Obama Foundation Announces 2018 Summit in Chicago

October 15, 2018 at 4:45 PM CDT

CHICAGO, IL – The Obama Foundation announced today that it will host its second Summit this November 18-19 in Chicago. President Obama will attend and speak at the event, which for the first time will bring together participants across the Foundation’s inaugural programs—Obama Foundation Fellows, Scholars, Africa Leaders, Community Leadership Corps members, and representatives of the Global Girls Alliance and My Brothers’ Keeper Alliance communities.

The theme of this year’s Summit is “Common Hope. Uncommon Stories.”—a recognition that we all want a better future for our communities, even if there are many ways to seek it. The Summit will bring together community leaders from around the world—from diverse backgrounds and with different points of view—to advance the conversation about what community leadership in action means today.

“We’re hosting the Summit in our backyard, Chicago, the place the Obamas’ story began and the future home of the Obama Presidential Center and Museum,” said CEO David Simas. “This Summit is a step toward building a global network of changemakers and the first time that the participants in all of our programs—from our Fellows to our Community Leadership Corps—come together to share their experiences, learn from each other, and start a dialogue on their common desire to change their communities for the better.”

Consistent with the Foundation’s mission to inspire, empower, and connect people to change their world and its work to honor the legacy of President and Mrs. Obama, the Foundation also will engage participants in the development of the Obama Presidential Center and Museum. Through its telling of the Obamas’ story, the Foundation hopes to inspire people both in Chicago and around the world to realize their potential is limitless.

Summit participants will include 100 young people from across Chicago who have participated in the Community Leadership Corps, as well as other neighbors in Chicago. It also will include 200 other Community Leadership Corps participants from Phoenix, AZ, and Columbia, SC, as well as another several hundred participants from other Foundation programming around the United States and the world, including emerging leaders from Africa, Asia, Latin America, and Europe.

In addition to program participants, the Summit will also feature special guests—both on the main stage and in breakout sessions—who are committed leaders in their communities and working to engage others to make a positive impact.

More details, including a livestream of the Summit, will be available at Obama.org.

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Contact: Kate Berner, kberner@skdknick.com (Opens in a new tab)