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Greece

Demosthenes was a well-known orator from Athens. After his father died when he was 7, he had three legal guardians which were Aphobus, Demophon, and Theryppides. His inspiration for public speaking came after he learned that his guardians had robbed is father’s money left for his education. He was first exposed to public speaking when his suit required him to speak in front of the court. Demosthenes started practicing public speaking more after that and is known for sticking pebbles into his mouth in order to help his pronunciation, talk while running so that he wouldn’t lose his breath while speaking, and practice talking in front of a mirror to improve his delivery. When Philip II, the ruler of Macedon, tried to conquer the Greeks, Demosthenes made a speech called Kata Philippou A. In this speech he spoke to the rest of the Greeks about why he opposed Philip II and why he was a threat to them. This speech was one of the first speeches that were known as Philippics. He had other speeches known as Olynthiacs and these speeches along with the Philippics were used to get the people in Athens to rally against Philip II. Demosthenes was known for being in favor of independence.

Women and public speaking

In addition to figures in the United States, there are many famous international female speakers. Much of women’s earlier public speaking is directly correlated to activism work. Emmeline Pankhurst, who was a British political activist, founded the Women’s Social and Political Union (WSPU) on October 10, 1903. The organization was aimed towards fighting for a woman’s right for parliamentary vote, which only men were granted for at the time. Emmeline was known for being a powerful orator and for being a courageous person that led many women to rebel through militant forms until the outbreak of World War I in 1914.

Malala Yousafzai is a modern-day public speaker who was born in the Swat Valley in Pakistan and is an educational activist for children and women. After the Taliban restricted the educational rights of women in the Swat Valley, Malala presented her first speech How Dare the Taliban Take Away My Basic Right to Education? in which she protested the shutdowns of the schools. She presented this speech to a press in Peshawar. This brought a lot of attention outside of Pakistan and as well as to the Taliban, who tried to silence her. She is known for her “inspiring and passionate speech” about educational rights given at the United Nations. She also talked about her own  experience of when she got shot in the head in 2012 by a Taliban gunman. She received a Nobel Peace Prize in 2014 and is the youngest to be awarded that prize. Malala’s public speaking has brought worldwide attention of the difficulties of the young girls in Pakistan. She continues to advocate for educational rights for children and women worldwide through the Malala Fund  with the purpose of helping girls all around the world receive 12 years of education.

Trainings

Toastmasters International

Toastmasters International is a public speaking organization with over 15,000 clubs worldwide and more than 300,000 members. This organization helps individuals with their public speaking skills as well as other skills necessary for them to grow and become effective public speakers. Members of the club meet and work together on their skills as each member practices giving speeches while the other members evaluate and provide feedback. There are also other small tasks that the members do like practice impromptu speaking by talking about different topics without having anything planned. Each member has a specific role and all of these roles help with the process of gaining their skills as public speakers and as leaders. The number of roles lets each member be able to speak at least one time at the meetings. Members are also able to participate in a variety of speech contests in which the winners can compete in the World Championship of Public Speaking.

Rostrum

Rostrum is another public speaking organization founded in Australia with more than 100 clubs all over the country. This organization aims at helping people become better communicators no matter the occasion. At the meetings, speakers are able to gain skills by presenting speeches and members provide feedback to those presenting. There is also a qualified speaking trainer that provides more feedback at the end of the meetings. There are also competitions that are held for members to participate in. An online club is also available for members, no matter where they live.