As the winner of ICAEW’s Chartered Star competition, ACA Chartered Accountant Abigail Foster earned a place as ICAEW’s delegate at the One Young World (OYW) summit 2023. The Chartered Star competition seeks out one ACA student or ICAEW chartered accountant who is an emerging leader advancing the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) within their work.

Foster, the founder of educational business Elent, was chosen to attend the summit because of the work she does to champion the UN SDGs. Her business runs workshops offering financial education for students, employees and parents.

She travelled to the annual event, this year held in Belfast from 2-5 October, to join more than 1,800 young leaders from 190-plus countries. Alongside influential political, business and humanitarian leaders, the delegates congregated to share knowledge and create meaningful change.

“I’m very thankful to ICAEW for picking me to represent them at the One Young World summit,” said Foster. “Global professional bodies give us the confidence to know that we have a community of other chartered accountants around the world that we can lean on for support and to connect with to collaborate on solutions.”

Across the four days, delegates attended workshops to offer practical skills, techniques, ideas and processes that delegates could implement in their own projects and initiatives for change. Workshops were delivered by speakers from across the world who have been recognised for making a difference in climate emergency, education, the food crisis, mental health, and peace and reconciliation.

The speakers at the summit included:

• Bob Geldof, singer, songwriter, author and political activist;
• Rio Ferdinand, former international football player and founder of the Rio Ferdinand Foundation;
• Her Majesty Queen Rania Al Abdullah of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan;
• Kat Graham, actress and goodwill ambassador for UNHCR (the UN refugee agency); 
• and many more.

Foster’s key takeaways from the summit

One of Foster’s main takeaways was that chartered accountants should be mindful that an inclusive approach to tackling issues is required. Disability inclusion was a focus area at this year’s summit. “We need to make sure that in our emails, we include a message at the bottom inviting individuals to request any necessary adjustments. Additionally, kindly consider the needs of those who may have partial sight or hearing impairments, as well as those who require accessibility accommodations for events. It’s important that we extend our considerations beyond those without disabilities to include everyone,” she said.

Foster personally experiences dyslexia, which she considers a learning disability. “I often find it necessary to reread content or listen to it audibly to fully grasp the information. As accountants, we have the opportunity to elevate our commitment to inclusion and look out for the wellbeing of all people,” she added.

Given the global nature of many problems, the summit highlighted to Foster the benefit of global collaboration as an effective way of tackling them. “We need to be collaborating with every country on this planet, from England to Australia, and everywhere in between. We need to make sure that we’re not only thinking about the impact our work has on us and our world, but the impact it can have on others. How can you collaborate with others to learn from their successes and implement them in your own lives?”

Inspiring future chartered accountants

This year, the summit highlighted the approach of indigenous communities around the world, and in particular, the indigenous practice of considering the long-term consequences of actions, spanning several generations into the future.

This struck home with Foster, who believes this is a good mindset to have, not only as a chartered accountant but as a business leader and a leader in general. “As a chartered accountant, this makes me more meticulous and helps me inspire more young people. I’m going to go back to my work and make sure that it not only benefits my generation, but that it benefits generations to come.”

Reflecting on the summit, Foster says she felt part of a global team working together to initiate positive change and make things better. “When you leave OYW, you are an OYW ambassador forever, and it’s really inspired me to take a look at everything I do.”

To get a taste of OYW, watch ICAEW’s Instagram stories for highlights of the summit.

The next One Young World summit will be held in Montreal on 18-21 September 2024.