美国波士顿时间5月25日，哈佛大学举办了2017届学生毕业典礼。Facebook创始人马克·扎克伯格（Mark Zuckerberg）回到母校，做了毕业典礼演讲。他一开始上台演讲很高兴，讲了自己的大学生活，包括怎么认识自己的妻子。还讲到了我们应该有自己的目标和做一个有使命感的人。
以下是演讲全文（中文翻译后附加英文原文）：
浮士德主席、监察委员会、老师、校友、朋友们、自豪的父母们、广告委员会成员以及世界上最大的大学毕业生们，我很荣幸今天能与你们共聚这里，因为你们完成了我当年没有完成的事。当然，如果我今天能完成（演讲）的话，这可能是我在哈佛首次真正完成的一件事。祝贺你们，2017届毕业生！
对于我来说，能在哈佛大学毕业典礼上发表演讲让我充满惊喜，不是因为我曾在这里辍学，而是因为从技术上说，我们都属于同一代人。我们在这里就读相隔不到10年时间，在这里学习同样的理念，在同样的Ec10讲座中打过瞌睡。我们可能是通过不同的方式进入哈佛大学的，但是今天我想与大家分享下自己的想法，包括有关我们这代人的使命以及我们正共同创造的世界。
首先，过去几天的经历带给我很多美好的回忆。当你们收到电子邮件，通知你被哈佛大学录取时，有多少人还记得自己当时正在做什么？我当时在玩游戏，然后飞奔到楼下，告诉爸爸这个喜讯。出于某种原因，他的反应是录下我打开电子邮件的瞬间场景。这可能是令人感到伤心的视频。我发誓，能进入哈佛大学依然是父母最为我感到骄傲的事情。
你在哈佛大学上的第一节课是什么？我的首节课是《Computer Science 121》。当时我上课迟到了，所以匆匆穿着T恤就跑，直到之后才意识到穿反了。我不明白为什么没人跟我说话，除了KX金（KX Jin）。最后，我们共同解决问题，如今他在Facebook负责重要业务。2017届的毕业生们，这就是为何你们应该友善待人的原因。
但是哈佛大学留给我的最美好回忆是遇到普莉希拉（Priscilla）。当时我刚刚推出恶作剧网站Facemash，广告委员会想要“审查我”。每个人都以为我会被开除，父母来帮我收拾行李，朋友们为我举行送行派对。然而幸运的是，普莉希拉与她的朋友也出现在派对上。我们在Pfoho Belltower的卫生间外相识，那肯定是最浪漫的邂逅。我说：“我可能在3天内被开除，为此我们需要快速约会。”
然而最终，我没有被开出，而是自己选择了辍学。普莉希拉与我开始约会。正如你们所知道的那样，电影中描述称Facemash对Facebook的创建非常重要。但事实并非如此。可是如果没有Facemash，我可能就不会认识普莉希拉，她是我生命中最重要的人。为此，你们可以这样说，这是我在哈佛大学取得的最大成就。我们正这里建立起能够维持终生的友谊，有些人甚至组建了家庭。这就是我为何如此感激哈佛大学的原因。
今天，我还想要谈谈目标或称使命的问题。在这里，我不是为你们设定寻找使命的标准。我们都是千禧一代，都尝试着依靠本能行事。相反，我在这里想要告诉你们的是，找到使命感还不够。对于我们这代人来说，最大的挑战是创造人人都有使命感的世界。我最喜欢的故事之一就是约翰·肯尼迪（John F Kennedy）总统参观美国宇航局太空中心的场景，他看到守门人手持扫帚，然后走过去问他在做什么。守门人回答说：“总统先生，我在帮助将人类送上月球！”
使命感是一种意识，我们总是处于比我们自己更大的东西里面。这些东西是我们所需要的，我们也需要努力工作让它变得更美好。使命感就是创造真正的快乐和幸福。当你毕业时，它变得尤其重要。当我们的父母毕业时，他们的目标是找到工作。可是今天，技术和自动化正导致许多工作消失，社区成员也在减少。许多人为此感到沮丧，正尝试填补空虚。
当我四处旅行时，我曾前往少年拘留所和鸦片戒瘾所看望那里的未成年人，他们对我讲述了自己的生活，并说如果放学后有事可做或有地方可去，他们的生活可能会变得完全不同。我也曾前往工厂，那里的工人知道他们的工作正在消失，并尝试寻找新的工作。为了确保社会向前发展，我们这代人面临的挑战不仅仅是创造新的就业机会，还要创造新的使命感。
我记得在Kirkland House小宿舍中推出Facebook当晚的情境。我与朋友金去了Noch's。我记得告诉他，联系上哈佛社区让我非常兴奋，但将来某人或许能够连接整个世界。事情的确是这样的，但我从未想过这个人就是我们。我们是刚上大学的孩子，我们对此还一无所知。有许多大型科技公司，他们拥有庞大的资源，我想某个公司能够实现这个目标。但是我们的这个想法如此清晰，所有人都想被连接起来。所以我们只需要保持前进，每天保持进步。
我知道你们都有自己的故事。改变世界似乎变得如此明显，你们确定其他人会去做。但他们没有，你们却会。但是只有自己的目标还不够，你还必须为其他人也创造出使命感。我自己的经历就是如此。我的希望从来不是创办公司，而是创造影响。随着这些人开始加入我们的行列，我只是认为他们也关心影响力，所以我从来未解释过自己想要建立什么。
