Twenty future international leaders from 14 different countries undertook a workshop at Headingley Carnegie Stadium, under the auspices of the Leeds Rugby Foundation, as part of the Mosaic International Summit 2010.

 

Mosaic was founded by HRH the Prince of Wales in 2007 to challenge the growing concern around issues facing young Muslims living in deprived areas of Britain and to ensure that individuals, regardless of background, are supported in realizing their potential.

 

Mosaic operates in the U.K as a set of initiatives championed by Muslims aimed at raising aspirations and providing opportunities, while the summit - which began at Cambridge University - offers young Muslims an exciting leadership development opportunity. 

 

The week at the University saw the delegates undertake a series of workshops in the training of leadership skills as well as seminars and discussions with leaders in government, business and civil society, addressing key concerns affecting communities.

 

The party, numbering 80 in total, was then divided into groups to visit projects around the U.K. which is where their day in Leeds came in, before reconvening in London to report back and reflect as a group on their learning and experiences.

 

Leeds Rugby Foundation Trustee Paul Rowson, a former director of Business in the Community with a strong link to Mosaic in Yorkshire, welcomed the delegates who were also met by Leeds Rugby Chief Executive Gary Hetherington and were given a talk about the club and its cultural links together with a tour of the ground by Foundation Chairman David Oxley, CBE.

 

Among the topics discussed during the morning group sessions was, ‘Why should a sports club invest so much into community outreach?’ led by Connecting Communities Manager Ikram Butt and Starr Zaman.

 

After the morning at the stadium, the group had lunch at HAMARA before a visit to Makka Mosque.

 

Delegates were present from:

Jordon

Malaysia

Bahrain

Saudi Arabia

Pakistan

Algeria

Bangladesh

Indonesia

United Kingdom

Qatar

Egypt

Iraq

Turkey

Afghanistan