And he dedicates this TED talk to South African leader Nelson Mandela, the human embodiment of that same great-hearted, generous spirit.
Here is a little more about 'ubuntu'.
"Ubuntu is a beautiful - and old - concept. At its most basic, Ubuntu can be translated as “human kindness,” but its meaning is much bigger in scope than that - it embodies the ideas of connection, community, and mutual caring for all. Liberian peace activist Leymah Gbowee once defined it as: 'I am what I am because of who we all are.'"
Desmond Tutu writes: “Ubuntu is very difficult to render into a Western language. It speaks of the very essence of being human. When we want to give high praise to someone we say, ‘Yu, u nobunto’; ‘Hey so-and-so has ubuntu.’ Then you are generous, you are hospitable, you are friendly and caring and compassionate. You share what you have. It is to say, ‘My humanity is inextricably bound up in yours.’ We belong in a bundle of life.”
Thanks to Judy Atkinson for flagging this talk on her Facebook page.