Chatham University

www.chatham.edu
Pittsburgh, PA
May 3, 2008		 Professor Ibrahim Gambari, Under-Secretary-General,
Special Adviser to the Secretary-General:

One other anecdote before going into the substance of my presentation today. I describe myself simply as a Professor by training and a diplomat by accident – a 25 years accident. The lesson here is: do not put yourself in a straight jacket, grab opportunities that come your way and make yourself indispensable in the job that you do and the service you provide.

Never did I dream that a boy from Ilorin, Nigeria, whose first language is not English would, in different capacities, work with four successive United Nations Secretaries-General (Pérez de Cuéllar, Boutros-Ghali, Kofi Annan and presently Ban Ki-moon), be received by many world leaders and be leading the United Nations efforts in mediating the crisis in Myanmar (Burma) and pushing for International Compact with Iraq in support of reconstruction, economic reform, greater security and faster national reconciliation in the war-torn country.

Again, there are no real secrets to or easy path to international mediation. What is required is taking advantage of opportunities, hard-work, persistence, sound knowledge of the dynamics of the conflicts, building and sustaining the trust and confidence of parties to the conflicts and, again, a bit of luck.
Judge Debra Todd (Class of 1979), Justice of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania

"This Commencement is about YOUR accomplishments. It is about the struggles you have endured, the challenges you have overcome, and the victories you have achieved. I am here to congratulate YOU, the Class of 2008 on how far you have come.

And, let us not forget that Commencement is also about beginnings. Your beginnings—the start of a bright new future for each one of you.

How exciting! As you close this chapter, and revel in the glory of the completion of your college education, you have the unparalleled opportunity to turn the page to your shiny, new future.

What that future holds is up to you. Whether it means starting graduate school, or law school, or medical school; whether it means travel to far-away places or joining the world of working women; whether it means devoting time to your family – or starting a family —the quality of your future is up to you. And, it is your determination, your self-confidence, and your positive attitude, that will guide you to success, however you choose to define it."
Cynthia Baldwin, Former Justice of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania

"Someone once said, 'Success is getting what you want; happiness is wanting what you get; and experience is what you get when you don’t get what you want.' By that definition, I am successful, happy and extremely experienced. It is traditional at graduations to implore people to be successful and to give back to the community. Today I’m going to ask you to do something much more specific. It truly frustrates me that many people measure success only in terms of money and material goods or title and position.

Albert Schweitzer talked about success in this way, 'Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success.' If you love what you are doing, you will be successful. The same people who define success in terms of money and material goods or title and position are also the least happy people I know.

So I am asking you graduates to think carefully about your life work and your contributions to society. We need you as educators and entrepreneurs; as artists and artistes; as scientists and social workers; as doctors and lawyers and CEOs. Yes, and even politicians. It is imperative, however, that we not make money and position the controlling factors in choosing our life work."