What We Do
The world has changed markedly since Nelson Mandela founded The Elders in 2007.
Discover how The Elders contribute to addressing some of the challenges of leadership, peace-building, inequality, exclusion and injustice in a rapidly-changing world.


Ethical Leadership & Multilateral Cooperation
We support international co-operation & strong multilateral institutions as the most effective ways of tackling global challenges, including nuclear disarmament.
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Conflict Countries & Regions
We endeavour to assist in efforts to secure peaceful resolution to conflicts through quiet diplomacy and a willingness to talk to all sides.
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Universal Health Coverage
We made global and country-level interventions to support UHC in the broader context of pandemic preparedness and response, and the SDGs.
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Climate Change
We want to help ensure a just transition to the low carbon economy, create political space for ambitious action, and encourage innovative new solutions.
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Access to Justice
Access to justice for all is an important human right. We worked with governments and civil society to help make this right a reality.
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Refugees and Migration
We championed the need for compassion, tolerance and solidarity in response to vulnerable people on the move.
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Gender Equality and Intergenerational Dialogue
Equality for women and girls is a cornerstone of the Elders’ commitment to securing dignity and rights for all, informing our priorities across every aspect of our work. We also seek to empower young people and promote intergenerational dialogue across our initiatives.
As Kofi Annan said: “you are never too young to lead, and never too old to learn.”
More on Gender Equality More on Intergenerational Dialogue
Other work
Other programmes The Elders have worked on include...>

Access to Justice
Access to justice for all is an important human right. We worked with governments and civil society to help make this right a reality.
Read More...

Refugees and Migration
We championed the need for compassion, tolerance and solidarity in response to vulnerable people on the move.
Read More...

Universal Health Coverage
We made global and country-level interventions to support UHC in the broader context of pandemic preparedness and response, and the SDGs.
Read More...

Child Marriage
Child marriage affects millions of girls worldwide. We brought together organisations working locally, nationally and internationally in a global partnership to end this harmful practice.
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