Trudeau pushes youth, growth, diversity, and mobbed for selfies, at G20
ANTALYA, Turkey - Justin Trudeau used his international debut Sunday to tell a top tier G20 business audience that long-term investments in infrastructure and youth are the keys to growth, not a preoccupation with short-term profits.
And as the prime minister reaffirmed Canada's commitment to accept 25,000 Syrian asylum seekers, he delivered a pointed message that Canada is a country that defines itself by its shared values, not its cultural differences, and he urged others to do the same.
But even before he opened his mouth, Trudeau received a welcome on the floor of the G20's business and labour panel discussion that lived up to the cliched rock-star-welcome descriptor.
He was mobbed for selfies by dozens of smiling delegates at the meeting shortly after his arrival. Trudeau willingly posed for several minutes, allowing many selfies and group photos at the foot of a stage, prior to giving a speech and taking part in a panel discussion before an amphitheatre of more than 100 invitees.
Not everyone wanted a photo, but many others approached Trudeau as he held court, receiving warm greetings from a variety of people, including Christine Lagarde, the managing director of the International Monetary Fund.
Canadian Mark Carney, the Governor of the Bank of England, was among those in attendance, along with Perrin Beatty, president of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce and Angel Gurria, the secretary general of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development.
Trudeau covered ground that would have been familiar to Canadians following the federal election, including his infrastructure spending plans to stimulate growth.
But he also explained why he appointed himself as the cabinet minister for Canadian youth — a first for a prime minister, he said — while sending a message that global audiences have not heard from a Canadian prime minister in about a decade.
"Climate change is a very real challenge, and how we prepare for the increasing pressures on our ecosystems and our resources and our climate will be something that we will be judged on in coming decades and generations."
Climate change, along with the fight against terrorism and the refugee crisis, are on an expanded G20 agenda at this two-day leaders' summit in Antalya, Turkey.
Trudeau, however, also moved quickly to align Canada, as expected, with a core G20 theme: stimulating economic growth through spending on infrastructure.
Trudeau pushes youth, growth, diversity, and mobbed for selfies, at G20 | National Newswatch
