What do a Hollywood actress, a Senegalese singer, a Russian tennis star, and a Congolese basketball player all have in common? Actress Angelina Jolie, tennis star Maria Sharapova, basketball player Dikembe Mutombo, and singer Youssou N’Dour are among the celebrities serving as UN Goodwill Ambassadors. Goodwill Ambassadors are notable people who use their fame and talents to call attention to some of the world's most dire problems.
In her role as UNHCR* Goodwill Ambassador, actress Angelina Jolie has traveled to refugee camps in many areas of the world including the Balkans, Cambodia, Ecuador, Kenya, Namibia, Pakistan, Tanzania, Thailand, Sierra Leone and Sri Lanka. During her camp visits, Jolie talks personally with the people who live in the camps. Of her talks with refugees at a camp in Ecuador, Jolie said, "What was really shocking was that every individual person you meet will tell you that their immediate family was affected. Somebody's child was killed, somebody's husband. Someone was beaten." It is the work of Goodwill Ambassadors to bring an international spotlight to egregious human rights violations such as those witnessed by Jolie.
Youssou N’Dour is “perhaps the most famous singer alive” in Senegal and much of Africa. (Rollingstone.com, 2004) He is also a Goodwill Ambassador. Mr. N’Dour has visited Somali refugees living in the Dadaab camps in north-eastern Kenya. Mr. N'Dour has spoken out about the suffering he witnessed in the camps, saying, “We have a responsibility to do all that we can so that every child can be reached, their immediate needs are met, their health is safeguarded and they are protected from all harm.” N'Dour now heads an initiative titled ‘New Africa’ which plans to use the fresh ideas of Africa’s youth to address the continent’s challenges.
Maria Sharapova is a Russian-born professional tennis player. She has been ranked number one in the world for singles tennis four times. In 2007 Maria became a UNDP Goodwill Ambassador. As Goodwill Ambassador, Maria is committed to improving the lives of people living in Chernobyl-affected areas of Belarus, where she has family roots. In conjunction with the UNDP, Maria has begun a $210,000 scholarship program for children from this area. She also broadcast a video message on the 25th anniversary of the Chernobyl disaster. She said, “While the anniversary is filled with sadness, we also acknowledge that this is a time for hope as we move forward in building a better future for all those whose lives have been changed by this tragedy.”
Dikembe Mutombo, NBA basketball player for the "Philadelphia 76-er's" is also 'Youth Emissary' of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). Mutombo has made world-wide public service television broadcasts encouraging young people to "do sports, not drugs", and also promoting AIDS-prevention and online literacy. The multilingual Mutombo is able to get his message out in ten languages: English, French, Spanish, Portuguese and five African dialects - in the spirit of true internationalism of the Goodwill Ambassadors.
Click for printable version of this reading passage
Comprehension Check Angelina's Kosovo Journal Task Activity
Listen to a reading of an earlier version of this passage: Part 1 Part 2
printable version of earlier version More About Goodwill Ambassadors |
