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In July 2007 in Johannesburg, South Africa, Nelson Mandela, Graça Machel and Desmond Tutu convened a group of world leaders “to contribute their wisdom, independent leadership and integrity to tackle some of the world’s toughest problems.” Nelson Mandela announced the formation of this new group, The Elders, in a speech he delivered on the occasion of his 89th birthday. Yunus attended the launch of the group and was one of its founding members. He stepped down as an Elder in September 2009, stating that he was unable to do justice to his membership due to the demands of his work.

Muhammad Yunus, founder of Grameen Bank, microcredit pioneer and Nobel Peace Prize laureate, is a former Elder. Yunus stepped down as a member of The Elders in September 2009, stating that he was unable to do justice to his membership of the group due to the demands of his work.

The Burmese opposition leader and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Aung San Suu Kyi is a former honorary Elder. During her period under house arrest, the Elders kept an empty chair at each of their meetings, to mark their solidarity with Suu Kyi and Burma/Myanmar’s other political prisoners. In line with the requirement that members of The Elders should not hold public office, Suu Kyi stepped down as an honorary Elder following her election to parliament on 1 April 2012.

Li Zhaoxing, former Foreign Minister of the People's Republic of China, attended the launch.

Desmond Tutu, Archbishop Emeritus of Cape Town

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In September 2009 Ahtisaari joined The Elders, a group of independent global leaders who work together on peace and human rights issues. He travelled to the Korean Peninsula with fellow Elders Gro Harlem Brundtland, Jimmy Carter and Mary Robinson in April 2011, and to South Sudan with Robinson and Archbishop Desmond Tutu in July 2012.

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Annan is a member of The Elders, a group of independent global leaders who work together on peace and human rights issues. In November 2008, Annan and fellow Elders Jimmy Carter and Graça Machel attempted to travel to Zimbabwe to make a first-hand assessment of the humanitarian situation in the country. Refused entry, the Elders instead carried out their assessment from Johannesburg, where they met Zimbabwe- and South Africa-based leaders from politics, business, international organisations and civil society. In May 2011, following months of political violence in Côte d’Ivoire, Annan travelled to the country with Elders Desmond Tutu and Mary Robinson to encourage national reconciliation.

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The Elders work globally, on thematic as well as geographically specific subjects. The Elders’ priority issue areas include the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the Korean Peninsula, Sudan and South Sudan, sustainable development, and equality for girls and women.

Ela Bhatt is particularly involved in The Elders’ initiative on equality for women and girls, including on the issue of child marriage. In February 2012, Bhatt travelled to Bihar, India with fellow Elders Desmond Tutu, Gro Harlem Brundtland and Mary Robinson. Together, the Elders visited Jagriti, a youth-led project aimed at preventing child marriage, and encouraged the state government’s efforts to tackle the issue. A Gandhian practitioner of non-violence, Bhatt also travelled to the Middle East with Elders delegations in August 2009 and October 2010. In a blog post written for The Elders’ website following the group’s visit to Gaza in October 2010, Bhatt stated that non-violent struggle against injustice requires “more hard work than fighting” and that “it is the coward who uses weapons.”

The Elders are independently funded by a group of donors: Sir Richard Branson and Jean Oelwang (Virgin Unite), Peter Gabriel (The Peter Gabriel Foundation), Kathy Bushkin Calvin (The United Nations Foundation), Jeremy Coller and Lulit Solomon (J Coller Foundation), Niclas Kjellström-Matseke (Swedish Postcode Lottery), Randy Newcomb and Pam Omidyar (Humanity United), Jeff Skoll and Sally Osberg (Skoll Foundation), Jovanka Porsche (HP Capital Partners), Julie Quadrio Curzio (Quadrio Curzio Family Trust), Amy Robbins (The Nduna Foundation), Shannan Sedgwick Davis (The Bridgeway Foundation) and Marieke van Schaik (Dutch Postcode Lottery). Mabel van Oranje, former CEO of The Elders, sits on the Advisory Council in her capacity as Advisory Committee Chair of Girls Not Brides: The Global Partnership to End Child Marriage.

