Every year, SOMA invites a leading figure in current affairs to give a keynote speech at our opening ceremony; our past speakers have included Chrystia Freeland, Deputy Prime Minister of Canada, Dr. Peter Singer, Special Advisor to the Director General and Assistant Director General of the World Health Organization, and David Morley, CEO of UNICEF Canada.

Our first speaker for SOMA 52 is Salvator Cusimano. Mr. Cusimano has worked for the United Nations since 2015, completing assignments in the Central African Republic, Yemen, Malta, and New York. He previously worked at Romero House, a community for refugees in Toronto's west end. Salvator attended the University of Toronto and the University of Oxford. In his high school days, he learned a lot and had fun representing Oman, Czechia, the United States and China at SOMA. His remarks are offered in a personal capacity and do not represent the position of the United Nations.

Additional speakers will be announced soon!