Malala Yousafzai to speak in Edinburgh

The youngest ever Nobel Peace Prize winner will speak at the EICC

Published 22nd Oct 2018
Last updated 22nd Oct 2018

Taking place on 13th March 2019 at Edinburgh’s EICC, Malala will address an expected 2,000-strong audience made up of the biggest fundraisers of the forthcoming Sleep in the Park events in December.

While in Scotland, Malala will also visit the Social Bite Restaurant, Vesta, in Edinburgh for a private lunch with key supporters. The Nobel Laureate’s visit will also mark the launch of Social Bite’s 2019 campaign.

Social Bite co-founder, Josh Littlejohn MBE, said: "We’re absolutely thrilled that Malala has accepted our invitation to Scotland to speak at our special dinner, as well as visit our restaurant, Vesta, for lunch. It is an honour.

"It is an amazing opportunity for those participating in this year’s Sleep in the Park event to attend a special thank you dinner and hear about the journey of this remarkable young woman, who has done so much for girls’ education and social justice throughout the world.

"The occasion will also be a fantastic way to mark the launch of our 2019 campaign."

The announcement comes as momentum for Sleep in the Park 2018 gathers pace, with this year’s events taking place in four of Scotland’s major cities: Edinburgh, Glasgow, Dundee and Aberdeen.

Each business team of five who sign up to take part in the sleepout will receive tickets to the Malala dinner, along with the top 50 individual fundraisers.

Social Bite is hoping in the region of 12,000 people will take part in this year’s Sleep in the Park on 8thDecember, with an aim of raising £4M to tackle homelessness throughout Scotland.

Funds raised will go towards a ‘Housing First’ program to bring over 800 people out of homelessness in 5 cities as well as a raft of other initiatives including the Social Bite Village.

Amy MacDonald, KT Tunstall, Lulu, Frightened Rabbit and Irvine Welsh have all been confirmed for the event, with more acts and special guests still to be announced