President Drew Gilpin Faust, members of the Harvard Board of Overseers, members of the Harvard Corporation, faculty, staff and students, fellow alumni, members of the graduating Class of 2011, parents, family and friends, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, friends: 德鲁·吉尔平·福斯特校长，哈佛监事会各位成员，哈佛校董会各位成员，各位教职员工和同学们，各位校友，2011届毕业生们，各位家长、家人和朋友们，尊敬的来宾们，女士们、先生们，朋友们：
I am honored not only to be the 360th Commencement speaker at my alma mater, but to do so in the year Harvard University celebrates 375 years of preparing minds as the oldest institution of higher learning in America. Thank you for the invitation and congratulations to you, Dr. Faust, the first female president of Harvard! 我深感荣幸，不仅因为我成为母校第360届毕业典礼的演讲嘉宾，更因为今年恰逢哈佛大学这所美国最古老的高等学府庆祝建校375周年。感谢你们的邀请，也祝贺你，福斯特博士——哈佛首位女性校长！
It is a great privilege to share in Harvard's distinguished and storied history. Harvard has produced presidents, prime ministers, a United Nations secretary-general, leaders in business, government, and the church. But more than anything, Harvard has produced the men and women on whose talent our societies function — the leaders in law, health, business, government, design, education, spirituality, and thought. 能参与哈佛卓越而悠久的历史，是莫大的荣幸。哈佛培养出了总统、总理、一位联合国秘书长，以及商业、政府和宗教界的领袖。但最重要的是，哈佛培养出了以他们的才华支撑我们社会运转的男男女女——法律、卫生、商业、政府、设计、教育、精神和思想领域的领导者。
An event four decades ago put me on the path that has led me to where I am today. I participated, as a junior official of Liberia's Department of Treasury, in a national development conference sponsored by our National Planning Council and a team of Harvard advisers working with Liberia. My remarks, which challenged the status quo, landed me in my first political trouble. 四十年前的一件事，让我走上了通往今天的道路。当时我还是利比里亚财政部的一名初级官员，参加了由国家计划委员会和一支协助利比里亚工作的哈佛顾问团队共同主办的全国发展会议。我的发言挑战了现状，让我第一次惹上了政治麻烦。
The head of the Harvard team, recognizing, in a closed society, the potential danger I faced, facilitated the process that enabled me to become a Mason Fellow at the Kennedy School of Government. The Mason Program provided me with the opportunity to study a diversified curriculum for a master's degree in public administration. 哈佛团队的负责人意识到，在一个封闭的社会里，我面临着潜在危险，于是帮助我完成相关手续，使我得以成为肯尼迪政府学院的梅森学者。梅森项目让我有机会修读多样化课程，攻读公共管理硕士学位。
Perhaps more importantly, in terms of preparation for leadership, the program enabled us to learn and interact with other Fellows and classmates who represented current and potential leaders from all continents. 或许更重要的是，就领导力培养而言，这个项目让我们得以与其他梅森学者和同学相互学习、彼此交流；他们是来自各大洲的现任及未来领袖。
I engaged, thrilled to be among the world's best minds, yet overwhelmed by the reality of being a part of the world's most prestigious institution of learning. As a result, I did things that I should have done, like studying hard, going to the stacks to do the research for the many papers and for better knowledge of the history of my country. 我满怀热情地投入学习，为身处世界最顶尖的人才之中而兴奋，又为身处世界最负盛名的学府之中而感到无所适从。于是，我做了我应该做的事：刻苦学习，去书库为许多论文做研究，也更深入地了解了我祖国的历史。
I notice a few blank stares — evidence of the generation gap — so let me explain: the stacks contained books, which people used to write, and other people used to read, before Google Scholar was created. I also did things that I should not have done, like exposing myself to frostbite when I joined students much younger than I to travel by bus to Washington, D.C., to demonstrate against U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War. 我注意到台下有几双茫然的眼睛——这正说明存在代沟——让我解释一下：书库里存放着书。在谷歌学术诞生之前，有人写书，另一些人读书。我也做过不该做的事：我和比自己年轻得多的同学一起乘巴士前往华盛顿特区，抗议美国介入越南战争，让自己冒着冻伤的风险。
It is difficult to imagine achieving all that I have, without the opportunity to study at Harvard. It is, therefore, for me a profound honor to be counted as an alumna. I salute my fellow graduates who share that rich heritage of academic excellence and the pursuit of truth. 很难想象，如果没有在哈佛学习的机会，我能否取得今天的全部成就。因此，能够成为哈佛校友，我深感荣幸。我向同样传承卓越学术传统、追求真理的各位毕业生致敬。
In preparation for this Address, I was pleasantly surprised to learn how far back Liberia's connection to Harvard goes. The establishment of the Liberia College (now the University of Liberia) in 1862, the second-oldest institution of higher learning in West Africa, was led and funded by the Trustees of Donations for Education in Liberia. Simon Greenleaf, the Harvard College law professor who drafted Liberia's Independence Constitution of 1847, was the founder and president of the Trustees of Donations for Education in Liberia. 在准备这篇演讲时，我惊喜地发现利比里亚与哈佛的渊源如此之深。1862年利比里亚学院（今利比里亚大学）的建立——它是西非第二古老的高等学府——就是由利比里亚教育捐赠托管基金会领导和资助的。哈佛学院法学教授西蒙·格林利夫，也就是利比里亚1847年独立宪法的起草人，正是利比里亚教育捐赠托管基金会的创始人和主席。
