"From Self to Society: Citizenship to Community for a world of change"

Pam and Pierre Omidyar delivered the keynote address at Tufts University's
2002 Commencement ceremonies on Sunday, May 19, 2002

Medford/Somerville, Mass. [05.20.02] -- Thank you President Bacow, Mr. Chairman and the members of the Board of Trustees, distinguished faculty, friends and family members, and - of course -- today's graduates: Pierre and I are truly honored to share with you this special day, at an institution that means so much to all of us.

   I know there was some speculation that Pierre and I might be a bit under-aged for the task at hand. I was flattered. After all, we do spend a lot of time in Silicon Valley-and I have to tell you, it's a pleasure to be with a group where 35 is considered young.

But the fact is, for me and for Pierre -- Memory Lane is a short road. It really wasn't that long ago that we were where you are now. When I think back to my graduation, what I remember is sitting in the last row, watching the confiscated champagne bottles stack up next to us -- and not being able to liberate a single one of them because there was an officer standing guard.

   I remember watching in awe as Dr. Stephen Hawking received an honorary degree, proving that -- however much our bodies may be earth-bound -- nothing can ground the arrow of the intellect. I remember, after crossing the stage to receive my diploma, seeing my friends waiting for me at the bottom of the steps - and I remember how good it felt to hug them, how glad I was that we had made it, together.

   But what I honestly do not remember about my graduation is the graduation speech. And not just the speech, but even the speaker -- which is really a considerable confession on my part, since our speaker was the Secretary General of the United Nations. Now, I don't want to be misunderstood -- I'm sure the Secretary General gave an eloquent, inspiring speech. I'm sure he spoke to the souls of my fellow classmates who - unlike me - were actually listening. And I'm sure my distractedness cost me a chance to take some wisdom away from the experience. But the fact is, I couldn't focus.

   I couldn't focus because I was so excited about starting the next chapter in my life -- and I was excited because I knew Tufts had done such a great job of preparing me for the next stage. I'm sure at least a few of you are having that same experience today… So if any of the Class of 2002 are just tuning in now - I'm Pam, and that's my husband, Pierre, over there.

   Tufts for me was a great gift - the kind of gift that comes with strings attached: Not only a responsibility to take in the opportunities offered here, but a responsibility to give back - and not just to Tufts, but to the wider world outside this campus. For the next few minutes, I'll share a few things that Tufts taught me.

   As someone who's loved biology for as long as I can remember, I've always been fascinated with the basic building blocks of life. But it wasn't until I got to Tufts, and took Bio Chemistry with Professor Feldberg that I realized: Enzymes make really great role models!

   As any biology major can tell you, enzymes are the catalysts that make possible biochemical reactions - enzymes increase the rate of a reaction, but are not themselves consumed by the reaction. To translate that into everyday English -- enzymes are Nature's activists.

   Trying to imagine life without enzymes is an impossibility. Kind of like civil rights without Dr. King or Rosa Parks, or world peace without the moral courage of Jody Williams or the Dalai Lama: The world as we know it would not exist.

And that really is the message we want to share with you today: Be an enzyme - a catalyst for change. Act on the environment around you. Make it your mission to make some small difference in the great scheme of life. Pierre and I are making that the mission of our lives - every day.

   Of course the path of an enzyme isn't always straight. After graduation, I worked as a research assistant in an immunology lab. From there, I went the grad school route for a few years before I learned that - at least for me -- basic research was too far away from the applications that were my aspirations. I wanted to do work with more immediate impact. I came to see that the Ph.D track wasn't for me - which, given that I wanted to be a biologist since I was 12 - was quite a painful realization to come to.

   My question was, if I leave grad school - What will I do? Who will I be? I struggled with that, until one day Pierre asked me: "Do you read the last page of a book first?" I said, "No, of course not." So Pierre said: "Then why do you want to know the end of the story now? Take life one page at a time and let it unfold." For me, that was very liberating. I took my masters and left school for a new career -- as a management consultant for the pharmaceutical industry. And when eBay was so successful, I realized the way to fulfill my dream - to really unleash the enzyme within -- was through philanthropy.

   Take the work of The HopeLab Foundation, a research institute I founded a few years ago. Our vision is to improve the physical and mental health of young people coping with chronic illness. One of the main projects we're working on is a state-of-the-art video game for the X-box - a means for adolescents with cancer to learn and improve their quality of life through game play.

   The idea for this game came to me my first job out of Tufts - when I was working as a research assistant. After a day of watching cancer cells multiply under a microscope, I sat down with Pierre to play a video game… And I thought: "How powerful would it be if kids could visualize blasting their own cancer cells in a video game?" Well, it took 10 years and the right combination of circumstances, and the right combination of enzymes at HopeLab - to bring the idea of this video game closer to reality.

   That's what we're working toward at HopeLab - and in our philanthropy in general: The kind of catalytic impact that can bring change to bear on all manner of scientific challenges and social problems.

   That's the goal that guides the University College of Citizenship and Public Service here at Tufts. During his inaugural address, President Bacow put it perfectly - and I know you were all listening. He said: "How do we educate leaders for a truly global world? By teaching collaboration as a way of life -- and a source of answers… By helping our students become active, engaged, effective citizens… People comfortable dealing with ambiguity… Willing to take a risk to make a difference."

   And that really is the effort that must animate all of us: The effort to build a sense of community, citizenship and service into all aspects of life… Not only in the classroom but in the community, too… And not only later in life - when your learning years and earning years are over - but early on, and at every stage of life, so that the commitment to service has every opportunity to cascade out, and create a world of change.

   Because the truth I've learned since I left Tufts is that there are lots of different ways to be an enzyme. Lots of different ways for me to do the work I've dreamed of since I was 12 - lots of different ways for all of us - for all of you -- to create a world of change. But this is just half of the story today - with half of the picture Pierre and I want to paint of the world beyond the Hill -- and what it needs from you.

Pierre Omidyar delivered the second half of the 2002 Commencement address.