WE Day Vancouver inspires students to change the world

More than 20,000 young people came together Thursday at WE Day to celebrate their attempts to change the world.

Students can’t just go and buy a ticket to the Rogers Arena event that is designed to inspire and recognize students who are trying to make the world a better place by their actions. Rather, students who have volunteered or fundraised for social change projects earn tickets for the show that includes popular performers and inspiring speakers.

Co-founders Craig and Marc Kielburger said students from 920 schools across B.C. have volunteered more than 750,000 hours and raised more than $2 million for causes like Fort McMurray wildfire relief, welcoming Syrian refugees and fighting hunger, bullying and poverty.

“We believe that when we come together, we can do anything,” the brothers said on stage. “There are a lot of big problems in the world and that’s why we need all of us to come together. Together all of us can do anything.”

Margaret Trudeau spoke of her life as first the wife, then the mother of a prime minister. She also spoke about her mental health, talking about her 50 years with bipolar disorder.

Margaret Trudeau speaks at WE Day celebrations at Rogers Arena on Thursday. She spoke of her life as first the wife, then the mother of a prime minister. She also spoke about her 50 years with bipolar disorder, urging young people who are feeling depressed or think that their brains are not working properly to tell their families and to seek medical help.

“I did run off with the Rolling Stones, but that was madness. I’m never going to be cured, I’m always going to suffer from bipolar disorder,” Trudeau said. “After 50 years of being on the roller coaster … I finally hit rock bottom and I started to heal because I turned it over to the medical help I needed.”

Trudeau urged people who are feeling depressed or think that their brains are not working properly to tell their families and to seek medical help. She said having a purpose can be an “antidote” for mental illness.

Many students spoke on the stage, including a fastball home-plate umpire who is in a wheelchair, an aboriginal reconciliation activist and Annie Bartlett, who said, “I am a visual artist, a feminist, an artist, a jujitsu fighter … and I have cystic fibrosis. We are unlimited potential and cannot be defined by one label. I challenge you to think of that when you look at anyone.”

Other performers and speakers included Paula Abdul; Serena Ryder; Lilly Singh; Kardinal Offishall; Perry Bellegarde, the National Chief of the Assembly of First Nations; and of course Craig and Marc Kielburger, the founders of WE.