Global Citizen co-founder Michael Sheldrick is bringing the organisation’s campaign for action on energy poverty back to his home city of Perth, with world leaders, politicians and performers due to gather for a two-day event.
Global Citizen Now: Perth will take place on October 19 and 20 at the Perth Convention Centre, alongside Global Citizen Nights: Perth, a free ticketed concert headlined by The Teskey Brothers.
The action summit aims to secure commitments from governments and businesses to expand access to clean energy and electrification, with a particular focus on the more than 600 million people worldwide who lack reliable, affordable electricity.
“Our goal leading into the summit that we’ve been working on all year is to secure commitments from businesses, from governments, to provide energy access to more than four million households, especially those in our region who don’t have access,” Sheldrick said.
The gathering will bring together representatives from government, business, philanthropy, First Nations communities and civil society. Speakers are expected to include Timor-Leste President José Ramos-Horta, Western Australia’s Premier Roger Cook, former Australian prime minister Kevin Rudd, Ian Thorpe, John Butler and Fremantle Dockers captain Alex Pearce.
The summit will conclude with performances from The Teskey Brothers, Perth acts South Summit and Ruby Rodgers.
Global Citizen’s Perth roots
Sheldrick grew up in Kinross and attended high school in Clarkson and Mindarie before studying law and political science at the University of Western Australia.
He has described himself as a shy and academically struggling pupil, and credited a teacher during his first year of high school with encouraging him to persist with his studies. He later graduated in the top 1 per cent of the state and won a place at UWA.
“I remembered what it felt like to be that kid at the start of school and the difference that teacher made in my life,” he said.
Sheldrick said his early experiences had shaped his desire to help children who lacked access to good teachers and healthcare, preventing them from reaching their potential.
At university, he met fellow Global Citizen co-founders Hugh Evans, Simon Moss, Wei Soo and Ryan Gall. In 2011, they led a campaign to help eradicate polio, offering tickets to a free John Legend concert in the Swan Valley to people who took actions intended to make a measurable difference.
The event attracted 5,000 people and raised 118 million dollars, including a 50 million dollar commitment announced by then-prime minister Julia Gillard. Sheldrick said that commitment had been maintained over the following 15 years.
Global Citizen later held its first festival in New York, featuring Neil Young and the Foo Fighters. Sheldrick said the organisation had since mobilised more than 40 million actions worldwide, which it estimated had contributed to more than 1.3 billion life-saving interventions.
He has worked with performers including Beyoncé, Rihanna, Coldplay and Lady Gaga, as well as political figures including Justin Trudeau and Ban Ki-moon.
Global Citizen recently helped raise 60 million dollars with Shakira and Burna Boy through the FIFA World Cup. Proceeds from their song Dai Dai were donated to the FIFA Global Citizens Education Fund, which supports 58 organisations, including Western Australia’s Dyslexia-SPELD Foundation and Teach for Australia.
Sheldrick said Global Citizen had so far directed more than 50 billion US dollars towards efforts in more than 150 countries.
He urged young people seeking to make a difference not to try to solve every problem alone. “Just ask for help,” he said, adding: “Yes, nine out of 10 people might say no, but don’t give up because there will be that one person who responds, and people want to help.”
