Trudeau encourages youth to be leaders of today, not tomorrow

This article originally appeared in Imprint, University of Waterloo’s official student newspaper
- March 9, 2007

Above: Kevin Royal and Renjie Butalid with Justin Trudeau

by Ashley Csanady

Speaking to a crowd of everyone from students to seniors, an engaging and charismatic Justin Trudeau encouraged youth to take a leadership role in fighting climate change and shaping the future of Canada.

It’s hard to listen to Justin Trudeau without thinking of his father — and not just because he’s the son of the late prime minister Pierre Elliot Trudeau, but also because the comparisons are endless. Both are charismatic speakers, snappy dressers, a hit with the ladies and passionate about Canada. Although similarities are plentiful, when Justin Trudeau spoke at Hagey Hall March 5, 2007 it was his own ideals and charisma that captivated the audience and not those of his father.

A former high school teacher, Trudeau promised to engage his audience as much as possible because he claimed there is “nothing worse than being talked at for an hour.” And engage his listeners he did — perhaps a bit too much for a few audience members, as one heckler constantly berated the environmental activist, youth advocate and burgeoning politician throughout the night.

Focusing most of his attention on the environment, Trudeau stressed the need for a combination of individual action and leadership from the government to resolve the issue of climate change. He encouraged students to take a leadership role when it comes to the environment, saying, “For me, the greatest hope right now in making this change happen is right here in our universities with our young people.”

Making otherwise bleak subject matter more encouraging and positive, Trudeau coloured his speech with anecdotes regarding his father, tales of the environmentally friendly changes he’s made personally and a sense of self-effacing humour.

Following a story about receiving a razor that belonged to his grandfather which was later passed on to him, Trudeau said we live in a disposable society and are creating needs for ourselves with inventions like disposable razors. He emphasized that recycle is the last of the “Three Rs” and that we need to remember to reduce and reuse first.

From switching to biodegradable non-toxic cleaning products to sharing a hybrid car with his wife to eating less red meat, Trudeau listed a plethora of ways that he has personally altered his life to be more environmentally friendly. Among the more standard suggestions of carpooling and using compact fluorescent light bulbs, Trudeau also recommended considering the positive impact of buying locally-grown instead of organic strawberries that are flown in from California. For him, there are “huge things that we can do as individuals” and he stressed that “we need to be a lot more aware of our own footprints.”

While most politicians encourage youth to be the “leaders of tomorrow,” Trudeau countered this by saying that “the fact is, we don’t need people to be leaders tomorrow, we need people to realize right now, today, is where we desperately need leadership.”

Despite this need, Trudeau is acutely aware of the apparent apathy today’s youth have with regards to partisan politics. He described the situation as a “catch-22 of sorts,” and said that a lot of youth vent this frustration by funneling their energies into non-governmental organizations because these groups appear to accomplish more tangible results.

“The perception is that partisan politics don’t actually get much done,” said Trudeau in an interview with Imprint. “The only people who join Young Liberals, Young NDP, Young Conservatives — when the Conservatives actually deign to have a Young Conservatives — were the people who wanted to play politics and not the people who actually wanted to make a change.” He further explained how the Liberal party wishes to break the “vicious cycle” that has arisen and reach out to youth more directly in policy formulation.

Leading up to the event, Arts Student Union President Kevin Royal stressed it would be “a non-partisan talk about his experiences and getting involved.” The talk was anything but non-partisan; although Trudeau stressed youth involvement and the environment, a few pointed barbs at the Conservative government made it clear where his loyalties lie. Even going so far as to say “Don’t vote Conservative” when asked what can be done to improve the state of the environment, Trudeau let his Liberal roots show through that evening.

Partisan leanings may have speckled his speech, but Trudeau expressed a real admiration for all politicians, no matter their leanings, saying that they sacrifice a lot for their cause, especially family — to which he added a telling aside “I can tell you about that.” He continued his praise of politicians saying, “if you actually want to do that with your life you have to believe in a sense of responsibility …[all politicians], at least when they started, wanted to make a better place.”

During his promised question-and-answer period, Trudeau was grilled on everything from Quebec nationalism to his own political aspirations.

His response to a half-rant half-question regarding Quebec nationalism described Canada as a nation that was built upon two divisive identities. Though French and English Canada have always existed and can continue to do so, he contends that there is no one definition of Canada and that the “existential angst of Canadian identity is built into our very fabric… there is no one Canadian, we are all immigrants.”

Trudeau later said, “The luckiest thing about me wasn’t that I was born at 24 Sussex, it was that I was born Canadian.” He explained how this is both what unites us and “is the one thing that makes us responsible for the world around us… we have an opportunity and an obligation [as Canadians].”

Trudeau also emphasized the leadership role Canada needs to take in the world when it comes to climate change and social conflicts such as Darfur.

“We love to think of ourselves as a country the world lives up to — we haven’t been that for a while,” he later added. “Right now it needs to stop, because if the world ever needed Canada, it needs it right now.”

As for his potential aspirations to move back into 24 Sussex, Trudeau said, “I have a lot of great ideas and idealism — I hope they won’t be completely sucked out from me in too short order, but I don’t know what I would do if I was prime minister yet, fortunately for all of you I didn’t have to answer the question … if, or perhaps not, ever.”