On Monday 26
October, an audience of ReachOut young people were treated to a very special
visit by the US Ambassador to the UK, Matthew Barzun.
Generously
hosted by Bloomberg at their brilliant UK Head Office in Finsbury Square,
Ambassador Barzun spoke with our young people about his experiences of working
in diplomacy. There was also a chance for the young people to talk about what they thought were some of the best and worst things about
the USA in 2015.
Mr Barzun
opened the event by emphasising the importance of ‘listening’, sharing the remarkable story of when his boss, President Barack Obama, advised him on the
first day of his new job that he would only succeed as an Ambassador if he took
the time to listen to people.
Our young
people were hooked on Ambassador Barzun from the start and, following this, he
moved the event onto a wider discussion about their perceptions of the United
States. Mr Barzun asked our young people a series of multiple choice questions
about the USA which they could answer using handheld clickers. Their answers
were then represented in real time as percentages on TV screens around the
auditorium – just like an Ask the Audience lifeline on Who Wants to be a
Millionaire!
The results
from these questions prompted some great conversations and our young people
really showed how clued up they are on current affairs by quizzing Ambassador
Barzun at length on the likes of the American judicial system, gun crime,
police brutality, racism and the death penalty.
Engaging and
enthusiastic throughout, Mr Barzun wrapped up the event by emphasising to our
young people that they are the future leaders of the UK, encouraging them to
take advantage of every possible opportunity to work together with the USA to
help change the world for the better. It’s safe to say that our young people
(as well as their teachers and ReachOut staff!) left the event feeling very
inspired!
Thank you
again to both Ambassador Barzun and Bloomberg for what was a brilliant event.
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