Good afternoon everybody, and let me just say something at the top.

Thank you my friend the Provost for that introduction.

I am particularly excited and pleased to be here at Howard today. I’ve spent a lot of years at this university, over many years throughout my career. Because for a long time -- and one of the reasons my introduction is long is that I am older than you people, so there are more years to account for [laughs]. For a long time one of the few places in this city, where if you wanted to do an event on Africa, if you wanted to invite African speakers, if you wanted to organize people on issues around events in Africa, this is the place that stood up, this is the place that took initiative, this is the place that provided a platform. So Howard University has a very special place in my heart, and also as a resident of the District. So I couldn’t be happier to be here at Howard today.

And I’d also like to give all of you a shout out and the MCN team for organizing this; I’ve just been hearing about some of the debates you’ve been having -- bless you for having the debates that need to be had -- and, can we just give the team a shout out for putting this all together?

You all do amazing work, and I’m particularly pleased - you know, we live in a world where there is a lot of good but there’s a lot of bad. And to be able to end my week with a group of people who are saying how can we organize around and live on this thing called empathy - and what you just did, we should probably start every morning like that -- it’s what we need. And the networks that you’re building, and the work you’re doing to connect and support the community here is enormously valuable, and I think in many ways we share a common mission. Part of what we do at USAID is try to equip agents of change with the tools they need to transform their ideas into reality. We don’t think development is something we go do to people. It is something we enable people to do. And all across the globe, as you know, people have the potential to improve their lives and the lives of their families and communities, and to change the world. More often than not, the ones with the most energy, the freshest ideas, and the strongest work ethics are young people like you--and older people like me who have been at this for a long time.

That’s why we work to support and invest in young people in a lot of the work we do at USAID.  We do so in partnership with Howard, by working to recruit outstanding young men and women into the Foreign Service through the Donald M. Payne International Development Fellowship Program. That’s a program that was named for an outstanding member of Congress from New Jersey, who was himself one of the greatest, greatest champions of justice in this country and justice around the world that we’ve seen up on the Hill.

This year, we’ve also launched an exciting program to place senior USAID officials at universities around the country. And we’re going to start with our first two “Development Diplomats in Residence” for two reasons: One, we want to engage with and  share with students the work that we do, the work their government does. But we also want to ensure that we are building a diverse and talented workforce, so I’m really excited that next week, our first Development Diplomat in Residence will kick off. And of course, we want to empower young people all over the world through our support for education, professional development and training.

Now, earlier this week I was able to speak to a group of Fellows who are part of President Obama’s Young African Leaders Initiative. We had a thousand of these young leaders in one room. Needless to say I’m not sure I broke through. But it was extraordinary and something we’ve started and the President is very committed to, to invest in a couple things: building the skills and capacity; helping young people make the connections they need to do whatever they will with them; and provide a platform for young leaders to network [6:20].

He’s now launched these all over the world. And I think YALI shows me something that I imagine many of you want to show the rest of the world often. Which is that at a time when, in my view, Africa is still too often represented--including in the media--as a place where you’ve got dictators, wars and poverty, it is also a region that radiates pride, hope and optimism as represented by these young leaders. So I was very proud [applause] - and I know you all knew that, but let me just say: as a former reporter, this is an uphill struggle to change the image of understanding. And I will tell you, we are honestly counting on all of you to be the faces and the personalities that help us tell that story.

​Administrator Gayle Smith with Team MCN and Dr. Anthony Wutoh, Provost, Howard University

Ravi Karkara

Now, as MCC delegates you all understand that we’re all connected by our shared humanity, that we all face the same challenges, and that we all have a responsibility to each other. I think you’re here because you believe in the common good, you refuse to accept injustice and inequity, and you want to have an impact on something bigger than yourself. I’m honored beyond words that given that intention and spirit among you, that I can be here to receive the Global Generation award on behalf of USAID.

I also want you to know that I’m accepting it not just as a recognition of the work that USAID has done, but as evidence of our commitment to keep on doing this work and doing it better and better, and more effectively over time as we go forward.

And we’ve got plenty of work left to do together. Particularly in today’s world, where I honestly think the challenges are as big as I can remember--from the massive refugee crisis, to expanding terrorist networks, to epidemics that can be spread across oceans on a single plane ride.

