Derek Ingram, widely regarded as one of the leading writers on Commonwealth issues, previous Deputy-Editor of the DailyMail, UK, and founder of the Gemini News Service, contributes his expertise to YoComm.com, the Pan-Commonwealth youth online media network.
Queen's Reception at Buckingham Palace on April 28, 2009
Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II hosted a reception to mark the 60th anniversary of the Commonwealth at Buckingham Palace on April 28, 2009 in London, England. The Commonwealth Cantata was preformed at the Ballroom. There were more than 200 representatives from the Commonwealth, which included Chief Emeka Anyaoku, Secretary General Kamalesh Sharma, Sir Shridath Ramphal, Sir Don McKinnon and former President of Zambia Dr Kenneth Kaunda.
Yocomm Representatives also had the privilege of being part of the reception and also presented a booklet "A POIGNANT STORY ON THE EVOLUTION OF YOUTH IN THE COMMONWEALTH, INSPIRED BY HER MAJESTY QUEEN ELIZABETH II" to commemorate the 60th Anniversary of the Commonwealth.
"FUND RASING AND DONATIONS OF EDUCATIONAL MATERIALS BY PUPILS OF
WESTCOT PRIMARY SCHOOL IN HULL"
The pupils of Westcott Primary school in Hull, England have put value in the term Common-Wealth of Education with the help of their teacher-Mrs Ann Augustyn. The pupils have been raising funds and collecting donated educational materials to be presented to students of Holy Child School in Tema, Ghana. It all started when Ann visited Ghana couple of years ago through an exchange programme. She was a guest at the British Council whiles teaching in Ghana and when she was invited to take a class at Holy Child School, a more deprived school she would not miss the opportunity to see at grass root level basic education from the flashy classroom of a more endowed school.
COMMONWEALTH DAY 2009
A message from Her Majesty The Queen,
Head of the Commonwealth
This year the Commonwealth commemorates its foundation sixty years ago. The London Declaration of 1949 was the start of a new era in which our member countries committed themselves to work together, in partnership and as equals, towards a shared future.
COMMONWEALTH DAY 2008
A message from Her Majesty The Queen,
Head of the Commonwealth
Last year, Commonwealth Heads of Government met in Uganda on the edge of Lake Victoria and agreed to an Action Plan for tackling climate change. It was an appropriate place to do so: from there, the waters of the River Nile begin a three-month journey to the Mediterranean.
Youth Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting 2008- Abuja, Nigeria
Senator Olasunkanmi Akinlabi, Minister of Youth Development, Nigeria, being presented the Yocomm brochure by T.Weerasinghe,Yocomm delegate
Youth participants at the Youth CHOGM
Stuart Mole, OBE, with the youth participants
A model Youth Commonwealth Heads of Goverment Meeting organised by the Commonwealth Youth Organisation of Nigeria (CYON), headed by Mr Blackson Bayewumi,and Chaired by Chief Adimbola Coker, was held in Abuja, Nigeria from 13th - 14th November 2008. There were over 500 young participants from several schools and organisations from Nigeria, and achieved wide press coverage. Guests of Honour were Mr. Stuart Mole, OBE, Director-General, Royal Commonwealth Society, UK and Dr. Chris Nonis, Deputy-Chairman, Royal Commonwealth Society, UK., who adressed the gathering. Other keynote speakers were Rt Hon Tunde Akogun, Leader of the House of Representatives; Director of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Director of the Youth Ministry; J Vistro and the YOCOMM Team, and the conference also saw the launch of YOCOMM Nigeria.
"Making an Impact: The Commonwealth in
Parliament and in the Constituencies"
Richard Bourne, Baroness Prashar, Lord Howell of Guildford
Stuart Mole, Andrew Tuggey, Baroness Hayman
Lord Chidgey
The Royal Commonwealth Society and the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (UK branch) jointly hosted a half-day conference on "Making an Impact: The Commonwealth in Parliament and in the Constituencies" on 12 March 2008 at the Houses of Parliament at Westminster, which was also supported by the Commonwealth Association.
INTERNATIONAL MEETING 2008, CYPRUS "CONFLICT, CONQUEST & MIGRATION"
George Vassiliou,
former President of Cyprus and Sir J.K. Andy Chande, KBE. RCS, Tanzania
Stuart Mole, OBE, Director-General
Royal Commonwealth Society, London
Dr Dame Minita Gordon,GCVO,GCMG Former Governor Genaral of Belize
Vijay Krishnarayan, Deputy Director, Commonwealth Foundation. Ms. Shelendra Nonis, RCS, Sri Lanka, Dr. Maria Hadjipavlou,
Dr. Bulent Kanol, .
Nkabom delegates at the excursion
Seventh Commonwealth Youth Ministers Meeting
The Seventh Meeting of Commonwealth Youth Ministers (7CYMM) was held in Colombo, Sri Lanka from 27 – 30 April 2008, under the theme of “Youth and Peace-Building” The Meeting was preceded by meetings of the Pan-Commonwealth Regional Advisory Board and the Pan-Commonwealth Youth Caucus on 24 April. A Pan-Commonwealth workshop on "CYMM- Taking the Agenda forward" was organised by the Commonwealth Policy Studies Unit, YOCOMM, and RCS, with participation by delegates from the Pan-Commonwealth Youth Caucus, Commonwealth Secretariat, RCS, CPSU, Commonwealth Youth Exchange Council, and YOCOMM delegates.
