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Remembering Archbishop Desmond Tutu

27 December 2021

We have compiled a selection of tributes from Arch's friends, colleagues and those inspired by his leadership.

Desmond Tutu: a life in pictures

26 December 2021

Archbishop Desmond Tutu served as Chair of The Elders between 2007 and 2013.

The Elders mourn the loss of Archbishop Desmond Tutu

The Elders are deeply saddened at the passing of their dear friend and colleague Archbishop Desmond Tutu. His passing follows a long and brave battle against cancer, which never dimmed his determination to fight against injustice in all its forms.

What does it take to reach our full potential as climate activists?

Young siblings Jayson and Jayrose 'Mika' Capelle from the Marshall Islands write about their experiences as climate activists in a climate-vulnerable island state, and how the climate crisis is about more than climate change.

Climate Change: a threat to human health in Nigeria. Let’s take action!

Adegbile Deborah Morayo, a 12-year-old climate activist from Nigeria, writes about living with the impacts of environmental degradation and how this drives her passion to be a climate activist advocating for the right to a clean and healthy environment.

Elders Statements

Mary Robinson appointed new Chair of The Elders

The former President of Ireland and former United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights will become The Elders’ third Chair.

Building a culture of inclusivity in a diverse society

Delivering the 6th Annual Desmond Tutu International Peace Lecture, Hina Jilani stresses the importance of ethical leadership and exhorts world leaders to comply with human rights norms and the rule of law when addressing peace and security issues.

Building a culture of inclusivity in a diverse society

Delivering the 6th Annual Desmond Tutu International Peace Lecture, Hina Jilani stresses the importance of ethical leadership.

Elders Statements

The Elders urge SADC leaders to support smooth transition in Zimbabwe

Ahead of the 36th SADC Summit, Kofi Annan, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, and Graça Machel call on attending heads of state to support a successful and inclusive transition in Zimbabwe.

What can we do to change the gender equation?

On 6 March, to mark International Women’s Day, Graça Machel and Desmond Tutu hosted a Twitter Q&A on gender inequality and women’s rights. You can see the twitter conversation at #askElders. Here is the full transcript of the event.

What can we do to change the gender equation?

On 6 March, to mark International Women’s Day, Graça Machel and Desmond Tutu hosted a Twitter Q&A on gender inequality and women’s rights. You can see the twitter conversation at #askElders. Here is the full transcript of the event.

What can we do to change the gender equation?

On 6 March, to mark International Women’s Day, Graça Machel and Desmond Tutu hosted a Twitter Q&A on gender inequality and women’s rights. You can see the twitter conversation at #askElders. Here is the full transcript of the event.

"If we hold back women, we hold back society"

To mark International Women’s Day, Elders Desmond Tutu and Graça Machel took to Twitter for a live Q&A. This is a summary of how the event unfolded.

We need to think differently about women

"We cannot sit and pontificate, or wring our hands and hope someone else does the hard work."
To mark International Women's Day, Graça Machel and Desmond Tutu urge all of us, men and women, to question what is preventing gender equality and to make a co

Mandela Day 2014: how will you be an ethical leader?

Inspired by the legacy of our founder, Nelson Mandela, The Elders are marking Mandela Day 2014 with the launch of a new video series on ethical leadership.

Appel pour un leadership européen en matière de changement climatique

“La lutte contre le changement climatique est dans l’intérêt économique de L’Europe. Elle lui offre aussi l’occasion de déployer au mieux son leadership.”
Dans une tribune parue dans Libération, Mary Robinson et Desmond Tutu appellent les

“To denigrate women is to spit in the face of God”

Desmond Tutu and Jimmy Carter spent an hour responding to questions on women’s rights yesterday, in The Elders’ first ever live Twitter Q&A for International Women’s Day 2014.

#AskElders: Twitter Q&A on women's rights

To mark International Women’s Day 2014, Jimmy Carter, Hina Jilani and Desmond Tutu will answer questions in The Elders’ first ever live Twitter chat.

Elders Statements

The Elders call for swift and decisive action in the Central African Republic

“I urge the Security Council to act swiftly and decisively and authorise the resources urgently needed to begin stabilising the CAR." Kofi Annan
The Elders highlight the worsening violence in the Central African Republic, ahead of tomorrow's report fro

Elders in Iran: encouraging openness and trust

Elders Statements

The Elders conclude fruitful first visit to Iran

"We are convinced that Iran can be a key factor for stability and opportunity in the region." Kofi Annan
After a series of meetings with the country’s leadership, The Elders are encouraged by Iran’s new spirit of openness and dialogue with the outsid

Elders in South Africa for ethical leadership debate

“It’s important that you don’t just speak truth to power, but you also show wisdom to power.” Hina Jilani The Elders, together with Al Jazeera’s South2North programme, held a public debate this week in Cape Town asking, "What is ethical leader

Who will lead Syria out of crisis?

“To talk about ‘ethical leadership’ is to speak from experience, not because you were a perfect leader but because you were thrust into difficult situations, and maybe you helped to see humanity prevail.”Writing in the Cape Times, Desmond Tutu r

In Africa, seeking a licence to kill

UN owes it to Syria's children to act

"In our failure to ensure that people in Syria are getting the food and basic supplies they need, we condemn children to hunger on top of the horrors of war."
Writing in the Sydney Morning Herald, Desmond Tutu highlights how Syria's civil war is exposing

Sentencing rapists to death won't tackle the root cause of sexual violence

"Yes, the perpetrators must be held to account for their sins. But it makes very little sense to punish the perpetrators while continuing to ignore the patriarchal, patronising and demeaning societal framework that creates this criminality."Drawing para

We are all shamed by Syria’s suffering

"Weapons, not blankets, are pouring into the country"As Syria's humanitarian crisis escalates, Desmond Tutu makes an impassioned call to the international community to put the safety of Syrians above politics.

