Tonight a United Nations-sponsored gathering took place in anticipation of (and as a “pep rally” for) tomorrow’s speakers and participants in the annual POWER OF COLLABORATION Global Summit held at the United Nations. This august body brings together the world’s most diverse, inclusive, and innovative ideas, inspiring global leaders to collectively pursue endeavors that embody the best of our human values. At the core of the summit goal is private and business sector engagement and partnership in driving sustainable solutions toward inclusive and equitable economies.

The event began with rousing welcoming speeches by the co-founders of Impact Leadership 21, Janet Salazar and Constance Peak. A personal highlight was hearing from a passionate candidate for president of Liberia, MacDella Cooper.

I was humbled by the warm introductory welcome by Robin Sol Lieberman, author and founder of True Charisma, before I sang a song to set the tone before dinner. (See the video here!)

Our dear friends from UCSD, Dr. Suresh Subramani, Dr. Ramesh Rao and Prof. Naila Chowdhury (who have appeared in previous Destination Peace blogs!), are presenting at the United Nations tomorrow. We had the mutual pleasure of spending time with Mr. Manoj Kumar (attending from Bangalore, India), who works with the Foundation for Innovation and Social Entrepreneurship for Tata Trusts.

It was an honor meeting and speaking to Ambassador Chowdhury about his dream of peace and how he has actualized his vision and passion through his personal passion for creating a “culture of peace.” The ambassador is the recipient of the U Thant Peace Award and UNESCO Gandhi Gold Medal for creating this “Culture of Peace.”

It was also a distinct and special honor for me to once again speak with Dr. Peter Salk, whose lifelong dedication to significantly increasing the quality of life through science and medicine is only exceeded by his compassion for others.