Remembering Madeleine Albright: A Global Professor of Peace

At the Presidential Precinct, we speak regularly of mentors and believe deeply in the value of one generation working to inspire another. Rarely could a life model this work better than former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright.

Earlier this week at age 84, Albright died of cancer. We are certain and grateful that her model will live on.

The Presidential Precinct had the distinct honor of hosting Madeleine Albright at our 2016 Global Leadership Forum, presented in partnership with the University of Virginia. She was awarded the Edward R. Stettinius Jr. Prize for Global Leadership and shared in a keynote conversation with Presidential Precinct Alumna, Toyosi Ogunseye, herself the recipient of the Precinct’s inaugural Young Leader Award. Ogunseye recently shared with us:

“When I shared a stage with [Albright] in 2016, she was encouraging and spoke to me like a friend. I clearly remember her telling me how proud she was of me, and I told her that being in her presence was such an honor. Because of Madeleine Albright, so many young women like me can dare.”

Ogunseye now works as the Senior News Editor for News and Commissioning at BBC World Service and is Chair of the Precinct’s Global Advisory Council.

“Madeleine Albright fundamentally understood that young people would always be the essential ingredient in the success of democracy worldwide,” said Stewart Gamage, Presidential Precinct Board member and a more than 30-year colleague of Albright’s.

An immigrant to the United States, a fierce U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, and ultimately the first woman to serve as U.S. Secretary of State – Albright’s career accomplishments are endless.

Gamage, a key visionary and orchestrator of the Precinct’s Global Leadership Forum, shared clear memories of the 2016 conversation between Alrbight and Ogunseye. The bond quickly built between these two accomplished, global leaders was unparalleled. According to Gamage:

“Madeleine knew that her legacy would be in the life, work, and leadership of young women like Toyosi.”

Ogunseye, as a young global leader, was in good company at the 2016 Global Leadership Forum, which welcomed participants from over 45 countries to the Grounds of the University of Virginia. Dr. Gaurav Sharma from New Zealand, at the time a Fulbright scholar, was one of those participants. He is now serving as a member of New Zealand’s Parliament.

Dr. Sharma took to Twitter on Thursday to describe Albright’s impact on his work and worldview:

“She shattered many glass ceilings and inspired not only young women but also young men to aspire to be fearless fighters for humanity … She was everything I thought she would be like – a perfect mix of wit, charm, and grace.”

Through Ogunseye and Dr. Sharma, we can say that Madeleine Albright continues to guide aspiring female journalists in Nigeria and burgeoning political leaders in New Zealand. It becomes, then, no stretch of the imagination that Albright’s impact has truly reached our entire world.