Director-General in Canada to open the Quebec International Conference on Internet and Radicalization

From 29 October to 1 November 2016, UNESCO Director-General, Irina Bokova, is undertaking a visit to Canada, on the occasion of the International Conference on “Internet and the Radicalization of Youth: Preventing, Acting and Living together” held in Quebec. The Conference is organized by UNESCO and the Government of Quebec and with the support of the Government of Canada.

The Director-General will take part in the opening session of the Conference alongside the Premier of Quebec H.E. Philippe Couillard, and the Minister of International relations of Quebec, H.E. Christine St-Pierre. The Conference will bring together some 400 participants, including representatives of government, international organizations, academia, youth and civil society to share best practices and target possible solutions to counter the use by violent extremist groups of social media and the internet to garner support and recruit militants worldwide.

In Quebec, the Director-General will give a keynote speech at the 2016 Junior Chamber International (JCI) World Congress, a Non-Governmental Organization associated with UNESCO. JCI most recently renewed its partnership with UNESCO in 2014 to contribute to civic engagement of young people to bolster the foundations for sustainable development and for lasting peace.

In Montreal, the Director-General will address the Montreal Council on Foreign Relations on “Soft Power and Global Governance in the 21^st Century”. She will explore the challenges facing societies today in these turbulent times, the importance of soft power as foundations for strengthening global governance, and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development as well as the Paris Climate Change Agreement.

While in Canada, the Director-General is expected to hold bilateral meetings with HE Philippe Couillard, Premier of Quebec, and HE Christine St-Pierre, Minister of International Relations of Quebec. She will also visit the Mont Saint-Hilaire Biosphere Reserve.

UNESCO and Quebec (Canada) conference on ways to prevent youth radicalization through the internet

International Conference on “Internet and the Radicalization of Youth: Preventing, Acting and Living together”