Join us for an inspiring and thought provoking interactive learning session with Al-Qaeda’s longest held captive on the role of empathy and resilience as a survival skill.

Event Details

➡️ Date and Time : Monday, Oct 9th, 2023

➡️ Venue: Music Academy, Chennai

➡️ Time: 5 pm to 7.30 pm

Who is this for?

Kids aged 13 & above

Please note:

➡️ For school groups, we recommend 1 adult per group of 7 students.

➡️ For private bookings, 1 accompanying adult is allowed.

Agenda

➡️ Registration starts: 4.00 PM

➡️ Main Hall Doors Open: 4.30 PM

➡️ Main event: 5.00 PM - 7.00 PM. We request you to please take your seats 15 minutes before the start time. 

➡️ Book signing and interaction with Stephen McGown: 7.00 PM onward. The books are priced at Rs 1000 and we will have limited stock available for purchase right after the event in the pre-function area!

Speaker Profile: Stephen McGown

Stephen, based out of Johannesburg, is Al Qaeda's longest held prisoner, turned International Speaker and Trainer on Leadership & Resilience. Stephen's passion for adventure from a young age ignited his desire to ride a motorcycle through Africa. His journey home took an unexpected turn of events when he was abducted by Al-Qaeda and held hostage in Mali for almost 6 years. He was finally released in August 2017. He has been trying to claim his life back since then with a fresh & positive outlook! With the unique experiences he has gathered, be prepared for an inspiring session.

Facilitator Profile: Mahima Poddar

Mahima, based out of Chennai, is a Social Entrepreneur, an Expressive Arts Therapist and Child Abuse Awareness & Prevention Educator. As the Founder of The Kindness Foundation, she believes that kindness is not just a fancy add-on, but a fundamental must-have for human survival and existence and all we really need to do is to find ways to unleash it. The Kindness Foundation's programs, events & workshops hope to inspire and empower every citizen to be an advocate of kindness and personally create a measurable impact on the world around them.

Why this event?

The International Kindness Festival (IKF) is the first of its kind global festival celebrating and discussing the Science, Politics, Ethics, Practicality and beauty of kindness! And what better way to do this than through the youngest members of our society? When children talk, people stop and listen. That’s why we need to keep teaching kindness to children from an early age as an integral part of their education and daily life.

The 1st edition of IKF took place in March 2021 in a visually rich and interactive virtual environment. We are now thrilled to bring to life the 2nd edition of the International Kindness Festival on December 9th & 10th, 2023 at Sir Mutha Venkata Subba Rao Hall, Chennai.

In an effort to create an inclusive, diverse, accessible, wide-spread and community-oriented festival experience, we have curated several pre-events across multiple venues in Chennai. 

In this interactive event, Stephen McGown, will shed light and answer questions about his life-altering experiences, and how he used empathy as a survival tool. His story is one of resilience and overcoming adversity amidst harsh weather conditions, a different culture, language, and religion.