Craig Kielburger Biography
Craig Kielburger is an inspirational keynote speaker who co-founded Free the Children in 1995, when he was only 12 years old. Free the children in the world’s biggest youth-driven charity and its activities involve more than 1.7 million children. It is a place where young people can have their voices heard and the attention is focused on helping them.
With the added help of Youth in Action Projects, Free the Children has been successful in building more than 500 schools throughout Asia, Africa and Latin America. This has allowed more than 50,000 children to receive daily education. The organizations programs also involved health and clean water initiatives, which has enabled more than one million beneficiaries. Through the Adopt a Village development project, Free the Children managed to create more than 23,000 alternative income projects in order to help women and their families to maintain a steady income.
He and his brother Marc also started the ‘Me to We’ project, set up to promote ethical living and social responsibility and act as a financial aid to ‘Free the Children’, the rest of the money made is reinvested in order to grow the enterprise. ‘Me to We’ is made up of a number of different volunteer travel programs including leadership workshops, a publishing house, clothing line, speaker bureau and a music label.
Craig attended the University of Toronto, where he achieved a degree in peace and conflict studies, he is also the youngest person to have graduated from the Kellog-Schulich Executive MBA program. He has written 10 books and along with his brother writes a weekly column about the problems we face in our generation, published in a number of different newspapers. The Kielburger’s book ‘Me to We: Finding Meaning in a Material World’ is a New York Times best seller.
Craig has been awarded for his ongoing achievements and these include the Roosevelt Freedom Medal, The World Children’s Prize for the Rights of the Child and The Order of Canada. He has been awarded 13 honorary doctorates and degrees.
Craig’s dedication to his organisations is admirable and the work he has done is inspirational; he is an ideal choice for a keynote speaker.
Speaker Topics:
Me to We: Building Great Corporate Citizenship and Global Leadership
What for-profit companies can learn from non-profit organizations
Me to We: How to help employees find meaning in a material world
Corporate social responsibility: The new black
Family event for client and staff appreciation
For further information or to book Craig Kielburger, please call us on +44 (0)20 7607 7070 or email info@speakerscorner.co.uk
Craig Kielburger Video
Craig Kielburger Speaker Showreel - Click play to watch a short sample video clip of Craig Kielburger. For more information on Craig Kielburger please contact one of the Speakers Corner booking agents on +44 (0)20 7607 7070 or email info@speakerscorner.co.uk
Craig Kielburger News
A selection of relevant news related to Craig Kielburger, Keynote Speakers, Emerging Market Speakers, International Speakers, Leadership Speakers and Sustainability Speakers stories. For more information on Craig Kielburger or details as to how to book Craig Kielburger for your corporate event, please contact one of the Speakers Corner booking agents on +44 (0)20 7607 7070 or email info@speakerscorner.co.uk
How Reading The Paper Helped Craig Kielburger Change The World
16th August 2012
Craig Kielburger who co-founded Free The Children when he was just 12 years old remains a passionate full-time volunteer for the organization, which is now an international charity that empowers youth to achieve their fullest potential as agents of change.
Dambisa Moyo Talks about the World’s Resources and the West
16th May 2013
Economist and keynote speaker, Dambisa Moyo has expressed her views on the world’s resources and where she believes the West stand on the matter.
Ronnie O’Sullivan Wins Fifth World Title
7th May 2013
Snooker player, Ronnie O’Sullivan beat Barry Hawkins to win the Betfair World Championships at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield.
Self-Help Books; A Billion Dollar Industry
30th April 2013
Self-help books are increasingly popular among the British public than ever before and an increased number of us are turning to self help books in the hope that they will solve lives problems.
Olympic Champion, Sir Chris Hoy, Retires
19th April 2013
Sir Chris Hoy has decided to retire from cycling after winning six Olympic Gold medals and becoming the most successful British Olympian ever, taking the title from Sir Steve Redgrave.
Mike Forde Links Business to Football
18th April 2013
Business speaker and one of the UK’s leading sports executives, Mike Forde has compared the ideas and practices used in professional football to those used in business environments.
Willie Harcourt Cooze Releases New Chocolate Range
16th April 2013
Entrepreneur and star of Channel 4 show ‘Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory’, Willie Harcourt Cooze, has recently released a new range of chocolate desserts and gifts, which are now available all over the UK.
Sir Terry Leahy Adjusts to Life After Tesco
11th April 2013
Business speaker and former CEO of Tesco, Sir Terry Leahy stepped down from his position at Tesco in 2011 at the age of 55, he has since started working with several charities, invested in small businesses and written a book.
Rasmus Ankersen Believes Scottish Football Can Improve
8th April 2013
Keynote speaker and talent coach, Rasmus Ankersen believes that Scotland has talent but has not yet been able to develop it further.
Noreena Hertz Finishes New Book
4th April 2013
Keynote speaker and leading futurist, Noreena Hertz has finished her most recent book, which will be published in the US and the UK in September 2013.
