In June 2002, one hundred civic leaders from across America came together at Duke University in
Durham, North Carolina for The Content of Our Character Project's National Conversation on Generational Ethics. Together, they explored the values and virtues, as well as forms of moral leadership, which each living generation brings to the challenges facing American society. In concluding their intergenerational dialogue, they reflected on what they wanted to convey to future American generations. We ask you to
do the same.

What would you want future American generations to know about the unique contributions of their predecessors? What core principles, values, and ideals would you ask them to honor, respect, and practice? Use the exercise below in your classroom, workplace, church, and even living room. You will, no doubt, be inspired by the responses.

Below, please find the inspiring letters written by those who gathered at Duke University in June 2002 for A National Conversation on Generational Ethics.

We encourage you to send us the letters composed by your students, co-workers, family, and fellow citizens at the following address: Kenan Institute for Ethics, Duke University, Box 90432, Durham, NC 27708.

The Exercise:
Following the brief instructions below, write a letter to the next American generation, expressing your hopes for the content of their character. Identify the values you most would want to pass on.

  1. Set aside 5 minutes for personal reflection and have each group member write down at least 2 ideas to be considered.
  2. Briefly allow each person to discuss his or her ideas.
  3. Allocate 5-10 minutes for each person to draft sentences that he or she wants to be included in your letter.
  4. Together, try to string together your sentences into a single letter, and then edit.
  5. Have everyone sign your joint letter.

Below are sample letters written by some of those who attended The Content of Our Character Project's National Conversation on Generational Ethics at Duke University on June 24, 2002:

Dear Yet To Be Born Generation:

The generations that preceded you made it okay to know different people and to appreciate them for what made them unique. At the same time, we rediscovered age-old values such as truth, honesty, compassion, tolerance, empathy, humility, optimism and courage. Nothing is ever finished -- and the strength of our democracy rests on your active participation. We ask that you honor, respect and practice kindness. Nothing else will make the world habitable for those who come after you. Please love your country and have a healthy skepticism of your government.

Have fun and good luck.

Steven Culbertson, Youth Service America
Chris Gates, National Civic League
Marcia Chatelain, Harry S. Truman Scholarship Foundation
Julia Cohen, Youth Noise
Daniel Kessler, Action Without Borders
Carl Fillichio, Council for Excellence in Government

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Dear Next Generation,

Welcome to life. It's a complicated adventure. You live in a world of possibilities. We encourage you to believe in something greater than yourself, which is rooted in a sense of community and a search for the common good. Listen carefully to the personal stories of others, and honor the wisdom of experience. Find your distinctive voice and passion as you engage with others.

Here are some thoughts to consider along the way:

  • Study the past so you can build upon the foundations that are sound.
  • Seek strong mentors and allies.
  • Take time to reflect on what matters most.
  • Enduring love is possible.
  • Lead with imagination and energy.
  • Life is worth its cost.
  • You don't receive as much as you give.
  • Collaborate with people different from yourself.
  • Replace cynicism with hope.
  • Keep a sense of humor and perspective.
  • Believe something good will happen tomorrow.
  • Pass it on. We believe in you!

    John H. Barnhill, North Carolina Campus Compact
    Stephen Williams, Stennis Institute of Government
    Robert Payton, Indiana University Center on Philanthropy
    Mark Day, College of William and Mary
    Kristin Wensing, Coro Midwestern Center
    Colleen Knight Santoni, Notre Dame Center for Social Concerns
    Mark Rutledge, Duke University
    Daniel Hall, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center
    Herbert Rosenbaum, Hofstra University
    Betsy Alden, Kenan Institute for Ethics at Duke
    Lois Chepenick, Jacksonville Community Council

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Dear New Generation:

We have not left you the legacy of a perfect world, but we hope to leave you a legacy of some wisdom, a collective wisdom of all previous generations. It is our hope that you will learn from our experiences so that your lives are not spent merely relearning our lessons.

We have discovered there is no one right way to live. Instead it is important to be inclusive, practice humility, be empathetic and value our similarities, be respectful and compassionate and most of all, listen, be present for, and connect with people. One way to do this is to seek out conversations with those who are different from you wherever possible. While doing so, avoid drive-by debate, be comfortable with ambiguity and focus on issues not individuals. Do not be afraid to take a stand when you have to and compromise when you can.

Most of all, be active. Participate. Play or pay. Seek to build not reinvent. Know yourself. Start from what you care most about but allow yourself to care about what you stumble upon. Life is painfully short against the landscape of our dreams for society. Believe that change is infectious, begins with you and begins now.

Abby Keysa, Campus Compact
Brook Beaird, Campus Compact
Thomas Sander, Saguaro Seminar at Harvard
Daniel Horgan, Allegheny County's America's Promise
Diana Bucco, Coro Center for Civic Leadership
Michael Moody, Boston University
Chris Drury, Project 540

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As the next generation, you have inherited the privilege of America, created by democracy. Democracy is not delicate -- it is strong, robust and able to withstand challenge. The potential of democracy requires that we all question the individuals and institutions that lay claim to that privilege -- and that we work for the common good.

We offer you a legacy rich in sacrifice, success and salvation, rooted in the meeting of institutions, the people and the spirit.

