International Human Rights Conference

Ndaba Mandela, Grandson of Nelson Mandela, Other Activists Issue Calls for Change at Kean Human Rights Conference

Kean University’s 16th annual Human Rights Conference celebrated the 75th anniversary of the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) on Friday, December 8, issuing a powerful call to action: be a changemaker. 

The featured speaker, Ndaba Mandela, the grandson of the late South Africa president Nelson Mandela, shared the lessons he learned from his grandfather, a man he said could touch the humanity of every person he met.

“His life is a testament to the belief that standing up for what is right isn’t just a choice but a duty,” he said.

Sophia Kianni, a 21-year-old climate change activist and United Nations advisor, and John Prendergast, a New York Times best-selling author and co-founder of the human rights organization The Sentry, joined Mandela in addressing the conference entitled, Freedom, Equity and Justice for All: One Person Can Make a Difference.

“Our speakers today have lit the torch and will share their light with you today,” Kean President Lamont O. Repollet, Ed.D., said in his opening remarks. “I hope that you leave here prepared to ask the difficult questions, committed to finding innovative solutions, and empowered to be the change makers we know you can be, we need you to be.”  

Wilkins Theatre on Kean’s Union campus was packed with high school students, Kean students, faculty and others for the conference, which marked the anniversary of the U.N.’s worldwide pronouncement in 1948 that upholds and protects the fundamental rights of all people.

The document served as a “beacon of hope” for the late Nelson Mandela while he was imprisoned for 27 years for opposing apartheid, Ndaba Mandela said.

“As we stand here today, let us remember the U.N. Declaration of Human Rights was only the beginning,” he said. “The pursuit of  human rights is never static. It requires constant vigilance and engagement. The journey is both a collective and individual endeavor.” 

Prendergast and Kianni each delivered inspiring messages, sharing their stories and calling on the audience to take action to enact change. Prendergast said students have played “a crucial role in moving the needle forward” throughout history on social and human rights issues ranging from apartheid to “blood diamonds.”

The activist said he once spoke face-to-face with the late Steve Jobs, founder of Apple, to convince him to change his company’s practices in buying minerals mined in war-torn countries.

“Mass injustices can be effectively countered and stopped,” Prendergast said. “We need to loudly proclaim that these injustices cannot be allowed to occur. Not on our watch.”

Kianni’s environmental group, Climate Cardinals, has grown to involve more than 10,000 volunteers internationally since she started it as a teenager. She said there are “so many ways” students can make a positive impact and noted the power of social media in sparking a social justice movement. She encouraged the students in attendance to organize, and be brave.

“Fear of failure held me back for so long,” Kianni said. “We are at an unprecedented time in history for young people to make a difference. You can be a TikTok video away from doing something to make your community or world a much better place.”

Students in the crowd were energized.

Margaret Perez, 17, a senior at Monmouth Regional High School, said the conference was “very impactful.” She also came away with a bag of Kean gear for winning first place in an online quiz played during the conference.

“I feel everybody here probably feels some kind of desire to take action – it really is a call to action,” she said.

Michael Bonner, a Kean sophomore from Westfield, said he was “uplifted,” especially by Kianni’s advice for students to believe in themselves.

“It took me a long time to realize I am the only person that needs to believe in myself,” he said. 

The New Jersey State Teacher of the Year, Monmouth Regional social studies teacher Joseph Nappi, attended with his class.

“It’s so important for students to see these people who are making a difference,” said Nappi, who also won the Human Rights Institute’s Dr. Hank Kaplowitz Outstanding Human Rights Educator Award in 2017. 

Prendergast said Kean’s Human Rights Institute and Human Rights Conference are a catalyst for the students in the audience, who ranged in age from middle school to college.

“Kean is a unique place.There’s a real commitment here,” Prendergast said. “This isn’t just, ‘if it happens, it happens.’ There’s a system-wide commitment to foster activism and social change.”