几年后，有些大公司想要收购我们，但我不想卖掉它。我想看看，我们能不能连接更多的人。我们首先建立了News Feed，我想如果我们能够启动它，这会改变我们了解世界的方式。然而，几乎所有人都希望卖掉公司。他们没有更高的使命感，毕竟这是初创企业梦想成真的良机。最终我解散了会议，在一次激烈争论后，有顾问告诉我：如果我不同意出售，我会为这个决定后悔终生。在其后1年时间里，人际关系变得如此紧张，管理团队中的所有人都选择了离开。
那是我创建Facebook以来陷入的最困难时期。我相信我们所做的一切，但我感到孤独。更糟糕的是，这是我的错误。我想知道是否真是自己错了，我成了骗子，毕竟22岁的青年并非真的了解这个世界。多年以后，我终于理解没有更高使命感的后果。我们可以创造它，然后共同努力实现它。
今天，我想谈三种能够创造人人都有使命感的世界的三种方式：共同从事有意义的大项目，重新定义平等以便让每个人都有追求各自目标的自由，以及建立全球性社区。
首先，让我们以有意义的大项目开始。我们这代人将不得不应对工作自动化的挑战，将有数以百万计的工作被取代，包括无人驾驶汽车和卡车。但我们拥有更大潜力能够迎接这种挑战。每一代人都有对工作的不同定义。为了将人类送上火星，超过30万人为之努力，包括那个看门人。世界各地成千上万的志愿者为儿童接种脊髓灰质炎疫苗，数百万人参与修建胡佛大坝和其他重大项目。这些项目不仅为从事这些工作到人提供了目标，还提升了整个国家的自豪感。
现在，轮到我们去做伟大的事情。我知道，你们可能会想：我不知道如何建造大坝，或让数百万人参与到某件事中来。但让我告诉你们一个秘密：开始的时候，没人知道如何去做，思想还未完全成形。只有当你开始工作的时候，它们才会逐渐变得清晰。你只需要勇敢地开始去做。如果我在创建Facebook前需要了解所有东西，那么我可能永远无法成功。
有关这些东西的电影和流行文化都是错误的。某个灵光一现的想法都是危险的谎言。它让我们觉得不足胜任，因为我们没有自己的想法。它会阻止人们从一开始就获得很好的想法。你还知道哪些电影对创新的描述是错误的？没有人在玻璃上写数学公式。有理想是好事，但你要准备好遭人误解。任何从事巨大愿景的人都会被称之为疯子，即使最终证明你是对的。任何竭力解决复杂问题的人总被谴责对面临的挑战缺乏充分理解，即使他前期已经进行过充分了解。任何主动的人都会因为“行动太快”而受到批评，因为总是有人想让你慢下来。
在我们的社会中，我们经常不去做大事，因为我们害怕犯错。如果我们什么也不做，就会忽略今天所有的错误。而现实就是，我们做的任何事情将来都会出现问题，但这并不能阻止我们开始。那我们还等什么？我们这代人需要完成更多的公共工程。如何在我们毁掉地球前阻止气候变化，让数以百万计的人参与到制造和安装太阳能电池板中来吗？如何治愈所有的疾病，要求志愿者们跟踪他们的健康数据，并分享他们的基因组吗？与寻找治疗方案以便人们不会生病的花费相比，如今我们治疗患者的资金消耗是前者的50倍。但这毫无意义。我们可以解决这个问题。如果实现民主，以便每个人都能在网上投票？如何获得个性化教育，以便人人都能参加学习？
这些成就都是我们有望能够实现的。我们只需要让所有人多能在社会上发挥自己的作用，让我们启动大的项目，不仅要创造进步，还要创造使命感。所以，启动有意义的大项目是我们创造人人都有使命感的世界的第一步。
第二是重新定义平等，以便每个人都能自由地追求他们的目标。我们的许多父母在其职业生涯中都有稳定的工作。现在我们都在创业，无论是开始项目还是寻找项目，亦或是正在项目中发挥作用。我们的企业文化是如何创造如此多的进步。现在，创业文化正蓬勃发展，尝试新观念变得越来越容易。Facebook并非我首先创建的东西，我还开发过游戏、聊天系统、学习工具以及音乐播放器。
并非只有我经历了如此多的尝试。罗琳（JK Rowling）的《哈里·波特》（Harry Potter）在出版前，曾被拒绝12次。即使碧昂斯（Beyonce）也曾创作过数百首曲目才成就了《Halo》。最大的成功往往源自无数的失败。但是今天，我们的财富不平等已经伤害到所有人。当你无法自由尝试自己的想法，并将其变成历史性的机遇时，我们都成了失败者。现在，我们的社会过于注重成功的奖励，我们还不足以让每个人都进行尝试并取得成功。
让我们面对现实。当我离开哈佛大学时，我们的系统存在某些问题，我10年内赚了数十亿美元，而数以百万计的学生却无力偿还助学贷款，更别说创业。我认识许多企业家，但没有1个人是因为没有足够的钱而放弃创业。但我知道许多人没有追求的梦想，因为如果他们承受不起失败的后果。我们都知道，成功不仅仅需要好的想法或努力工作，还需要运气。如果我的家庭没有办法支持我去学习编码，如果我不知道即使Facebook失败我也无所谓，我今天可能无法站在这里。坦诚地将，我们都知道我们非常幸运。
