Matt Friedman, CEO, The Mekong Club
Matt Friedman is an international human trafficking expert with more than 30 years of experience. He is CEO of The Mekong Club, an organization of Hong Kong’s leading businesses which have joined forces to help end all forms of modern slavery.
Mr. Friedman previously worked for USAID and the United Nations in over 30 countries. He offers technical advice to numerous governments, banks and corporations working to eliminate all forms of modern slavery and is the author of twelve books.
In 2017, he won Asia’s prestigious “Communicator of the Year” Gold Award. Matt is a humanitarian professional who has lived and worked in over 42 countries around the world
Mr. Friedman is a CEO, Penguin Random House Author, Inspirational Keynote Speaker, and a Modern Slavery Expert.
I consider everyone who volunteers, no matter how big or small the gesture, to be heroic.
Matt Friedman
Matt Friedman, LinkedIn
What do you like about your current role?
I am the CEO of the Mekong Club. I work with the private sector in a positive, supportive way to help businesses to understand and address the issue of modern slavery. I like this role because it allows me to work with a sector that is self-motivated to address this problem if it arises. If an issue is detected, it often results in quick, efficient action.
What are your favourite books?
City of Joy (1985 novel) by Dominique Lapierre is one of my favourite books. The book explores themes of class separation, the caste system, religion, and the struggles of the poor in India, City of Joy was inspired by many real stories that the author witnessed during travels in India over many years. The book taught me many important lessons when I was just beginning my development work in Asia.
Who do you most admire and why?
One of the people I admire most is Mahatma Gandhi. As an activist, he pioneered and practised the principle of Satyagraha—resistance to tyranny through mass nonviolent civil disobedience. The way he lived a life that “walked the talk” has always been a great inspiration to me.
What is the best advice you have ever received?
Believe in yourself and there will come a day when others will have no choice but to believe with you.
What motivates or inspires you?
I believe in the power of collective good. My clarion call to all of us is to find a cause that resonates with a person and join the fight. Understanding which issue is closest to a person’s heart is an essential first step. As a set of core values, I believe that collective actions have the greatest chance of impact – and that an army of ordinary people working together can change the world. I believe that for change to happen, we need to unite different types of people – all sharing their unique experiences and skills together. I believe in collaboration because I know that we are stronger when we work together as a community rather than passing the buck to a handful of paid professionals. I feel inspired to act because I know that efforts that contribute to the collective good are urgently needed – and that they affect us all in one way, shape or form.
What would like to highlight and share with our audience?
Our world faces significant troubles. Our atmosphere is heating up at an alarming rate. Our polar ice is melting. Some of our most beloved species are near extinction. People are enslaved in nearly every country in the world. More than half the world lives in dire poverty. Wars rage in more than ten countries. Millions still die from starvation, preventable diseases and so much more. We must take stock of the fact that these problems are not going away. And in many cases, they are actually getting worse.
When faced with this list of troubling issues, many will say to themselves: “Why do I have to listen to such things? It’s so sad and depressing. Why can’t we let the people who are supposed to fix these terrible problems just do their job? What does this have to do with me?” As a humanitarian professional who has lived and worked in over 42 countries around the world, I have come to realize that if those of us who work on these issues could solve them, we would. But the fundamental truth is that we simply can’t. They go well beyond what a few thousand people around the world can fix.
These crises require an army of united people – people who care. I consider everyone who volunteers, no matter how big or small the gesture, to be heroic. There is heroism within each and every one of us. It is a voice of good, righteousness, action and of love. In today’s world, this voice too often lies dormant and receives very little nurturing. This heroic part of us can rise up and face the problems of the world head-on. For the past thirty-five years, I have given countless presentations to help motivate people to step up and become involved in our world and its problems. While my own personal issue happens to be addressing human trafficking, my message to others is simple: find a cause that resonates with you and join the fight. Understanding which issue is closest to our hearts is an essential first step. Maybe a person wants to fight global warming, address injustice, reduce poverty or stop bullying. From experience, we all know that we tend to be more motivated and committed to working on things that are more important to us.
Yes, our world is in trouble, but we don’t have to passively accept this reality. Our world has the capacity to heal more people, feed more people, educate more people, resolve international and community issues, and help others when a disaster or conflict arises. When society accepts this challenge to address our issues and problems, incredible solutions often follow.