TULANE TALK

November 9, 2007

Good Morning:

Last month I told you that Tulane University would be the site of the first meeting of the Clinton Global Initiative-U, a program created by former President Bill Clinton to harness the energy and knowledge of college students to solve some of the world’s most pressing problems. CGIU is an offshoot of the Clinton Global Initiative, a non-partisan effort started by the former president in 2005 to bring world leaders together to find and put into action solutions to problems in education, energy, climate change, global health and poverty.

This week the director of CGIU and other officials came to campus to scout locations for their meeting, an event that will bring the former president and other leaders together with Tulane students and their peers from universities throughout the country. Due to the complexity of juggling various schedules, the only date available for the meeting is March 15, which coincides with the start of our spring break. Despite this, I believe the demand to participate in this meeting, which will begin with discussions and end with commitments from students to take specific action, will be great.

Soon the CGIU will post an online application for those interested in participating in its meeting at Tulane. I will send the site’s address to you as soon as it becomes available. Remember, the single most important criteria for being invited to the CGIU meeting is the desire and commitment to take concrete action.

We are honored by CGIU’s selection of Tulane. This selection is a testament to Tulane’s long history of applying its knowledge and research to improve our community and world. This tradition was recently acknowledged in GambitWeekly‘s “40 Under 40,” which highlights 40 people under 40 who are making a difference in the community. At least 15 of the individuals highlighted in this issue are either current employees, graduates or community partners of Tulane.

Tulane was one of the first institutions to re-open in New Orleans post-Katrina. We were also one of the first American universities to establish a major presence in Rwanda in the mid 1990s following that country’s devastating civil war. Tulane architecture students are designing 0and building homes for hurricane victims in Central City, while Tulane researchers are investigating the exploitation of workers in Ghana and Cote d’Ivoire.

I cite these as just a few of the many examples I could offer to highlight the fact that, whether at home or abroad, Tulane is helping to transform the world through positive and lasting change. Let’s keep up the good work.

Have a great weekend,