每一代人都在扩展平等的定义。此前几代人为投票权和公民权而奋斗，他们有了新政和伟大社会。现在，到了我们为这代人定义新的社会契约的时候了。我们应该建立这样的社会：不仅仅利用经济指标（比如GDP）等衡量社会是否进步，而是我们中有多少人找到有意义的角色。我们应该为每个人提供“全民基本收入”这样的保障，以便他们能够尝试新事物。我们需要对工作进行大幅改造，以便我们不必只为抚养孩子而去工作，不再将医保与公司绑定。我们都会犯错，所以我们需要能够较少锁定我们或让我们感到耻辱的社会。随着技术发展，我们需要更多地关注终身教育。
的确，为每个人提供追求目标的自由并非是免费的，而像我这样的人应该为此做出贡献。你们中的许多人会做得很好，也应该做得更好。这就是为何我和普莉希拉创建Chan Zuckerberg Initiative和承诺在有生之年利用我们的财富促进机会平等的原因。这些都是我们这代人必须要建立起的价值观。如果我们去做，这些都不是问题，唯一的问题是何时去做。
千禧一代是有史以来最慷慨的一代。在过去1年里，美国千禧一代的4大富翁中，有3人慷慨捐赠，占慈善捐赠的七成。但这不仅仅是钱的问题。你也可以付出时间去帮助他人。你们每周可以花费一两个小时去帮助别人，帮助他们发挥自己的潜力。或许你认为这个时间太多，我过去也这样认为。当普莉希拉毕业时，她成为教师，并打算要我也去教某个班级。我说：“我有点儿忙，需要经营这家公司。”但她坚持如此，为此我负责在当地俱乐部教授中班。
我教授孩子们有关产品开发和市场营销方面的知识，他们则帮助我感受有关种族歧视、家人在监狱中的感觉。我分享自己在学校中的故事，他们也分享自己的希望，比如将来也能进入大学。5年来，我每个月都与这些孩子共进晚餐。明年，他们就将进入大学，所有人都能进入，而且他们都是各自家庭中的首位大学生。我们可以腾出时间帮助别人，让我们赋予每个人追求目标的自由，不仅仅因为这是正确的事情，还因为更多的人将梦想变成伟大的东西时，我们的世界将变得更美好。
使命感不仅仅是关于工作方面的。我们能够创造人人都有使命感的世界的第三种方式就是建立起社区。当我们这代人说“每个人”时，我们的意思是指世界上的每个人。你们中有多少人来自其他国家？有多少人有这样的朋友？在我演讲的这一刻，我们的联系正变得更紧密。
一项调查表明，在全球询问千禧一代对我们身份的定义时，最流行的答案不是民族、宗教或种族，而是“世界公民”。这非常重要。每一代人都在扩大“自己人”的圈子。对于我们来说，现在它包括了整个世界。我们都知道，人类历史倾向于人类更大规模的聚居，从部落到城市再到国家，这可以实现我们此前无法做到的事情。现在社区扩展到整个世界，对我们来说也是最大的机遇。我们这代人或许可根除贫困和疾病。我们应对最大挑战需要全球的响应，没有任何国家能够单独对抗全球变暖和流行疫情。现在要想取得进步不仅仅需要城市或国家协作，而是需要以全球社区为基础。
但是我们生活在不够稳定的时代。有许多人被全球化抛在后面，如果我们觉得自己的生活不够好，那么很难去关心其他地方的人。这就是我们这个时代面临的困境。自由、公开的全球社区力量反对独 裁、孤立主义以及民族主义的力量，知识、贸易以及迁徙的流动力量反对阻止它们的力量。这不是一场国家之战，而是思想大战。每个国家都有人支持全球连接，当然也有人反对。
这种情况并非联合国能够解决的，因为它发生在地方层面，当有足够多的人产生使命感，生活稳定后，我们就会开始关心别人。最好的方法就是从现在开始建设本地社区。我们都从自己的社区中获益。无论这些社区是房屋还是运动队伍、教堂还是音乐团体，他们都让我们觉得自己是某个更大东西的一部分，我们并不孤单。同时，他们也会赋予我们更大的力量，帮助我们去扩展视野。
这就是它为何数十年来如此引人注目的原因，各种团体成员人数最多下降了1/4，许多人现在需要在其他地方找到自己的目标。但我知道，我们可以重建我们的社区，开始新的社区，因为你们许多人已经身在社区中。我曾与今天毕业的艾格尼丝·伊格耶（Agnes Igoye）聊天，她的童年是在乌干达战区中度过的，如今她已经培训了数以千计的执法人员，帮助确保社区安全。我也见到了凯拉·奥科利（Kayla Oakley）和尼哈·贾恩（Niha Jain），他们创建了非盈利组织，将遭受疾病折磨的人与社区中愿意提供帮助的人联系起来。还有大卫·拉族·亚兹纳（David Razu Aznar），他曾是前市政厅议员，成功带领墨西哥城成为拉丁美洲首个支持婚姻平等的城市，甚至在旧金山之前。
我也有类似的个人经历。作为大学宿舍中的学生，连接某个社区，维持它直到其联通整个世界。改变往往始于局部。即使全球性的改变也从小地方开始，就像我们这样的人。在我们这代人中，挑战在于能否连接更多人，能否实现最大的机遇，即创建社区和人人都有使命感的世界。