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Cardoso has a particular interest in drug policy. He served on the Latin American Commission on Drugs and Democracy and later chaired the Global Commission on Drug Policy.

Cardoso is also a member of The Elders, a group of independent global leaders who work together on peace and human rights issues. In August 2009, he travelled to Israel and the West Bank as the head of an Elders delegation that also included Ela Bhatt, Gro Harlem Brundtland, Jimmy Carter, Mary Robinson and Desmond Tutu.

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He returned to Sudan with fellow Elder Lakhdar Brahimi in May 2012 as part of The Elders’ efforts to encourage the presidents of Sudan and South Sudan to return to negotiations, and highlight the impact of the conflict on civilians.

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The Elders instead made their assessment from South Africa, meeting with Zimbabwe- and South Africa-based leaders from politics, business, international organisations and civil society in Johannesburg.

Carter has also participated in Elders’ visits to Cyprus, the Korean Peninsula, and the Middle East.

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Graça Machel has been particularly involved in The Elders’ work on child marriage, including the founding of Girls Not Brides: The Global Partnership to End Child Marriage.

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Mary Robinson has been active in The Elders’ work, participating in a broad range of the group’s initiatives. She has travelled with Elders delegations to Cote d’Ivoire, the Korean Peninsula, Ethiopia, India, South Sudan and the Middle East.

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Several other leaders were previously affiliated with The Elders. Former Elder Muhammad Yunus stepped down as a member of the group in September 2009, stating that he was unable to do justice to his membership due to the demands of his work. Aung San Suu Kyi is a former honorary Elder. During her period under house arrest, the Elders kept an empty chair at each of their meetings to mark their solidarity with Suu Kyi and Burma’s other political prisoners. In line with the requirement that members of The Elders should not hold public office, Suu Kyi stepped down as an honorary Elder following her election to parliament on 1 April 2012. Li Zhaoxing was present at the launch of The Elders but did not formally join the group.

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He has also travelled with Elders delegations to Cote d’Ivoire, Cyprus, Ethiopia, India, South Sudan and the Middle East. Tutu has been particularly involved in The Elders’ initiative on child marriage, attending the Clinton Global Initiative in New York in September 2011 to launch Girls Not Brides: The Global Partnership to End Child Marriage.

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DONORS AND TEAM

The Elders are independently funded by a group of donors, who also make up The Elders' Advisory Council: Richard Branson and Jean Oelwang (Virgin Unite), Peter Gabriel (The Peter Gabriel Foundation), Kathy Bushkin Calvin (The United Nations Foundation), Jeremy Coller and Lulit Solomon (J Coller Foundation), Niclas Kjellström-Matseke (Swedish Postcode Lottery), Randy Newcomb and Pam Omidyar (Humanity United), Jeff Skoll and Sally Osberg (Skoll Foundation), Jovanka Porsche (HP Capital Partners), Julie Quadrio Curzio (Quadrio Curzio Family Trust), Amy Robbins (The Nduna Foundation), Shannan Sedgwick Davis (The Bridgeway Foundation) and Marieke van Schaik (Dutch Postcode Lottery). Mabel van Oranje, former CEO of The Elders, sits on the Advisory Council in her capacity as Advisory Committee Chair of Girls Not Brides: The Global Partnership to End Child Marriage.

Arab Awakening
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Gro Harlem Brundtland, Jimmy Carter and Mary Robinson travelled to Cairo in October 2012. During their meetings with President Mohamed Morsi, senior officials and diplomats, representatives of civil society organisations and young people, the Elders emphasised the importance of “an inclusive, democratic transition.”

Brundtland and Carter both visited to Egypt earlier in 2012, where they met civil society organisations and spoke to students at the American University in Cairo. Carter also travelled to Egypt with The Carter Center to witness the country’s presidential and parliamentary elections in January and May 2012.

