Over forty emerging young leaders in the field of business, governance and community from across the Caribbean will be getting an opportunity to join another 80 of their counterparts from across the globe to participate in an upcoming Caribbean-Canada Emerging Leaders’ Dialogue (CCELD) conference. The young leaders will be able to share success strategies with other accomplished professionals in various fields of their interest to develop their leadership skills and further impact national development in their home countries.

The conference which has been endorsed and supported by The Princess Royal, Princess Anne of England and its Steering Committee are currently encouraging young leaders from labour, government, community, and private sectors to apply for the 2011 leadership development conference. The application process is open until August 31, 2010.

“This Dialogue will offer participants a unique learning opportunity that will challenge their assumptions and expand their global appreciation, while listening to other points of view in a fast paced programme,” said CCELD President, Princess Anne.

The CCELD brings together 120 future leaders from Canada, Bermuda, and the Caribbean to participate in a two week, leadership development conference. From the opening in Ottawa, Canada on May 28 to the closing ceremony in Barbados on June 11, participants explore governance, regional cooperation, and innovation in public and private institutions, through the lens of the Dialogue theme: “Growth Through Connection – Enabling Sustainable Progress.”

After three days of plenary sessions in Ottawa, participants divide into teams of 12 to travel in Canada and then in a Caribbean country to visit communities and workplaces from the public and private sectors, as well as civil society. During on-site visits, participants meet with leaders in their environment to discuss their challenges, and the strategies used in meeting them. The Dialogue reconvenes for four days in Barbados where each team prepares a presentation on their observations and conclusions for the plenary, the conference president and invited guests.

“The most interesting part is getting a diverse group of people to come together as an interdependent team,” noted Ed Ball Jr, member of the CCELD Steering Committee, Commonwealth Study Conference alumnus, and General Secretary of the Bermuda Public Services Union. “Participants from the private sector, government and trade unionists join together to explore diverse issues, ranging from health care to manufacturing and then reach a consensus.”

Participants will be selected from Canada and the Caribbean from a broad range of backgrounds intended to reflect the diversity that exists in the workplace and the economy. In order to be selected, each participant will already be successful in his or her chosen field, and have demonstrated their potential to rise to the very peaks of their chosen careers.