2017届毕业生们，你们即将步入需要目标的世界，而且它是由你们创造的。现在，你可能在想：我真的能做到吗？你们还记得我从教的故事吗？有一天放学后，我与孩子们讨论大学的事情，其中有个孩子举起手说，他不确定自己能上大学，因为他没有合法证件。他不知道这是否会阻止他上大学。去年，我带他去庆祝生日，我想送他一份礼物，为此我问他想要什么，他开始谈论自己见过的处于困境中的学生，并说：“你知道，我非常想要有关社会公正的书籍。”
我很受感动，这个孩子有愤世嫉俗的理由。他不知道被他称之为祖国的国度是否能圆他上大学的梦想。但他并不觉得自己可怜，甚至没有为自己考虑过。他有更大的使命感，他正吸引更多人追随他。鉴于目前的情况，我无法提及他的名字，因为我不想他陷入危险中。但如果一位不知道未来在何方的高中生都能够竭尽自己所能推动世界前进，那么我们更应该为这个世界做点儿什么。
当你们最后一次走出哈佛大学的校门时，当我们坐在纪念礼堂前时，我想起一段祈祷“Mi Shebeirach”，每当我面对挑战时，当我抱着她并想到女儿的未来时，我都会向她唱诵。“愿力量之源，保佑我们面前的人，帮助我们找到勇气，让我们的生活得到祝福。”我希望你们也能找让生活受到祝福的勇气。再次祝贺你们，并祝你们好运！
有兴趣的读者可以看看英文原文：
Harvard Commencement 2017
President Faust, Board of Overseers, faculty, alumni, friends, proud parents, members of the ad board, and graduates of the greatest university in the world,
I'm honored to be with you today because, let's face it, you accomplished something I never could. If I get through this speech, it'll be the first time I actually finish something at Harvard. Class of 2017, congratulations!
I'm an unlikely speaker, not just because I dropped out, but because we're technically in the same generation. We walked this yard less than a decade apart, studied the same ideas and slept through the same Ec10 lectures. We may have taken different paths to get here, especially if you came all the way from the Quad, but today I want to share what I've learned about our generation and the world we're building together.
But first, the last couple of days have brought back a lot of good memories.
How many of you remember exactly what you were doing when you got that email telling you that you got into Harvard? I was playing Civilization and I ran downstairs, got my dad, and for some reason, his reaction was to video me opening the email. That could have been a really sad video. I swear getting into Harvard is still the thing my parents are most proud of me for.