YoComm at "An Audience With Bill Gates"
In January 2008, YOCOMM delegates attended an audience with Bill Gates at the Royal Lancaster Hotel in London as part of the “World Leader Lunch” series of the IOD. The YoComm team had the opportunity of interacting with Bill Gates and learning from his vision of the ‘Second Digital Decade’ and ICT innovations that are creating a “New World of Work”, Bill Gates also announced the UK launch of Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0, and demonstrated the new software to the participants.
Our Commonwealth 4 Poster Set
Discussion & Activity Ideas
YoComm team proudly presented the YoVoice Questionnaire statistics to Youth delegates from different Commonwealth countries at the 2006 Commonwealth Youth Forum in Malta.
The Golden Tapestry Project
The Golden Tapestry is a project for primary and special schools across the Common-wealth. Hundreds of thousands of children are contributing their own ideas and portraying their own lives and experiences in a unique collaborative artwork that is being exhibited around the world...
31 year-old Shilpa Shetty, one of the five speakers on the occasion of Commonwealth Day at Westminster Abbey on also interacted with YOCOMM delegates at the RCS.
As part of the programmes marking the celebration of the Commonwealth Day which falls on the second Monday of every March, the Commonwealth debates were organised to create awareness of the Commonwealth through a healthy, competitive and fun mode among institutions.
"Media and Development Workshop" ,
Commonwealth Peoples Forum, Kampala, Uganda
The centerpiece of the Commonwealth People’s Forum (CPF) in Kampala, 18-22 November, was a series of twenty interactive workshops run by coalitions of civil society organizations.
During the first session, Yocomm presented a best practice case study to the delegates.
Steven Hammond, MP during his visit to Sri Lanka.
Steven Hammond, MP views the designs of Tharindu Harshamal a hearing impaired youth, employed in Sri Lanka.
Proceeds from the sale of the designs will go towards improving the lives of other hearing impaired children.
We Shall Miss You....
We all will never forget you, i love listening to your songs and i could listen to your songs all day if i could. u will be missed and you will never be forgotten xx we will all miss you xx
By: Lin
On: 6/29/2009 9:24:22 AM
Michael Jackson - King of Pop.... May he rest in peace
I would just like to remind all those who criticize Michael Jackson and his life that he was one of the first artists to make significant contributions to social causes as well as a plentitude of financial contributions to various charities and he did this 20 years ago before it became trendy or a public relations requirement. He did it out of the unending generosity of his heart. I respectfully wish that he truly rests in peace away from the clutches of the evil media.
By: Priya
On: 6/29/2009 9:21:35 AM
May you finally rest in peace Michael
Everyone…Just remember one thing…We all have skeletons in the closet and can keep them secretive, Michael, because of his fame and fortune could not keep his life a secret from the world…This is sad that anyone should have to be tortured in life and now even after death…People…Say what you will, but Michael was a great performer and a decent, giving, generous man…I grew up to his music and really got to experience the music when i was about 12 yrs old, trying to dance like him and finally learning some of his moves, just like millions of his fans did…May the Lord bless him and keep him…May the Lord be with his family and his children in this their greatest time of need…All these people trash talking should be ashamed of their selves because most people were taught at a very young age ” If you don’t have anything nice to say about someone, don’t say anything at all ” May you finally rest in peace Michael…Your legacy will live on forever and ever…
By: Andrew
On: 6/29/2009 9:19:17 AM
I shall Remember Him...
When ever some talks or says Micheal Jackson, the first thing that would spring to mind was his personal life, including his often changing appearances and eccentric behavior, generated significant controversy which damaged his public image.
Yet Jackson donated and raised millions of dollars for beneficial causes through his foundations, charity singles, and support of 39 charities. Which I guess was not much spoken off....
One of the few artists to have been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame twice, his other achievements include multiple Guinness World Records — including one for "Most Successful Entertainer of All Time" — 13 Grammy Awards, 13 number one singles in his solo career, and the sale of 750 million records worldwide.[4] At the time of his death, he was preparing for This Is It, a series of 50 concerts that would have been held in London beginning July 13, 2009.... We will miss him and regardless of what He is will always be the KING OF POP.....
By: Andrew
On: 6/29/2009 9:15:34 AM
The King of Pop.... He is Morethan a Singer....
would argue that his passing may be one of the most widespread moments of global mourning ever. We are all reminded of Princess Diana as well as JFK and Elvis. Digital media really put Michael in a special place as generations across nearly all countries gained access to The King of Pop. There is this “shared-collective” of his music as well as the celebrity of his ever-growing absurdities. Michael Jackson was a musician. He was an entertainer. But he seemed to have done much more than just entertain us. He always wanted to heal the world, but in some ways, Michael Jackson himself has proven that he and his music were a universal currency that transcended the very boundaries of space that divide us on this planet. Despite all the allegations against him over the years, he spoke a messge of love and peace.
By: Matt
On: 6/29/2009 9:08:55 AM
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