Opening Keynote Address
“Great Citizens, Great Volunteers:  Boosting Ontario’s Volunteer Culture” – MinisterMichael Coteau, Ontario Minister of Citizenship and Immigration

12pm Lunch and Keynote Address

“International Approaches to Responsible Citizenship” – Charles Hopkins, UNESCO Chair in Reorienting Teacher Education

2:30pm Mid-Afternoon Keynote Address
“The power and creativity of young people in bringing about positive change” – Hon.David C. Onley, Lieutenant Governor of Ontario

3:45pm – Closing Keynote Address
“A Call to Action for Youth Responsible Citizenship” – Donna Cansfield, MPP Etobicoke Centre, Chief Government Whip

A full list of the day’s events can be found here.

LSF is a Canadian charity founded in 1991 with the mission to promote, through education, the knowledge, skills, values, perspectives and practices essential to a sustainable future. LSF is housed in York’s Institute for Research & Innovation in Sustainability (IRIS) and has a strategic partnership with York University to deliver education programming.

York University is helping to shape the global thinkers and thinking that will define tomorrow. York’s unwavering commitment to excellence reflects a rich diversity of perspectives and a strong sense of social responsibility that sets us apart. A York U degree empowers graduates to thrive in the world and achieve their life goals through a rigorous academic foundation balanced by real-world experiential education. As a globally recognized research centre, York is fully engaged in the critical discussions that lead to innovative solutions to the most pressing local and global social challenges. York’s 11 faculties and 28 research centres are thinking bigger, broader and more globally, partnering with 288 leading universities worldwide. York's community is strong − 55,000 students, 7,000 faculty and staff, and more than 250,000 alumni.

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Media Contact: Robin Heron, Media Relations, York University, 416 736 2100 x22097 / rheron@yorku.ca