(C) Daily Kos This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . Harrison Ford Delivers Inspiring Commencement Speech at ASU [1] ['View Profile', 'News Corpse'] Date: 2026-05-16 The amazing Harrison Ford delivered an amazing commencement speech to the class of 2026 at Arizona State University on Monday, May 11. He also received an honorary Doctor of Arts from Arizona State University for his humanitarian work. Here are a few excerpts from the speech. The full transcript is available at https://www.fanthatracks.com/news/conventions-events/harrison-ford-gives-the-arizona-state-universitys-undergraduate-commencement-speech/ ————- “You’re here because you have accomplished something significant. You understood the opportunity before you. You took advantage of all this world-class university had to offer. You made wise choices, followed through with the work. I celebrate your commitment. The combined success of all of you, the potential of your entire generation, that is what gives me hope for the future. Passion and purpose are not the same thing. Passion brings you joy. Purpose brings you meaning. Passion gets you out of bed in the morning, but purpose allows you to sleep at night. Their message was simple: nature doesn’t need people. People need nature to survive. A healthy natural world provides free services to mankind that we cannot provide for ourselves. And in the air we breathe, pollinators for our crops, fresh water and carbon capture from our forests, wetlands, and ocean, medicines present and future from the rainforest. And that’s why I stand here now before you, to represent for nature, the source of life itself. Humanity is a part of nature, not above it. We have an essential mandate to protect 30 percent of the world’s land and sea by 2030, to prevent the mass extinction, to slow the warming of our planet. Still, despite new science, new policies, we are still losing nature to profiteering, corruption, conflict, including land that is already protected on paper. These efforts matter, but they’re not enough. We need cultural change. We need to extend social justice. We need to respect and elevate the indigenous people that are being marginalized, and in many cases, killed in cold blood. These communities have long understood that the trees, the mountain, water, soil, are not commodities. They are relatives to be cherished for following generations to embrace and protect. We can all play our role by embracing that wisdom in our day-to-day lives, by loving the planet, by honoring nature’s authority, her generosity, the bounty she affords us, the justice of her example. Find Your Voice, Lead Your Generation, because the world you’re stepping into, the world my generation left you, is a real mess. Saving nature isn’t our only job. There are opportunities to be embraced in society, in business, in the kind of lives we live. So find a place for yourself. Whatever talent or ambition you have, find some way to put it to work. Build something that didn’t exist yesterday. Stand up for someone who can’t stand up for themselves. Bring people together who weren’t talking before. That’s leadership. That’s what moves the needle. Your generation has far more power than you may realize. And if you harness that power, if you find your leadership, your issues, your voice, the world will not be able to ignore you. You will have to be accommodated. Believe me, I know that’s true. Don’t wait. When opportunity presents, recognize it. This is your time. Own it. Enjoy every second of it. Because what could be worse than getting to the end of your life and realizing that you haven’t fully lived it? Congratulations. Go change the world.” ————- Powerful words, from one of the most admired figures of our times, whose passion and purpose rise far above the world of stage and film. Words that can inspire the class of 2026, at ASU and far beyond. Ford is vice-chair of Conservation International, a nonprofit environmental organization headquartered in Arlington, Virginia. The organization’s intent is to protect nature. Since 1992, Ford has lent his voice to a series of public service messages promoting environmental involvement for EarthShare, an American federation of environmental and conservation charities. [END] --- [1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2026/5/16/800040059/community/harrison-ford/ Published and (C) by Daily Kos Content appears here under this condition or license: Site content may be used for any purpose without permission unless otherwise specified. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/dailykos/