Vancouver, Thursday, March 9, 2006

Thank you for inviting me to be a part of your symposium. I was hoping to meet with you during my first official visit to British Columbia as governor general. In my installation speech, I stressed that young people would be a priority for me and that I would help give a voice to those who might not otherwise speak up. I am here to speak to you, but more importantly, I am here to listen.

Young people are often thought of as our future. But if you ask me, they are our present. Think about it: half of Canada’s Aboriginal peoples are made up of people under 25. You are the very lifeblood of your communities.

Your future is unfolding before you today, not five years, ten years, twenty years from now. With this symposium, you are giving yourselves the tools to shape your destiny and that of your communities.

Your success depends on how you see yourselves, events, other people, the world in which you live.

When my mother, sister and I left our native island, Haiti, and arrived in Canada on a cold winter’s night, we had nothing but each other. We had to rebuild our lives. We lived for years in a tiny basement apartment in Montreal that had just one and a half rooms.

I want to leave you today with a message of hope. Because hope was a beacon in my childhood and has stayed with me to this day. Because hope is embodied in this country of endless possibilities. I firmly believe that nothing is impossible for those who dare to dream big and set their sights high.

In Canada, there are thousands of dreamers who have transformed their neighbourhoods, their communities, society itself. One such dreamer is Chief Clarence Louie of the Osoyoos Indian Band in the southern part of the Okanagan Valley. Under his leadership, the band has become a corporation that now owns and operates a number of businesses. Its socio-economic development is such that the living conditions of the entire community have improved. Unemployment is virtually non-existent in that region.

Of course, none of us harbours any delusions. Here in Canada, we have our own third world. Many Aboriginal communities are mired in poverty. Sadly, the young people who should take up the torch are facing serious problems. As they suffer, entire communities are in danger.

You—young Aboriginal entrepreneurs from across Canada—you are agents for change, each and every one of you in your own way. It is vital that you have the tools you need to thrive and participate as full citizen in the ongoing task of building our society and the Canada of today. I have the deepest admiration for what you are doing. You are lights in the darkness for all those young people who have given up on life, who have trouble seeing the present, who cannot even conceive of the future.

Thank you for welcoming me here today. I am eager to hear from you and to do my part in the exciting business challenge you have undertaken during this symposium.