Ball Professor Juan Manuel Santos Challenges Students to Lead with Empathy
Juan Manuel Santos, former president of Colombia, delivered the George W. Ball Lecture “From Hawk to Dove” on April 13, 2022. Santos — who was the sole recipient of the 2016 Nobel Peace Prize for his “resolute efforts to bring [Colombia’s] more than 50-year-long civil war to an end” — also engaged in discussion with Interim Dean Thomas Christensen and Professor Rumela Sen.
Santos joined SIPA as Ball Adjunct Professor of International and Public Affairs for the spring 2022 semester. The appointment recognized his thoughtful and innovative contributions to international understanding in the spirit of George Ball, who was the under secretary of state in the administrations of presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson.
In addition to discussing his negotiations with FARC (Colombia’s anti-government rebels) and the war on drugs, Santos spoke directly to SIPA students. He challenged them to “lead with hope not fear, to build bridges instead of wars, to foster solidarity and respect for diversity, to say humanity first not my country [or] religion [or] race first, to lead with empathy not apathy, to seek opportunities in every difficulty, to embrace change, to be optimistic in a world flooded with pessimism.”
Leading with a compassionate heart, he said, will “make the world a better place.”
As the Ball adjunct professor, Santos also taught Leadership Lessons for Important Battles, where students learned directly from the former president about his experiences.
“He does a fantastic job of humanizing complex issues” Ali Ryan-Mosley MIA ’22, a student in the course, said. “He brings personal anecdotes into each topic that really make you feel like you have the inside scoop into his time as president.”
“As a Colombian and former part of President Santos’s government, I was deeply fascinated by being in a class with the person who made the decisions of historic events that many of us saw in the news as distant realities,” said Nicolas Navas MPA ’22. “President Santos’ candidness and love for public service served as a reminder of the reason why we came to a public policy school and reinvigorated our love for service.”
Santos had begun his lecture by quoting Seneca, the philosopher and statesman of Ancient Rome. He first cited the great Stoic in Latin, then offered an English translation: “If one does not know to which port one is sailing, no wind is favorable.”
By sharing his experiences, Navas said, Santos helped SIPA students “maneuver difficult situations and still return to safe harbor.”