On Wednesday, October 9, hundreds of leaders came to the Beverly Hilton to participate in the 2024 Hilton Humanitarian Symposium and Prize Ceremony honoring the 2024 Hilton Humanitarian Prize recipient, Amazon Frontlines. This year’s theme “A Way Forward” guided the topics addressed at the daylong symposium by esteemed speakers, including Soledad O’Brien, Leonardo DiCaprio, Nemonte Nenquimo, Father Gregory Boyle, Baratunde Thurston, and many more.
Linda Hilton, Conrad N. Hilton Foundation board chair, opened the symposium reflecting on her grandfather Conrad Hilton’s vision: “So as we navigate these complex, challenging times, it reminds me of the words my grandfather once said, ‘Success is not just for the few, it is for the many. But it’s not a matter of chance, it is a matter of choice.’”
Peter Laugharn, Hilton Foundation president and CEO, then followed: “Whether we are facing mounting challenges or moments of opportunity, the resolve to chart a way forward can inspire us to, in the words of Conrad Hilton, ‘Dream Big, Think Big, and Act Big’ as we work collaboratively to build a better future for our people and our planet.” These reflections established the throughlines of inspiration, community, kinship and compassion, which reverberated throughout the day.
In his remarks, “Cherished Belonging: The Healing Power of Love in Divided Times,” Father Gregory Boyle, founder of Homeboy Industries, shared words that inspired the audience to seek deep connectedness with others: “We go from here to await that moment when we can discover that we are kin. For systems change when people do, and people change when they are cherished. And this symposium is not the place you’ve come to, it was always going to be the place you go from. And you go from here to imagine a circle of compassion, and then imagine nobody standing outside of that circle.”
Next came a panel discussion entitled “Human-Centered Systems Change: The Community Health Worker Approach.” The panel was moderated by Raj Kumar, president and editor-in-chief, Devex, in discussion with Dr. Madeleine Ballard, CEO, Community Health Impact Coalition; Marc Julmisse, chief of clinical systems support, Partners In Health; and Margaret Osielo Odera, community health promoter, Ministry of Health, Kenya. Odera highlighted the importance of community health workers in meeting people where they are: “The community health worker understands the language of the community—whether it’s the health language, cultural language, or religious language.”
In her remarks, “The Lens of a Human Story,” Writer, Speaker and Activist Loung Ung passionately spoke about the power of authentic storytelling, “If it’s awesome, let it blossom!” She went on to say, “If it showcases humanity, share it widely. Those are the kinds of stories that will heal a wounded heart, and through these opportunities, we give and become the light.”
Founder and CEO of Think of Us Sixto Cancel took the stage next with his remarks “Think of Us: A Foster Care System Centered On Kinship Care,” during which he shared “When a child needs to be kept safe, and cannot live at home, kinship care is the state enabling that child to live with an extended family member or an adult that that child has already known. An adult who loves that child beyond a contractual agreement. And what we now know is that research is clear that when children are placed with kin, they fare way better with mental health to graduating high school on time.”
Writer, TV Host and Comedian Baratunde Thurston then moderated a panel discussion entitled “The Rise of Artificial Intelligence and the Future of Humanity” with Afua Bruce, founder and principal at ANB Advisory Group LL, Alexander Díaz, head of AI for social good at Google.org, and Michael Running Wolf, co-founder and lead architect, First Languages AI Reality. Thurston opened the conversation noting, “We are in a precipitous time of extraordinary change, of collapsing systems, and systems being born anew, and how we relate to these machines and technologies will determine so much of how we relate to each other and to our mother earth.”
Later that afternoon, programming resumed with the 2024 Hilton Humanitarian Prize Ceremony honoring the 2024 Hilton Humanitarian Prize recipient, Amazon Frontlines. Actor and environmentalist Leonardo DiCaprio presented the award to Amazon Frontlines, and Co-Founders Nemonte Nenquimo and Mitch Anderson received the award on behalf of the organization. In her acceptance remarks, Nenquimo said: “We are connected to the earth. We are connected to the air. Without air, without land, we will not exist. So, that’s what we’re here for. This is my perspective as a woman because I come from the rainforest to say the message so clearly: We are not destroyers. We respect. We love.”
Anderson further underscored her message: “At its core, it is about love. It is about building trust. Learning to learn and unlearn… This Prize is for all Indigenous peoples around the world, and all Indigenous peoples in the Amazon who are fighting day in and day out. Let’s join them, let’s work together.”
After they accepted the award, Soledad O’Brien joined Nenquimo and Anderson in conversation about what it means to build new models of trust when it comes to the work of Amazon Frontlines, and how their learnings could be applied to other humanitarian issues and approaches around the world.
The afternoon ended with a special musical performance by award-winning singer-songwriter who NPR Music called “one of the most fresh and compelling voices in folk music today,” Raye Zaragoza.
The playlist below contains recordings from the event. The icon in the upper-right of the video embed lists available videos.
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