Le Conseil des droits de l'homme doit serrer la vis au Sri Lanka

"Nous soutenons la mise en place d’une enquête internationale crédible et indépendante sur les violations présumées des droits de l’homme au Sri Lanka"
Quatre ans après la fin de la guerre civile au Sri Lanka, le climat est loin d'être propice

African campaigners come together to tackle child marriage

“We ought to do everything in our power to ensure girls can become all they can be.” Desmond Tutu
In November, Desmond Tutu and Graça Machel took part in a Girls Not Brides conference discussing how to end child marriage in Sub-Saharan Africa. The e

Let us measure up as men

“I call on men and boys everywhere to take a stand against the mistreatment of girls and women. It is by standing up for the rights of girls and women that we truly measure up as men.”To mark the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Aga

'Desmond Tutu: not going quietly'

In a video interview with David Frost for Al Jazeera, Desmond Tutu offers his personal insight into the anti-apartheid struggle in South Africa and his concerns for the recent developments taking place in the country. Later, joined by Jimmy Carter, they d

The Elders call for immediate halt to Gaza violence

“This new outbreak of violence is heartbreaking – and all too familiar." Desmond Tutu
As violence escalates in Gaza and Israel, the Elders call for an immediate cessation of hostilities, and for the international community to renew efforts to resolve

'Tutu promotes campaign to end child marriage'

“It’s not just throwing money at the problem. The idea is to ensure that the standards are respectful of the customs and traditions of the community.”
In an interview with The Washington Post, following his meeting with US Secretary of State Hillar

Une promesse faite aux filles

"L'autonomisation des filles est la clé du développement."
Dans une tribune publiée dans plusieurs journaux à travers le monde, pour la Journée internationale de la fille, Desmond Tutu et Ela Bhatt demandent à la communauté internationale d’en f

Day of the Girl: giving girls a voice

“Every three seconds, another girl becomes a child bride.”11 October marks the first ever International Day of the Girl Child: a chance to amplify the voice of millions of girls everywhere being married off before the age of 18. Join Mary Robinson a

Traditions are man-made, they can be changed

In a video from Half the Sky, a campaign dedicated to the empowerment of girls and women across the world, Desmond Tutu questions the sidelining of women in the name of custom or tradition. If these traditions are man-made, he argues, then they can be cha

Early marriage robs children of their opportunities

"With or without legislation, we urge the Obama administration to make eliminating child marriage a foreign policy goal."
Writing in the Washington Post, Graça Machel and Desmond Tutu say we are not doing enough to fulfil our responsibility to protect y

Encouraging the path of peace for Sudan and South Sudan

Following the May 2012 visit to Sudan by Jimmy Carter and Lakhdar Brahimi, in July 2012 Desmond Tutu, Martti Ahtisaari and Mary Robinson travelled to the region to further encourage peace efforts between Sudan and South Sudan.

Inspiring positive action for Mandela Day

Taking place on 18 July, Mandela Day is inspired by the 67 years that Nelson Mandela gave fighting for justice and human rights and encourages people around the world to give 67 minutes of their time to serve their communities.
During their visit to Lond

Five years of working together for peace and human rights: The Elders in London

In July 2012, Desmond Tutu, Jimmy Carter and Mary Robinson visited London where they took part in a public debate at the Barbican to commemorate the five years since Nelson Mandela founded The Elders. They also held meetings with the UK Foreign Secretary

Finding resilience in a fragile place: the Elders visit Yusuf Batil

"We came to show our solidarity to Blue Nile refugees and to underscore our call for peace" – Desmond Tutu.As the people of South Sudan celebrated their first year of independence, three Elders travelled to the region to encourage dialogue between Sud

Interview: Mary Robinson and Desmond Tutu on Sudan & South Sudan

During their visit to London last week Desmond Tutu and Mary Robinson were interviewed by CNN's Becky Anderson about their upcoming trip to Sudan & South Sudan, the current situation there, and what they hoped to achieve. 

End the suffering in the Sudans

"We are already witnessing an unbearable catastrophe with the fighting in Blue Nile and South Kordofan in Sudan, and the ensuing outpouring of refugees into South Sudan and Ethiopia."Writing from Addis Ababa at the start of an Elders delegation to Sudan

The Elders on The World Tonight

“What can The Elders do that other groups and organisations, like the UN, can't do?”As The Elders celebrate five years since Nelson Mandela founded the organisation, Desmond Tutu and Mary Robinson join Robin Lustig on BBC Radio 4’s The World Tonig

Tackling poverty and inequality must be at the heart of Rio+20

"We cannot continue to live as we do now."
Writing as Global Ambassador for Oxfam International as Rio+20 begins, Desmond Tutu reflects on the achievements of the first Rio Earth Summit twenty years ago and calls for strong, unequivocal political co

For the future of our planet, a dialogue between generations

“I share the frustration of millions, outraged at the indifference world leaders are demonstrating towards some of the toughest and most urgent challenges we face today.” Writing in the Huffington Post, Desmond Tutu voices his exasperation with our

Are girls better at saving the planet than boys?

"We think ahead. We are practical. We are inherently more likely to think inter-generationally."In a new Elders+Youngers debate, Mary Robinson argues that because women suffer disproportionately from poverty and social inequality, they are more likely t

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Mary Robinson, Ban Ki-moon & Ernesto Zedillo enjoyed a good meeting with @antonioguterres at @UN. They discussed global security issues inc. Ukraine and Israel/Palestine, how to strengthen multilateralism amid geopolitical tensions, & plans for the upcoming Summit of the Future. pic.twitter.com/lY1HWKn8Ku
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