The conference included the presentation of the following awards:

• Outstanding Human Rights Activist – Ndaba Thembekile Mandela
• Outstanding Young Human Rights Activist – Sophia Kianni
• Outstanding Student Human Rights Activist – Kean junior Sara Mora, a political science student from Hillside
• Hank Kaplowitz Outstanding Human Rights Educator – awarded posthumously to Tamika Pollins, Ed.D., a senior administrator in the West Orange School District 
• Outstanding Human Rights School Community of the Year – Team Harmony of Randolph High School

Ndaba Mandela Grandson of Nelson Mandela, Co-Founder & Chairman of Africa Rising Foundation 

Nelson Mandela had a “long walk to freedom,” yet his footprints still remain. Following in the footsteps of his beloved and iconic grandfather, Ndaba Mandela has taken the torch – and ran with it. Today, Nelson Mandela’s legacy lives on as Ndaba continues to keep its beacon of hope bright, fueling its fiery message that one person can make a difference. Thankfully for all, the legacy lives, as Ndaba was recently named one of the “28 Men of Change” by BET. His recent book, Going to the Mountain: Life Lessons from My Grandfather, Nelson Mandela, is the first-ever to tell Nelson Mandela's life through the eyes of the grandson who was raised by him, chronicling Ndaba's life living with, and learning from, one of the greatest leaders and humanitarians the world has ever known.

Today, Ndaba is showing the world, through his actions and orations, that Nelson Mandela’s voice and message of freedom still carries and rings true – sounded by a child that became a man under the warm embrace and expert tutelage of one of history’s greatest teachers. Currently, Ndaba is organizing the 95th celebration of Nelson Mandela Day and was also instrumental in creating the International Day of Happiness at the United Nations. He continues to keep Mandela on the world’s mind.

Now, Ndaba Mandela entertains and inspires audiences with tales only he could tell in his presentations exclusively through American Program Bureau. With pride and presence, Ndaba speaks passionately about Africa, its people and its future – which is looking brighter than ever. This is good news, not only for the continent, but also for corporations looking to get in on the ground floor of a steadily rising nation, embracing its vast potential and natural resources. In fact, Ndaba is the co-founder and co-chairman of the Africa Rising Foundation, an organization dedicated to promoting a positive image of Africa around the world and to increasing its potential for growth in the areas of education, employment and international corporate alliances for profit and partnership. Ndaba also serves as an executive director UN AIDS, which seeks to end discrimination around HIV/Aids through the power of football.

Sophia Kianni Founder of Climate Cardinals & Youngest Appointed United Nations Advisor 

Sophia Kianni is an Iranian-American activist studying science, technology, & society at Stanford University. She is the founder and executive director of Climate Cardinals, an international nonprofit with 9,000 volunteers in 40+ countries working to translate climate information into over 100 languages. She represents the U.S as the youngest member on the inaugural United Nations Youth Advisory Group on Climate Change. She sits on boards and advisory councils for The New York Times, World Economic Forum, Web Summit, Inkey List, Iris Project, JUV Consulting, Ashoka, and American Lung Association.

Sophia has amassed a following of over 200,000 across social media platforms and her work has been featured in news outlets including Forbes, CNN, Vogue, Business Insider, BBC, NPR, ELLE, TIME Magazine, The Guardian, NBC, and even on the front page of The Washington Post. She was previously a fellow with PBS NewsHour and has written for news outlets such as The Washington Post, MTV News, Cosmopolitan, and Teen Vogue. She is a prolific public speaker and has spoken at universities across the world including Columbia University, UC Berkeley, Johns Hopkins, Cambridge University, and Harvard University. She won the TED global idea competition and her debut TED Talk has 1.5+ million views.

She has been named VICE Media's youngest Human of the Year, a National Geographic Young Explorer, among Business Insider’s Climate Action 30, one of Teen Vogue's 21 under 21, and a Forbes 30 under 30 honoree.

John Prendergast Co-Founder of The Sentry

John Prendergast is a human rights and anti-corruption activist as well as a New York Times best-selling author. He is the Co-Founder with George Clooney of The Sentry, an investigative and policy team that follows the dirty money connected to war criminals and transnational war profiteers.

John has worked for the White House, the State Department, two members of Congress, the National Intelligence Council, UNICEF, Human Rights Watch, the International Crisis Group, and the U.S. Institute of Peace.  During his time in government, John was part of the negotiating team behind the successful two-year mediation led by Anthony Lake which ended the 1998-2000 war between Ethiopia and Eritrea, the deadliest war in the world at the time.  He was also part of peace processes for Burundi (led by President Nelson Mandela), Sudan, and DR Congo. 

John is the author or co-author of eleven books, two of which he co-authored with Don Cheadle. John has been awarded seven honorary doctorates. John also co-founded The Enough Project, a policy organization aimed at countering genocide and crimes against humanity and the predecessor to the Sentry. He has been a big brother in the Big Brothers/Big Sisters program for nearly 40 years to ten different boys, as well as a youth counselor and basketball coach. 

To learn more about The Sentry, visit www.thesentry.org.