For all the achievements of the Counsellors and Delegates who gather at One Young World’s Summit there will never be any hint of complacency - not with Sir Bob Geldof around.
The self-described “Grumpy Old Man of One Young World” can be relied upon, year in and year out, to electrify those present with his heartfelt indignation at the continuing injustices that hold back much of the world’s population. Sir Bob is unreserved in his condemnation of the failings of those in power.
The singer, songwriter, author and activist was one of the original inspirations behind One Young World, providing co-founders David Jones and Kate Robertson with a supportive video to take to Google’s Zeitgeist event before this organisation was formed. He attended the first Summit in 2010 and has been a constant presence in One Young World’s evolution.
His passionate words from the One Young World stage are anticipated and reported upon by global media.
Here are some of the headline-making highlights:
2017 The 'Sick of World Leaders' Speech
Speaking in Bogotá, Sir Bob urges Delegates to turn away from “old culture” as he condemns the failure of world leaders, from Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin to the Nobel Prize winner and Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi, whose actions he described as “a disgrace”. “I am fed up with this world, I’m not tired of it, I’m just sick of it,” he said. “I loathe these people. I despise these people. How dare they behave in the manner they behave? How dare they?”
2016 The ‘Armies of Stupidity’ Speech
Responding to the rise of populist politics, Sir Bob told delegates in Ottawa to champion the values of peace, love and understanding in tackling poverty, pollution, religious intolerance, racism and other global challenges. “We must not succumb to the fools. We must not be galled by the awful thuggishness of Putin, Erdogan, Xi or Trump, or the many other commanders in the armies of stupidity.”
2015 The ‘Blood on Your Hands’ Speech
In Bangkok, Sir Bob shocks his audience by reminding Millennials that the perpetrators of terror attacks in Paris and the Middle East come from their own age group. “This generation, your generation, is already stained with blood. Your age group are the killers of Syria. The people your age are murdering people in Beirut, Sharm el Sheikh. And most immediately in our minds right now, those people who went to a pop concert in Paris.”
2014 The ‘Ebola’ Speech
Addressing Summit in his native Ireland, Sir Bob talks of the vulnerability of the world, quoting WB Yeats’s poem ‘The Second Coming’. He speaks on the 4,000 deaths in Africa from Ebola - “this filthy little virus” - and says: “Because they are poor, they die.”
2010 The 'Grave Responsibility on You' Speech
Speaking at One Young World’s inaugural Summit in London, Sir Bob sets out the challenge to our first Delegates, quoting from George Bernard Shaw as he encourages them to fight poverty in the world by seizing the initiative from nation state leaders who have lost their sense of reason.
What will Sir Bob have to say this year?
One Young World Summit 2018 takes place in The Hague, Netherlands, on 17-20 October.