But I also think this is a world in which the opportunities are boundless. Where hard work with our partners has allowed us to be part of ending preventable child deaths. In the course of this administration, there are 4.6 million kids who, due to the work of USAID and our partners, are alive today that wouldn’t be alive. That's change and we can do that. To invest in the lives of smallholder farmers, so that the agricultural sector they work, works for them. To work with our partners to turn the lights on, in places where if people just have a little bit of electrical power, they can have a whole lot of political and economic power.

That's the change we could make, and I’m very proud to leave an agency -- to lead an agency, and I am not leaving until January 20th at 11:59 -- to lead an agency where we’ve been able to do these things. So as you leave at the end of the day, your job going forward is to take your smarts, your passion, and your creativity – plus everything you’ve learned this week – and put it to work to build a better future for communities, countries, and the world.

And whether you decide to join government--and I strongly encourage all of you to think about it, it may be something like ‘I’m not working for the government’. It never occurred to me to work for the government, and it’s one of the best experiences I have ever had. Make your government better, and improve the rest of the world. [applause]. Or work for the private sector, an NGO, or an institution of faith, remember the theme of this week. Remember that empathy is always a good place place to start.

And, I’ll just share with you one thing that somebody told me 32 years ago, that I think resonates with this theme of empathy, and I try to think about everyday: Talk to people where they are, and not where you think they should be. Think about it. I’ve been right about everything I have thought my entire life, but I’ve only been successful when I have talked to people where they are, and listened to them, rather than just thinking the sheer force of my rightness was going to change the world. So just think about that--talk to people where they are, rather than where you think they should be.  

Because empathy--and that’s a part of what empathy is, it’s listening, and caring and getting that returned to you--it can shine through the kind of dark rhetoric that we hear. It can help you consider perspectives other than your own. And believe me, other perspectives are critical to getting anything done-- and that’s another lesson I’ve learned in government. If I collaborate with people across the government with whom I may not agree on everything, we can get really, really big things done. So don’t constrain your empathy to just your own beliefs. Expand it. And as you do, remember that the more people in need, the more you are needed.  A million deaths shouldn’t just be a statistic. This has got to be personal, to all of us. So don’t limit the scope of your ability. Expand it.

Thinking beyond yourself and your own experiences will not only make you a more effective changemaker, it will also teach you the value of diversity. And in that regard we have a lot to learn from this institution, which has been a pioneer for diversity since it was founded in 1867. Over the years, Howard University has committed to empowering people through education and service, and to amplify diverse voices and perspectives. So I just want to say again that I’m thrilled to receive this honor, but I am just as thrilled to receive it here at Howard University.

Now, we have great jobs at USAID -- we get together in the mornings and say how are we going to make the world better -- but I’m able to work with people who dedicate their lives to serving others. And one of the major privileges of my job is that I get to hear amazing stories from the field every day. I used to be in the field and one of the compensations I get for now being in Washington is to have all these people come up to me and say tell us, and share with us what works and what happens. So they’re stories of commitment, of empathy, and of love. I just want to share one with you.

In Jordan, more than a half of the registered refugees are kids. This could mean a generation of boys and girls without an education, or anything even resembling a normal childhood. One Syrian mother--who, by the way, was a refugee herself--was hoping to find an education for her daughter when she visited a small school in Amman, Jordan -- the capital. The school was overcrowded, and at first the principal felt like she had no choice but to turn the mother away. But because she believes that every child deserves an education, because she had empathy, she told the mother: “I will register your daughter if you bring a chair for her.”

Today that school doesn’t have just one extra chair--her classrooms are now spotted with small mismatched chairs in pink, purple, and blue plastic. And kids who had already left everything behind get to learn, laugh, and make friends the way they should.

That’s empathy, and that’s change, and that’s how you change the world. It starts with empathy, it’s driven by empathy, and it builds empathy.

So thank you for inviting me to share that with you, and to join, truly, an amazing and inspirational bunch of people who, again, if  you could just force multiply around the world and every Friday, get thousands of people together to celebrate empathy, this world would be what we want it to be. And I think we can get there. Thank you very much.