What about your first lecture at Harvard? Mine was Computer Science 121 with the incredible Harry Lewis. I was late so I threw on a t-shirt and didn't realize until afterwards it was inside out and backwards with my tag sticking out the front. I couldn't figure out why no one would talk to me -- except one guy, KX Jin, he just went with it. We ended up doing our problem sets together, and now he runs a big part of Facebook. And that, Class of 2017, is why you should be nice to people.
But my best memory from Harvard was meeting Priscilla. I had just launched this prank website Facemash, and the ad board wanted to "see me". Everyone thought I was going to get kicked out. My parents came to help me pack. My friends threw me a going away party. As luck would have it, Priscilla was at that party with her friend. We met in line for the bathroom in the Pfoho Belltower, and in what must be one of the all time romantic lines, I said: "I'm going to get kicked out in three days, so we need to go on a date quickly."
Actually, any of you graduating can use that line.
I didn't end up getting kicked out -- I did that to myself. Priscilla and I started dating. And, you know, that movie made it seem like Facemash was so important to creating Facebook. It wasn't. But without Facemash I wouldn't have met Priscilla, and she's the most important person in my life, so you could say it was the most important thing I built in my time here.
We've all started lifelong friendships here, and some of us even families. That's why I'm so grateful to this place. Thanks, Harvard.
Today I want to talk about purpose. But I'm not here to give you the standard commencement about finding your purpose. We're millennials. We'll try to do that instinctively. Instead, I'm here to tell you finding your purpose isn't enough. The challenge for our generation is creating a world where everyone has a sense of purpose.
One of my favorite stories is when John F Kennedy visited the NASA space center, he saw a janitor carrying a broom and he walked over and asked what he was doing. The janitor responded: "Mr. President, I'm helping put a man on the moon".