Craig Kielburger Reviews
Craig Kielburger has spoken and appeared at a number of recent corporate events. Please find some client speaker testimonials and reviews for Craig Kielburger for a number of these events and conferences. If you would like some additional information as to how to book Craig Kielburger for your corporate event, then please contact one of the Speakers Corner booking agents on +44 (0)20 7607 7070 or email info@speakerscorner.co.uk
To date, Craig has shared his moving and educational messages to our clients, field sales groups and employees on fourteen separate occasions. Each time, Craig greatly exceeds our expectations and seldom have our events created the level of positive feedback and excitement that we have seen with these events. Perhaps, more importantly, at every event Craig has made himself available to spend time with each audience member who desired to speak to him after each presentation. Based on Craig commitment and powerful message, we have already committed to another 25 presentations in 2008 and plan to do many more in 2009.
I have hosted Craig for special events at two separate occasions and he has in both cases been enormously successful, not just in educating, exciting and entertaining a group, but much more uniquely in inspiring a group to action. One of the audiences was the San Diego Chapter of YPO, and this particularly discerning group rated Craig and his team our strongest event in the entire year.
Craig and Marc are speakers who empower students to change the way they live their lives. I have heard them speak on dozens of occasions, both together and separately, and they are truly the two most inspirational speakers I know. Whether speaking before a high school audience, a corporate gathering, or delivering the commencement address at a top American college, they always deliver powerful and poignant talks that leave the audience mesmerized and wishing for more. I have also heard them speak to thousands of educators and have been awed by their ability to provide tangible, thoughtful suggestions and action plans on how to nurture a generation of socially engaged students. Unequivocally, the take home value of their speeches has far-reaching and long term affects on all who have the privilege to hear them speak or participate in one of their workshops. Craig and Marc are important world-leaders, a gift to the educational community, and inspirational in urging a generation to continue to change the world.
Craig and Marc speech at Google was exceptional. My high expectations for the talk were widely exceeded and my colleagues enjoyed the talk tremendously. They outlined concrete actions any company can take to help motivate their employees through meaningful corporate social responsibility. They were able to inspire young and old alike through their powerful stories, cutting-edge ideas and practical tips to help create personal and organizational change. They are the best and most passionate speakers I have ever heard.
At this year's Clinton Global Initiative, Richard Branson grabbed headlines by pledging to invest all future proceeds of his Virgin Group airline and train businesses to fight global warming. But other commitments with smaller budgets were similarly designed to have a real impact [. . .]. The Sanam Vaziri Quraishi Foundation partnered with child-rights activist Craig Kielburger to Adopt a Village in the Maasai Mara of Kenya. With an investment of only $68,000 in the first year, they will help change the lives of 1,000 children and adults.
Q & A with Craig Kielburger
Craig Kielburger answered some probing questions for Speakers Corner. For speaking secrets revealed - read on! To book Craig Kielburger for your event, please contact one of the Speakers Corner booking agents on +44 (0)20 7607 7070 or info@speakerscorner.co.uk
Speakers Corner: Can you remember your first speaking engagement?
Craig Kielburger: I was 12-years-old and shaking in front of my class holding an article about child labour while I asked them to fight this injustice. I never thought it would become an international charity, a partnership with Oprah’s Angel Network and a social enterprise with clothing, publishing and travel divisions.
Speakers Corner: What’s the worst thing that has happened to you during an event?
Craig Kielburger: Once in India, a stampeding elephant charged the crowd. Now, nothing fazes me.
Speakers Corner: What was the last event you spoke at?
Craig Kielburger: An Investors Group event about Corporate Social Responsibility and finding messages to celebrate even during the financial crisis.
Speakers Corner: Which event has been your favourite and why?
Craig Kielburger: Did I mention the stampeding elephant
Speakers Corner: If you could speak at any event, past or future, what would it be?
Craig Kielburger: Probably at Martin Luther King Jr. “I Have a Dream” event - not to speak, just to listen.
Speakers Corner: Which speaker/performer do you most admire and why?
Craig Kielburger: Former-president Bill Clinton’s message is so powerful. Thank goodness I’ve always spoken before him and not after.
Speakers Corner: What is your worst on-stage habit?
Craig Kielburger: Standing too close to the edge. I like being close to the audience. Once though, the stage broke. Then, I got too close.
Speakers Corner: What annoys you most professionally?
Craig Kielburger: I’ve never enjoyed pre-packaged scripts. I like every speech to be unique and tailored. It makes the experience more personable.
Speakers Corner: Do you have any riders or special requirements?
Craig Kielburger: Tech set-up - our speeches use lots of visuals and music. This keeps young people’s attention. Let’s face it, adults are just big young people.
Speakers Corner: Why should an organiser hire you to speak at their event?
Craig Kielburger: More than ever, people need inspiration. That’s why we try to empower our audiences with the story of one person making a difference. Through sharing stories and best-practices on corporate social responsibility and families raising socially-responsible children, we try to demonstrate that an individual can build strong families, workplaces and communities by celebrating what’s good in the world. It’s just a matter of finding your gift, engaging in your passion and uniting together in support a common mission.
For further information or to book Craig Kielburger, call us on +44 (0)20 7607 7070 or email info@speakerscorner.co.uk
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