Give1Project - Global Leadership Summit at UNESCO

On Friday, March 11, I had the pleasure and privilege of attending activities organized as part of the Give1Project Global Leadership Summit for 2016.

GIVE1PROJECT's mission is to invest in young global leaders, empowering and inspiring them to continuously strive for greater social, economic and political participation in their communities, both locally and internationally. Previous summits have been held in Cotonou, Benin (2013), Casablanca, Morocco (2014), and Washington, D.C., U.S.A. (2015).

The Paris summit was a four-day affair, with Friday's activities consisting primarily of two panel discussions about leadership. One hundred and fifty persons from 30 countries and 25 nationalities were in attendance.

Conference attendees
© Discover Paris!
The morning started with a brief introduction of the day's session by Jacqueline Cofield, director of Give1Project's Give1Arts program for the arts and cultural entrepreneurship. (Ms. Cofield organized the Global Educator Program that was an integral part of the Beauford Delaney art exhibition that took place in Paris from February 4 - March 15, 2016).

Jacqueline Cofield, Give1Arts of Give1Project
© Discover Paris!
This was followed by a presentation of UNESCO by Victoria Dellinger, External Relations and Public Information officer; spoken word by Ibson Littérapure; and an introduction to Give1Project by founder and CEO, Thione Niang.

Victoria Dellinger, UNESCO
© Discover Paris!

Thione Niang, Give1Project
© Discover Paris!
Give1Project executive director Dr. Anta Sané then introduced the first panel discussion, which was entitled "Women in Leadership: Inspiring Positive Change."

Dr. Anta Sané, Give1Project
© Discover Paris!

Panelists for "Women in Leadership: Inspiring Positive Change"
© Discover Paris!
Among the panelists were:

Karen Andre, White House Liaison to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development; Amaal Nuux, Somali-Canadian singer and songwriter; and Danielle Sassou Nguesso, president of the Sounga Foundation.

Karen Andre, White House Liaison, HUD
© Discover Paris!

Amaal Nuux, singer-songwriter
© Discover Paris!

Danielle Sassou Nguesso, Sounga Foundation
© Discover Paris!
This discussion went far longer than anticipated due to numerous comments given in response to a young man expressing his belief that women have no problems with inequality today and asking the panel whether women themselves prevented other women from achieving the success they desire.

Give1Project founder Niang then introduced the second panel, which was entitled "Against the Odds: Empowerment and Leadership."

Panelists for "Against the Odds: Empowerment and Leadership"
© Discover Paris!
Among the panelists were:

Mamadou Cisse, youngest mayor in Senegal; and Debo Folunrosho, Founder and Creative Director at Applause Africa.

Mamadou Cisse, mayor of Kédougou, Senegal
© Discover Paris!

Debo Folunrosho, Applause Africa
© Discover Paris!
Senegalese rapper and activist Simon Kouka delivered a powerful and impassioned speech about leadership and giving back to Africa.

Simon Kouka, Senegalese rapper and activist
© Discover Paris!
The afternoon ended with the presentation of Outstanding Entrepreneurship Awards to start-up business owners

Outstanding Entrepreneurship Award Winners
(far left, center, and far right)
© Discover Paris!
and Karen Andre presenting a gift from the White House to Morocco's Ambassador to UNESCO, H.E. Mrs. Zohour Alaoui.

Karen Andre and H.E. Mrs. Zohour Alaoui
(Anta Sané and Thione Niang in background)
© Discover Paris!
During the course of the summit, participants also enjoyed a welcome at the French Business Confederation MEDEF, a visit to the Presidential Palace, and a gala dinner and award ceremony hosted by Royal Air Maroc.

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20th Anniversary Celebration of UNESCO Slave Route Project

On 10 September 2014, UNESCO celebrated the twentieth anniversary of the Slave Route Project: Resistance, Liberty, Heritage.

A full day of discussion, musical interludes, and commemoration took place at La Maison de l'UNESCO, 125 avenue de Suffren, in Paris' 7th arrondissement. Highlights included a roundtable at which UNESCO’s contribution to the International Decade for People of African Descent (2015-2024) was discussed and the inauguration of the exhibition "Africans in India: from Slaves to Generals and Rulers."

Africans in India
© Discover Paris!
French Minister of Justice Christiane Taubira, author of the 2001 law that recognizes slavery as a crime against humanity, spoke at the closing event of the day:

The challenge today is to understand the globalization that divides people to better exploit. This globalization can be replaced by universality, one in which we meet the Other, so that the Other is not seen as a good to be sold.

Justice Minister Christiane Taubira
Screenshot from YouTube video
The United States Permanent Delegation to UNESCO sponsored the evening reception. The new U.S. Ambassador to UNESCO, Crystal Nix-Hines, delivered a passionate speech about the lessons to be learned from the practices of slavery in past centuries and reminded us that modern-day slavery (human trafficking and forced labor) is just as atrocious a scourge in society today.

Ambassador Crystal Nix-Hines addresses the crowd
© Discover Paris!
Ambassador Nix-Hines' husband, David Hines, then sang "Lift Every Voice and Sing."

David Hines
© Discover Paris!
Finally UNESCO Artist for Peace and spokesman for the Slave Route Project, Marcus Miller, regaled the audience with numerous artists who joined him on stage for an incredible jam session that lasted far longer than anyone anticipated.

Marcus Miller
© Discover Paris!

Jam session
© Discover Paris!
View clips of the day's activities here:



Among the achievements cited by UNESCO for the Slave Route Project is the Permanent Memorial to Honor the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade at the United Nations building in New York.

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Black Paris Profiles™: Richard Allen

Richard Allen is one of the “old school” African-American expatriates living in Paris today. Businessman and singer, photographer and filmmaker, the breadth and depth of his experiences in the City of Light are impossible to chronicle in a mere blog posting! His activities in all of these arenas are the source of his unique outlook on life in Paris.

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Richard Allen
© Discover Paris!
Richard Allen always liked French. Though he grew up listening to Hispanic Spanish, he was not really attracted to this language. But when he heard his grade school classmate, Gabriel Racine, speak French, he decided that he wanted to learn it. True to his passion, he went on to earn a B.A. in French and Economics at Morehouse College and moved to France to learn more after completing his military service in Belgium. He arrived in Paris on 11 June 1972, enrolled at the Sorbonne, and studied for two years there.

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Black Paris Profiles™ is now available on Kindle.  Only excerpts are available on this blog.

To get your copy of Black Paris Profiles™, click HERE.

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