Purpose is that sense that we are part of something bigger than ourselves, that we are needed, that we have something better ahead to work for. Purpose is what creates true happiness.
You're graduating at a time when this is especially important. When our parents graduated, purpose reliably came from your job, your church, your community. But today, technology and automation are eliminating many jobs. Membership in communities is declining. Many people feel disconnected and depressed, and are trying to fill a void.
As I've traveled around, I've sat with children in juvenile detention and opioid addicts, who told me their lives could have turned out differently if they just had something to do, an after school program or somewhere to go. I've met factory workers who know their old jobs aren't coming back and are trying to find their place.
To keep our society moving forward, we have a generational challenge -- to not only create new jobs, but create a renewed sense of purpose.
I remember the night I launched Facebook from my little dorm in Kirkland House. I went to Noch's with my friend KX. I remember telling him I was excited to connect the Harvard community, but one day someone would connect the whole world.
The thing is, it never even occurred to me that someone might be us. We were just college kids. We didn't know anything about that. There were all these big technology companies with resources. I just assumed one of them would do it. But this idea was so clear to us -- that all people want to connect. So we just kept moving forward, day by day.
I know a lot of you will have your own stories just like this. A change in the world that seems so clear you're sure someone else will do it. But they won't. You will.
But it's not enough to have purpose yourself. You have to create a sense of purpose for others.
I found that out the hard way. You see, my hope was never to build a company, but to make an impact. And as all these people started joining us, I just assumed that's what they cared about too, so I never explained what I hoped we'd build.
A couple years in, some big companies wanted to buy us. I didn't want to sell. I wanted to see if we could connect more people. We were building the first News Feed, and I thought if we could just launch this, it could change how we learn about the world.
Nearly everyone else wanted to sell. Without a sense of higher purpose, this was the startup dream come true. It tore our company apart. After one tense argument, an advisor told me if I didn't agree to sell, I would regret the decision for the rest of my life. Relationships were so frayed that within a year or so every single person on the management team was gone.
That was my hardest time leading Facebook. I believed in what we were doing, but I felt alone. And worse, it was my fault. I wondered if I was just wrong, an imposter, a 22 year-old kid who had no idea how the world worked.
Now, years later, I understand that *is* how things work with no sense of higher purpose. It's up to us to create it so we can all keep moving forward together.
Today I want to talk about three ways to create a world where everyone has a sense of purpose: by taking on big meaningful projects together, by redefining equality so everyone has the freedom to pursue purpose, and by building community across the world.
First, let's take on big meaningful projects.
Our generation will have to deal with tens of millions of jobs replaced by automation like self-driving cars and trucks. But we have the potential to do so much more together.
Every generation has its defining works. More than 300,000 people worked to put a man on the moon – including that janitor. Millions of volunteers immunized children around the world against polio. Millions of more people built the Hoover dam and other great projects.
These projects didn't just provide purpose for the people doing those jobs, they gave our whole country a sense of pride that we could do great things.
Now it's our turn to do great things. I know, you're probably thinking: I don't know how to build a dam, or get a million people involved in anything.
But let me tell you a secret: no one does when they begin. Ideas don't come out fully formed. They only become clear as you work on them. You just have to get started.
If I had to understand everything about connecting people before I began, I never would have started Facebook.
Movies and pop culture get this all wrong. The idea of a single eureka moment is a dangerous lie. It makes us feel inadequate since we haven't had ours. It prevents people with seeds of good ideas from getting started. Oh, you know what else movies get wrong about innovation? No one writes math formulas on glass. That's not a thing.
It's good to be idealistic. But be prepared to be misunderstood. Anyone working on a big vision will get called crazy, even if you end up right. Anyone working on a complex problem will get blamed for not fully understanding the challenge, even though it's impossible to know everything upfront. Anyone taking initiative will get criticized for moving too fast, because there's always someone who wants to slow you down.
In our society, we often don't do big things because we're so afraid of making mistakes that we ignore all the things wrong today if we do nothing. The reality is, anything we do will have issues in the future. But that can't keep us from starting.
