There’s only one program that brings together a renowned Commonwealth visionary and a celebrated Canadian entrepreneur and philanthropist to develop contemporary leaders.

President of the Duke of Edinburgh’s Commonwealth Study Conferences Canada Inc., HRH The Princess Royal Princess Anne along with Wes Hall, Chair of the 2025 Caribbean Canada Leaders Dialogue collaborate in support of a unique experiential program empowering delegates from across Canada and the Caribbean to drive positive community impact.

The practice of learning by observing and discussion was established from the very start of the study conferences. In1956, following a visit to northern Canada where the Duke of Edinburgh Prince Phillip saw extreme disparities in approaches to problems, he rallied 300 industry, government, and labour together in Oxford, UK to use dialogue and experience to forge solutions for the broader good of the Commonwealth. His vision remains steadfast today, under the auspice of his daughter HRH The Princess Royal Princess Anne.

Wes Hall comes from humble beginnings in rural Jamaica. He grew up in a plantation worker's shack as one of several children supported by his grandmother who instilled in him the value of hard work, ambition, and industriousness. He founded the successful BlackNorth Initiative to help end systemic anti-Black racism in Canada; while also changing the lives of thousands of children in the Caribbean and Canada, donating both his money and time.

With the world shrouded in geopolitical tensions, a consistent curiosity to uncover what’s possible, to combine duty and responsibility, and to be unapologetic about opportunities, is at the heart of the Caribbean-Canada Leadership Dialogue being hosted in both Commonwealth countries in May 2025.

Under the conference theme Impact-Driven Leadership: Creating Positive Change In Our Communities, 100 delegates from across Canada and the Caribbean will convene for a three-day opening plenary in Toronto, followed by a four-day study tour across select countries of the Caribbean and a closing plenary.

QUOTES

HRH The Princess Royal Princess Anne.

"Experience has shown that the Commonwealth Study Conferences are a force for good. Participants are exposed to new experiences, new arguments, and diverse perspectives so that the quality and relevance of their decision-making is improved through a broadening of their exposure to different approaches."

Wes Hall

"My steadfast commitment to balancing career and charity represents all that is possible when nothing is impossible. I aim to inspire a model of having a vision and achieving a dream; recognizing the importance to bring people and communities along. In essence, when they see it, they can aspire to emulate it."

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