We wish for you an outrageous ambition for your own life and the world in which you live. May you be driven by a love and a fierce sense of possibility, aware of our faults but not defeated by them. May you have a vision of what society can be, one guided by a moral compass and an openness to change. May you have a sense of humor, a willingness to take risks and an abundance of hope.

Have a broad definition of "we," value dialogue and diversity of thought. Be moved constantly from cynicism to the ability to be shocked by injustice. Believe always and fervently in the sanctity of life and that every person has value.

With perseverance, compassion, critical analysis, and an entrepreneurial spirit devoted to community, you will create an America and a world called to greatness.

Stacey Abrams , Sutherland, Asbill & Brennan
Elizabeth Kiss, Kenan Institute for Ethics at Duke
Maika Watanabe, UC-Berkeley School of Education
Chad Mayer, Cummins Engine
Scott Morgan, Aspire Public Schools
Jeannie Sager, IU School of Medicine
Pai-Ling Yin, Stanford University
Carolyn Darrow, Youth Vote

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An open letter to our children:

We all share a moment in this great American experiment. Through the notable achievements of our blended generations, we have created a vision, infrastructure and tangible experience with a legal, economic and social system based on justice, virtue and equality. Our failure has consistently been the inability to publicly value our greatest resource as a nation -- our differences.

We ask you to be deliberate in you actions and include a diversity of perspectives in your decision-making. We would urge you to avoid the blind acceptance of consumer values, the evils of prejudice and the sense of self-interest and entitlement. We ask you to value a life of adventure over a life of ease, an exploration of your own identities over an acceptance of stereotypes, and an appreciation of the common purposes that land us together, over the forces of self-interest that isolate us.

Start today!

Sean Swarner, Cancer Climber
Breonna Cole, Cole & Associates
Jon Aram, Responsible World
Lynn Lyman, Rock the Vote
Chuck Tampio, Close Up
Paula Mirk, Institute for Global Ethics
Cindy Adcock, Duke School of Law

To be continued…

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Listen, learn, respect, discern…
Dream, imagine, create, act…
Wrestle, lead, teach, engage…
Your next generation awaits…


PJ Blankenhorn, City Year
Stephen Steinberg, University of Pennsylvania
Amy Smitter, Michigan Campus Compact
Margaret Morgan, Democracy Collaborative
Jeff Goddard, Therimmune Research Corp.
Todd Bernstein, MLK Day of Service
Joe Smith, Indiana Commission on Community Service
John Sirek, McCormick Tribune Foundation
Larry Harris, United Leaders

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Dear ____________,

Welcome to life! The hard part is over. You have won the conception race against 400 million other applicants. You now possess the greatest gift of all. You have also inherited a constitution that allows you to be yourself, and to find your passion. But be aware. You have entered a less than perfect world.

It has been said, "Faith is the realization of what is hoped for and evidence of things not seen." (Hebrews 11:1) I would like you, the next generation, to have faith in what you and your posterity can accomplish. Seek to become in the words of Henry James, "Finely aware and richly responsible." Understand the need to take life seriously, to develop the practical wisdom required to live a fairly successful life, a life that seeks excellence in both the private and public sphere.

The process of principled living is just as important as the outcomes, so please make the effort and time to engage in and contribute. You will be rewarded with synergistic connections and take honor from working for the common good!

Robert Cavalier, Carnegie Mellon University
Ikey Kakouras, Public Allies North Carolina
John Calvin, National Youth Leadership Center
Nancy Tate, League of Women Voters
Lori Tsuruda, People Making a Difference

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We, the living generations, representing those born between 1923-1980, have gathered these pearls from our shared experiences. We stand at the cusp of a new millennium faced with opportunities and challenges never dreamed before. We can peer into the inner workings of the human form, the farthest reaches of the galaxy. We have created unimaginable wealth and forged ties across boundaries. Yet our gaze often appears narrow, our wealth is poorly distributed, and we have put up new walls. Terrorism, violence, infectious disease and injustice, underpinned by cynicism, threaten the stability of civil society.

Hope must remain.

We offer the following as guidance, but recognize that you must make your own way:

First and foremost -- value each day and strive to be the best you can.

As a citizen of tomorrow, we hope that you will be guided by these personal values:

  • That you judge your success more by principles you strive for than by financial gain
  • That you seek to repair the world by tapping your spirituality and enhancing your mind
  • That you recognize your most important roles are as parent and citizen
  • That you work hard but also enjoy life
  • That your kindness to strangers is based on the inner-connectedness of all humanity
  • That you act righteously but temper it with respect and tolerance.

While personal values and actions are important, they serve a larger purpose outside ourselves. Civic engagement starts within each person. Some lessons learned and guidance we share:

  • To recognize that we have our own prejudices and views to overcome
  • That we must seek justice and give a voice to those who are often unheard and excluded
  • That we must remember that all generations are connected and must work together to find solutions

In closing, we want you to know we trust you. We know you will successfully wrestle with the issues of your time. We bequeath you globalization! We see globalization as a positive force; a chance to reach more people, repair the global village and make peace on earth (and maybe even the universe).

Debra Henzey, North Carolina Civic Education Consortium
Jaya Saxena, UNC School of Law
Joe Tucker, UNC School of Medicine
Rose Boyarsky, Clinic Psychologist
Saul Boyarsky, Washington University Medical Center
Arun Mohan, Emory School of Medicine