So what are we waiting for? It's time for our generation-defining public works. How about stopping climate change before we destroy the planet and getting millions of people involved manufacturing and installing solar panels? How about curing all diseases and asking volunteers to track their health data and share their genomes? Today we spend 50x more treating people who are sick than we spend finding cures so people don’t get sick in the first place. That makes no sense. We can fix this. How about modernizing democracy so everyone can vote online, and personalizing education so everyone can learn?
These achievements are within our reach. Let's do them all in a way that gives everyone in our society a role. Let's do big things, not only to create progress, but to create purpose.
So taking on big meaningful projects is the first thing we can do to create a world where everyone has a sense of purpose.
The second is redefining equality to give everyone the freedom they need to pursue purpose.
Many of our parents had stable jobs throughout their careers. Now we're all entrepreneurial, whether we're starting projects or finding or role. And that's great. Our culture of entrepreneurship is how we create so much progress.
Now, an entrepreneurial culture thrives when it's easy to try lots of new ideas. Facebook wasn't the first thing I built. I also built games, chat systems, study tools and music players. I'm not alone. JK Rowling got rejected 12 times before publishing Harry Potter. Even Beyonce had to make hundreds of songs to get Halo. The greatest successes come from having the freedom to fail.
But today, we have a level of wealth inequality that hurts everyone. When you don't have the freedom to take your idea and turn it into a historic enterprise, we all lose. Right now our society is way over-indexed on rewarding success and we don't do nearly enough to make it easy for everyone to take lots of shots.
Let's face it. There is something wrong with our system when I can leave here and make billions of dollars in 10 years while millions of students can't afford to pay off their loans, let alone start a business.
Look, I know a lot of entrepreneurs, and I don't know a single person who gave up on starting a business because they might not make enough money. But I know lots of people who haven't pursued dreams because they didn't have a cushion to fall back on if they failed.
We all know we don't succeed just by having a good idea or working hard. We succeed by being lucky too. If I had to support my family growing up instead of having time to code, if I didn't know I'd be fine if Facebook didn't work out, I wouldn't be standing here today. If we're honest, we all know how much luck we've had.
Every generation expands its definition of equality. Previous generations fought for the vote and civil rights. They had the New Deal and Great Society. Now it's our time to define a new social contract for our generation.
We should have a society that measures progress not just by economic metrics like GDP, but by how many of us have a role we find meaningful. We should explore ideas like universal basic income to give everyone a cushion to try new things. We’re going to change jobs many times, so we need affordable childcare to get to work and healthcare that aren't tied to one company. We're all going to make mistakes, so we need a society that focuses less on locking us up or stigmatizing us. And as technology keeps changing, we need to focus more on continuous education throughout our lives.
And yes, giving everyone the freedom to pursue purpose isn't free. People like me should pay for it. Many of you will do well and you should too.
That's why Priscilla and I started the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative and committed our wealth to promoting equal opportunity. These are the values of our generation. It was never a question of if we were going to do this. The only question was when.
Millennials are already one of the most charitable generations in history. In one year, three of four US millennials made a donation and seven out of ten raised money for charity.
But it's not just about money. You can also give time. I promise you, if you take an hour or two a week -- that's all it takes to give someone a hand, to help them reach their potential.
Maybe you think that's too much time. I used to. When Priscilla graduated from Harvard she became a teacher, and before she'd do education work with me, she told me I needed to teach a class. I complained: "Well, I'm kind of busy. I'm running this company." But she insisted, so I taught a middle school program on entrepreneurship at the local Boys and Girls Club.
I taught them lessons on product development and marketing, and they taught me what it's like feeling targeted for your race and having a family member in prison. I shared stories from my time in school, and they shared their hope of one day going to college too. For five years now, I’ve been having dinner with those kids every month. One of them threw me and Priscilla our first baby shower. And next year they’re going to college. Every one of them. First in their families.
We can all make time to give someone a hand. Let's give everyone the freedom to pursue their purpose -- not only because it's the right thing to do, but because when more people can turn their dreams into something great, we're all better for it.
Purpose doesn't only come from work. The third way we can create a sense of purpose for everyone is by building community. And when our generation says "everyone", we mean everyone in the world.
