Monday October 13th: Ubuntu, a Quest for More Humanity

In Afrikaans they say Ubuntu; I am nothing without you and you are nothing without us. Ubuntu embodies the meaning of our trip to Cape Town and the lifelong work towards peace and justice that will be the result of this indaba.  We can only gain humanity through the humanity of others. As Patricia de Lille, the Executive Mayor of Cape Town, said as she addressed us this morning, “Your actions are your legacy” and therefore, you must “remain consistently vigilant in order to protect our world.” It is our hope that, together, we are able to hold true to the deeper meaning of Ubuntu as we continue to develop more effective solutions to improve our world.

We arrived early to stake our claim to the best possible seats in the room. Second row from the front behind only esteemed guests and dignitaries. We really thought this was it- our day was made because we got the perfect seats. There we sat ready with our notebooks opened to a crisp new page, our pens nearly alive with excitement. All of a sudden, Mr. Ives’ father, David Ives called to us and said in a soft yet urgent tone, “quickly, bring your students out here.” We didn't ask questions and moved quickly and quietly out of the large room. As we passed through the doorway we realized- we were about to meet formed President of South Africa FW de Klerk. At first his back was to us as he spoke with David and as he turned around to greet the students he smiled that way a proud grandfather smiles and immediately reached out his hand to introduce himself (as if that was necessary!).

David told him that these students were the only high school students from the United States at the summit. He also added that the students fundraised to make this trip happen. Impressed, he kindly welcomed the students to his country and to Cape Town. As he walked away to speak at the opening ceremony our girls were in shock. Meeting a former president is perhaps usually quite shocking, but meeting a former president that freed Nelson Mandela and then worked alongside him to end Apartheid is just beyond incredible.

(students with FW de Klerk)

(Aiti shaking de Klerk's hand as the others look on with smiles)

The morning followed with the opening ceremony, which included speeches from the Mayor of Cape Town, David Ives, Chaeli Mikroft, and FW de Klerk. All of the speakers during the ceremony were vibrant and impressive. Chaeli, who won the Youth Peace Prize in 2013 for her work with differently-abled children, spoke about Ubuntu as well stating, “If we can achieve Ubuntu, we can achieve peace.”

De Klerk spoke about leadership. What makes a good leader? What are the core requirements for effective leadership? Where does morality fit in the equation of leadership? His message was clear; A vision “gives direction and purpose to actions.” You must have a clear vision, invest people in this vision, and have a way to measure your actions as you work towards your goal. He touched specifically on certain areas starting with being a team player and having the ability to persuade others all the way to great communication skills and the ability to empower, not just inspire.

The second session focused on boycotts and featured 5 professors and organizational leaders from around the globe. A major aspect of this conversation was that often, when we boycott or protest something we are doing so in a way that isolates ourselves from whatever it is that we are fighting against. Is this right? Or, is it, in fact, an unintended consequence of action. Would the result of a boycott be different if we interacted with others, including our enemies, instead of isolating away from them? Although most agreed that boycotts are a commonly used non-violent tool, there was healthy discussion about the process of a successful boycott. In essence, we learned that boycotts are merely a means to a political end, but not the end itself. Thus we must conduct a boycott strategically in order to reap the benefit of radical social change.

Session number three was terrible and intriguing all at the very same time. Dr. Ira Helfand led the room through the horrific account of the very real consequences of a (minor) nuclear attack. Even a small scale nuclear war would result in the death of nearly 30 million people within the first week and nearly 2 billion more within a couple months due to the environmental effects of nuclear war and the fallout on society. Ira said that he believes “nuclear weapons are the overwhelming issue of our era.” He put it like this-

We can care about social, political, and economic issues like women’s rights and free trade, but at the end of the day, if we don’t attend to the issue of nuclear weapons, there will be no one left to address the others issues in society.

Although the session was actually painful to listen to and extremely depressing, Ira continued to assure the audience that learning about this is necessary to begin a real change process in our world in terms of nuclear capabilities. In speaking with Ira after the talk, I asked him if he would be willing to come and speak at Hartford Public. As a Springfield resident, he happily obliged. I cannot wait to bring this back to the rest of the students. You can check out more by visiting ICANW.org

To close out the day we watched a documentary about Nelson Mandela and the long “bloody” journey to freedom here in South Africa. Mandela’s three rules were:

1)   Free Yourself

2)   Free Others

3)   Serve everyday

(Aiti and Chantal get interviewed by a local news reporter)

We took a short break to grab some dinner. The students begged to return to Marco’s Place for some more traditional South African food and, of course, that’s what we did. My good friend Satomi joined us. I met Satomi nearly 4 years ago in Hiroshima, Japan and we have been great friends and colleagues ever since. In fact, she and I worked together on a Youth Declaration for the Nobel Laureates at the summit in 2010. Needless to say it was incredible to catch up with her, but even more wonderful to see her interacting with the students. We talked about our education systems, cultures, and even learned how to French braid our hair (weird, but yes, this happened.) Oh yea, and we tried Ox Tongue!

(Aiti, the vegetarian, offered her photography skills as we try Ox Tongue for the first time)

The night closed out with a session to plan a protest for tomorrow morning. Students were split up into groups and assigned different role. Some are in charge of social media while others are working on poster creation. The students are really excited to be apart of something so meaningful. I just continue to be astonished and humbled by these girls. Not only are they wonderful people, but their wit and intelligence far surpasses that of their peers making this experience all the more special.

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(Group photo)