Julia Roberts, Michelle Obama to visit KL for upcoming youth leadership gathering

PETALING JAYA — American actress Julia Roberts will be joining former US First Lady Michelle Obama in a plenary conversation at the inaugural Leaders: Asia Pacific programme in Kuala Lumpur on December 12.

Beauty queen-turned humanitarian Deborah Henry will be the moderator for the conversation.

The event, which runs from December 10 to 14, will see 200 up-and-coming leaders from 33 countries and territories banding together for plenary sessions, skill-building workshops, leadership training, and networking opportunities.

“The 200 Leaders come from the public, private, and non-profit sectors and will join the Foundation’s growing global network of changemakers,” the Obama Foundation said in a statement on its website.

Before heading to Malaysia, Ms Roberts and Mrs Obama will stop in Vietnam on behalf of the Obama Foundation’s Girls Opportunity Alliance to meet with local girls' education organisations and beneficiaries of programmes that help adolescent girls reach their full potential through education.

The duo will then share their reflections on the Vietnam trip and stories of their leadership journeys and trailblazing careers during their conversation in Kuala Lumpur.

Ms Henry will also be posing questions sourced from the 200 leaders in attendance.

Although the event is closed to the public, viewers can catch a livestream of the conversation on the Obama Foundation website when it takes place on December 12, 11am.

Former US president Barack Obama will also be speaking on December 13 at a session titled “How the Asia-Pacific Shaped Us” alongside his half-sister, Dr Maya Soetoro-Ng. MALAY MAIL