Matthew Kavanagh [email protected]

Honored to be @SkollFoundation Forum this week at with @drtlaleng talking to change makers, funders, about inequality as a threat to global health security and what we can do about it. Brilliant folks here giving me hope. @GeorgetownGHPP @GtownSOH

The 2026 #SkollWF's opening plenary emphasized the importance of dialogue, serving as a reminder that the connections forged at the Skoll World Forum are catalysts for change. Indigenous storytellers Kynan Tegar and Ana Lucía Ixchiu Hernández opened the plenary with a preview of "A Day on Earth," a participatory documentary filmed simultaneously on Earth Day last year across 26 countries. The film, produced by @IfNotUsThenWho with support from Skoll, captures everyday acts of love for our planet and makes the case that for Indigenous Peoples, every day is Earth Day. Skoll Foundation President and CEO Marla Blow took the stage next, drawing on the metaphor of mycelium to describe the connections that ground changemakers and enable their work to thrive. In a year of significant disruption, she called on the community to build something new rather than simply restore what was. Nobel Peace Prize Laureate and former Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos joined @IlwadElman of the Elman Peace and Human Rights Centre (@ElmanPeaceHRC) for a conversation moderated by journalist and Africa In the World Founder Dele Olojede. Drawing on decades of lived peacebuilding experience, they explored how to move divided societies toward dialogue, belonging, and reconciliation. Trevor Noah (@TrevorNoah) and Noubar Afeyan, Founder and CEO of Flagship Pioneering (@FlagshipPioneer), turned their attention to artificial intelligence, with its transformative potential, its risks, and the dualities that guide innovation in uncertain times. To close, Astrid Jorgensen brought her viral sensation Pub Choir (@PubChoir) to the theater, leading delegates through a lively, large-scale singalong—highlighting the remarkable possibilities that emerge when we join together. Follow along for more from #SkollWF.

Glad to see both major candidates for Mayor engaging the LGBTQ+ community. At the end of the day, though, energy is something you cannot manufacture—you can see it in who shows up. Tnx @Janeese4DC for showing up to multiple PACKED events to vibe w/ your LGBTQ+ fan girlies/folx!

“There is nothing the apartheid government has not done to me. There isn’t any pain I haven’t known.” ~ Winnie Madikizela-Mandela #WakeUpEverybody✊🏿

The United States has fully disengaged from the World Health Organization, a decision that invites the question: Does leaving the WHO put American lives at risk? As Matthew M. Kavanagh writes, the answer, unequivocally and unfortunately, is yes. worldpoliticsreview.com/us-who-withdra…

Second Statement: I am outraged by the blatant lies told to the public yesterday by the Uganda Prison Service spokesperson, Frank Baine, who claimed that Dr @kizzabesigye1 was not ill and that he had merely gone to a clinic for a routine medical check-up. Today, the same Prison Service informed the court that Dr Besigye could not appear because he is ill, forcing the hearing to be postponed to 24 February. This contradiction exposes a deliberate attempt to mislead the public and conceal the truth about his deteriorating health. I have just returned from Luzira Prison, where after more than two hours of haggling with the prison commander, I was finally allowed to see Dr Besigye. I found him huddled in a dirty plastic chair in a small room near his cell. He is extremely weak. His symptoms have not improved. The prison doctor confirmed to me that Dr Besigye’s personal doctor had reported test results showing that the infection is worsening, not improving. Dr Besigye told me he is finding it difficult to walk and is experiencing significant pain in his legs. He is still unable to eat solid food and, in the past eight hours, had consumed only soup, an egg, and a slice of bread. Despite his condition, prison authorities are refusing to transfer him to a fully equipped hospital where his personal doctor can properly monitor and treat him. Instead, they proposed admitting him to Murchison Bay Prison Hospital, a facility notorious for neglect and preventable deaths, and where the army would have full control over his treatment. Dr Besigye has flatly refused this. He will not place his life in the hands of President Museveni and his personal army. He insists - reasonably and lawfully - on being treated at a private hospital where his doctor works, under prison guard if required. I am deeply disturbed that a man who fell ill five days ago, whose condition is worsening, is still being held in a tiny, extremely hot cell and denied access to adequate medical care. This is cruel, dangerous, and unlawful. The Officer-in-Charge of Luzira Prison and the NRM government must explain: ➡️ why Dr Besigye is being denied proper medical treatment, ➡️ the Prison Service lied to the public about his condition, and ➡️ a gravely ill detainee is being treated with such inhumanity. I demand that Dr Kizza Besigye be released immediately and allowed to return home to be cared for by his family and doctors. I also demand that the trumped-up charges against him be dropped. His life is in danger. The responsibility will lie squarely with those who continue to deny him care. Winnie Byanyima Spouse of Dr Kizza Besigye 21 January 2026