Quick show of hands: how many of you are from another country? Now, how many of you are friends with one of these folks? Now we're talking. We have grown up connected.
In a survey asking millennials around the world what defines our identity, the most popular answer wasn't nationality, religion or ethnicity, it was "citizen of the world". That's a big deal.
Every generation expands the circle of people we consider "one of us". For us, it now encompasses the entire world.
We understand the great arc of human history bends towards people coming together in ever greater numbers -- from tribes to cities to nations -- to achieve things we couldn't on our own.
We get that our greatest opportunities are now global -- we can be the generation that ends poverty, that ends disease. We get that our greatest challenges need global responses too -- no country can fight climate change alone or prevent pandemics. Progress now requires coming together not just as cities or nations, but also as a global community.
But we live in an unstable time. There are people left behind by globalization across the world. It's hard to care about people in other places if we don’t feel good about our lives here at home. There’s pressure to turn inwards.
This is the struggle of our time. The forces of freedom, openness and global community against the forces of authoritarianism, isolationism and nationalism. Forces for the flow of knowledge, trade and immigration against those who would slow them down. This is not a battle of nations, it's a battle of ideas. There are people in every country for global connection and good people against it.
This isn't going to be decided at the UN either. It's going to happen at the local level, when enough of us feel a sense of purpose and stability in our own lives that we can open up and start caring about everyone. The best way to do that is to start building local communities right now.
We all get meaning from our communities. Whether our communities are houses or sports teams, churches or music groups, they give us that sense we are part of something bigger, that we are not alone; they give us the strength to expand our horizons.
That's why it's so striking that for decades, membership in all kinds of groups has declined as much as one-quarter. That's a lot of people who now need to find purpose somewhere else.
But I know we can rebuild our communities and start new ones because many of you already are.
I met Agnes Igoye, who's graduating today. Where are you, Agnes? She spent her childhood navigating conflict zones in Uganda, and now she trains thousands of law enforcement officers to keep communities safe.
I met Kayla Oakley and Niha Jain, graduating today, too. Stand up. Kayla and Niha started a non-profit that connects people suffering from illnesses with people in their communities willing to help.
I met David Razu Aznar, graduating from the Kennedy School today. David, stand up. He’s a former city councilor who successfully led the battle to make Mexico City the first Latin American city to pass marriage equality -- even before San Francisco.
This is my story too. A student in a dorm room, connecting one community at a time, and keeping at it until one day we connect the whole world.
Change starts local. Even global changes start small -- with people like us. In our generation, the struggle of whether we connect more, whether we achieve our biggest opportunities, comes down to this -- your ability to build communities and create a world where every single person has a sense of purpose.
Class of 2017, you are graduating into a world that needs purpose. It's up to you to create it.
Now, you may be thinking: can I really do this?
Remember when I told you about that class I taught at the Boys and Girls Club? One day after class I was talking to them about college, and one of my top students raised his hand and said he wasn't sure he could go because he's undocumented. He didn't know if they'd let him in.
Last year I took him out to breakfast for his birthday. I wanted to get him a present, so I asked him and he started talking about students he saw struggling and said "You know, I'd really just like a book on social justice."
I was blown away. Here's a young guy who has every reason to be cynical. He didn't know if the country he calls home -- the only one he's known -- would deny him his dream of going to college. But he wasn't feeling sorry for himself. He wasn't even thinking of himself. He has a greater sense of purpose, and he's going to bring people along with him.
It says something about our current situation that I can't even say his name because I don't want to put him at risk. But if a high school senior who doesn't know what the future holds can do his part to move the world forward, then we owe it to the world to do our part too.
Before you walk out those gates one last time, as we sit in front of Memorial Church, I am reminded of a prayer, Mi Shebeirach, that I say whenever I face a challenge, that I sing to my daughter thinking about her future when I tuck her into bed. It goes:
"May the source of strength, who blessed the ones before us, help us *find the courage* to make our lives a blessing."
I hope you find the courage to make your life a blessing.
Congratulations, Class of '17! Good luck out there.
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