In November 2011, a few weeks after elections to Tunisia’s Constituent Assembly, Martti Ahtisaari, Mary Robinson and Lakhdar Brahimi travelled to Tunis to attend the annual gathering of the Mo Ibrahim Foundation. In an interview with the BBC following her meeting with Tunisian bloggers, Mary Robinson described the “sense of buoyant democracy” in the country.

Outside of their role as Elders, Kofi Annan and Lakhdar Brahimi have individually been involved in the international efforts to try to resolve the conflict in Syria. In February 2012, Annan was appointed Joint Special Envoy of the United Nations and League of Arab States on the Syrian crisis. He was succeeded in the role by Brahimi, who was appointed Joint Special Representative in August 2012.

ISRAELI-PALESTINIAN CONFLICT

In October 2012, Gro Harlem Brundtland, Jimmy Carter and Mary Robinson returned to the region, travelling to Israel, the West Bank and Egypt. In their discussions with political leaders, civil society, and humanitarian and human rights experts, the Elders sought to “express concern about the future of the two-state solution and highlight the effect of settlement expansion and other changes in the city of Jerusalem as a major impediment to peace between Israelis and Palestinians.”

Outside of their visits to the region, the Elders continue to monitor developments closely and comment on particular issues that arise.

IVORY COAST

Kofi Annan returned to Ivory Coast in January 2012 to support the ongoing reconciliation process. During his visit, he noted the progress that had been made and encouraged all Ivorians to participate in “the task of reconciliation and healing.”

SRI LANKA

In February 2012, Mary Robinson and Desmond Tutu wrote an op-ed in The Guardian, urging the member states of the United Nations Human Rights Council “to support a resolution that seeks accountability for the terrible violations of international law that have taken place, and establishes mechanisms to monitor progress on the steps the government is taking on accountability.” The US-backed resolution on ‘Promoting reconciliation and accountability in Sri Lanka’ was adopted by the Council on 22 March 2012. Robinson and Tutu wrote a further op-ed published in The Times, The Times of India and La Tribune de Geneve in March 2013, calling on the Council and the Commonwealth to exert pressure on Sri Lanka’s government to implement the recommendations of the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC).

SUDAN AND SOUTH SUDAN

In 2012, prompted by the “worsening relations between Sudan and South Sudan, deteriorating economic conditions in both countries, and renewed conflict in the Sudanese states of Blue Nile and South Kordofan,” The Elders decided to make a series of visits to Sudan, South Sudan and Ethiopia. They aimed to highlight the growing humanitarian crisis and encourage further peace talks between the governments of Sudan and South Sudan.

In May 2012, Lakhdar Brahimi and Jimmy Carter met Sudanese President Omar Bashir in Khartoum. In July 2012, Martti Ahtisaari, Mary Robinson and Desmond Tutu travelled to South Sudan to meet President Salva Kiir and civil society representatives, and to visit Yusuf Batil refugee camp near the border with Sudan. They also travelled to Ethiopia, where they met Hailemariam Desalegn and members of the African Union High-Level Implementation Panel on Sudan (AUHIP), including Thabo Mbeki and Pierre Buyoya. At the conclusion of their visit, Ahtisaari, Tutu and Robinson urged Presidents Bashir and Kiir to meet as soon as possible and recommit to peace. Tutu stated: “Peace, peace, peace is what the people of Sudan and South Sudan need most. Recent months have seen increased hardship and suffering in both countries. It is a fragile time and I hope that the leaders will do what their people need, which is to recommit to working together to build two viable states.”

CHILD MARRIAGE

Alongside their fellow Elder Ela Bhatt, Tutu, Brundtland and Robinson travelled to Bihar, India in February 2012. Together, the Elders visited Jagriti, a youth-led project aimed at preventing child marriage, and encouraged the state government’s efforts to tackle the issue.

Other activities
The organisation has also issued statements on a range of issues including those relating to Iran, Tibet,, Pakistan, , Norway and the Millennium Development Goals.