Forbes and Know Your Value’s 30/50 Summit in Abu Dhabi kicked off with a special day of giving back to the next generation.
On Wednesday, summit attendees met with students at Cranleigh Abu Dhabi for a day of mentorship. One of those mentors was Emmy Award-winning actress and activist Sheryl Lee Ralph, who met with drama students and shared several pearls of wisdom.
Ralph, who won her first Emmy in 2022 at the age of 66 — and became only the second Black woman to win Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy for “Abbott Elementary” — looked back at her historic win and told the students that at the time she thought: “What an amazing time to be alive now — at a time when this industry told me… I’m too tall, I’m too short, I’m too Black, I’m not Black enough.”
She added,“…But I knew who I was. I knew I was good. I knew I was talented. I knew I had what it took to make it in this industry. And I believed in myself. I believed that every ‘no’ today was quite possibly a ‘yes’ tomorrow.”
The students also heard from 27-year-old Olympic swimmer and Syrian refugee Yusra Mardini, whose life story doesn’t just sound like a movie — it is one. Her incredible journey was turned into the 2022 Netflix film “The Swimmers.”
In 2015, at age 17, Mardini and her sister, Sarah, fled their war-torn home in Damascus, embarking on a dangerous, uncertain journey across the Mediterranean. They boarded a dinghy in Turkey that was meant to carry six people but instead held 20.
When their dinghy’s engine failed just 30 minutes in, the sisters — along with two other men — were the only ones on board who could swim. They bravely swam for three grueling hours, pushing the boat to safety and saving the other passengers.
Mardini told the students, “When we left [Syria], we had two choices. The first choice was to stay home and risk our lives every day in a war zone… and the second choice was maybe, if we risked our lives one more time, we would be at peace. And that’s what we chose.”
She later added, “I think the most powerful thing in life is hope. If I didn’t have hope, I wouldn’t be here today. And I think what’s happening in Syria is incredible. I don’t know what’s going to happen in the future, but I can promise that I will be someone who forces change in a good way… I want to be a voice for Syrians.” She emphasized that change starts with small actions — listening actively, challenging stereotypes, and celebrating diversity.
Know Your Value founder and “Morning Joe” co-host Mika Brzezinski — who serves as the 30/50 Summit chairwoman — also delivered remarks, stressing the importance of the day, and sharing a message for both young men and women.
“The world often pits men and women against each other, creating unnecessary divides. Young men: you have the power to be allies by respecting and amplifying the voices of women around you,” said Brzezinski.
Then, turning to the young women in the room, she said, “You can lead with confidence while encouraging your male peers to join you in building a more inclusive world. Together, you can create a culture where everyone feels valued.”