The first Liberian graduate of Harvard did so in 1920, and since then there has been a steady trail of Liberians to Cambridge. Most of them returned home to pursue successful careers. 第一位利比里亚人于1920年从哈佛毕业。此后，利比里亚人前往剑桥求学的脚步从未停止；他们大多学成归国，在各自领域有所建树。
Thank you, Harvard, and thank you to the many Mason Program professors, dead and alive, for the compliments you paid when my papers and interventions were top rate, and for the patience you showed when I struggled with quantitative analysis. 谢谢你，哈佛；也感谢梅森项目的众多教授们，无论已故还是在世——感谢你们在我论文和发言出色时给予的赞许，也感谢你们在我与定量分析苦苦纠缠时表现出的耐心。
The self-confidence, sometimes called arrogance, that comes from being a Harvard graduate can also lead one down a dangerous path. It did for me. One year after my return from Cambridge, I was at it again, in a Commencement Address at my high school alma mater. I questioned the government's failure to address long-standing inequalities in the society. This forced me into exile and a staff position at the World Bank. 哈佛毕业生与生俱来的自信——有人称之为傲慢——也可能把人引上危险的道路。我就栽过跟头。从剑桥回国一年后，我又故态复萌，在我高中母校的毕业典礼上发表演讲，质疑政府未能解决社会中长期存在的不平等。这迫使我流亡海外，在世界银行谋得一个职位。
Other similar events would follow in a life of in and out of country, in and out of jail, in and out of professional service. There were times when I thought death was near, and times when the burden of standing tall by one's conviction seemed only to result in failure. But through it all, my experience sends a strong message that failure is just as important as success. 此后，类似的事情接踵而至：我一生在国内与海外之间辗转，在监狱内外出入，也几度进入和离开专业服务岗位。有时我以为死亡近在咫尺；有时，坚守信念的重负似乎只换来失败。但一路走来，我的经历传递出一个强烈的信息：失败与成功同样重要。
Today I stand proud, as the first woman president of my country, Liberia. This has allowed me to lead the processes of change, change needed to address a long-standing environment characterized by awesome challenges: a collapsed economy, huge domestic and external debt arrears, dysfunctional institutions, destroyed infrastructure, poor regional and international relationships, and social capital destroyed by the scourge of war. 今天，我作为祖国利比里亚的第一位女性总统，自豪地站在这里。这个身份让我得以领导变革，回应一个长期积累、挑战重重的局面：经济崩溃、国内外债务大量逾期、机构失灵、基础设施被毁、地区与国际关系恶化，以及社会资本遭战争浩劫摧毁。
After election, I moved quickly in mobilizing our team, sought support from partners, and tackled the challenges. In five years, we formulated the laws and policies and strategies for growth and development. We removed the international sanctions on our primary exports; introduced and made public a cash-based budget; increased revenue by over 400 percent; and mobilized foreign direct investment worth 16 times the size of the economy when I assumed office. 当选之后，我迅速组建并动员团队，争取合作伙伴支持，着手应对挑战。五年间，我们制定了促进增长与发展的法律、政策和战略。我们推动取消了针对主要出口产品的国际制裁；实行并公开现金收付制预算；财政收入增幅超过400%；吸引的外国直接投资总额达到我就职时全国经济规模的十六倍。
We built a small and professional army and coast guard, and moved the economy from negative growth to average around 6 percent. We have virtually eliminated a $4.9 billion external debt, settled a large portion of international institutional debt, as well as domestic arrears and suppliers' credit. 我们建设了一支小而专业的军队和海岸警卫队，使经济从负增长转为平均约百分之六的增长。我们基本清偿了49亿美元的外债，解决了大部分国际机构债务，以及国内欠款和供应商信贷。
We restored electricity and pipe-borne water, lacking in the capital for two decades; reconstructed two modern universities and rural referral hospitals; constructed or reconstructed roads, bridges, schools, training institutions, local government facilities, and courts throughout the country; 我们恢复了首都中断二十年的电力和自来水；重建了两所现代化大学和农村转诊医院；在全国建设或重建了道路、桥梁、学校、培训机构、地方政府设施和法院；
established and strengthened the institutional pillars of integrity; decentralized education by establishing community colleges; brought back the Peace Corps; and mobilized financial and technical resources from U.S. foundations, sororities, and individuals for support of programs aimed at the education of girls, the empowerment of adolescent youth, and improved working conditions for market women. 我们建立并强化了廉政制度支柱；通过设立社区学院推动教育资源下沉；迎来了和平队回归；并从美国的基金会、女性社团和个人那里筹集资金、引入技术资源，用于支持女童教育、青少年赋权和改善市场女商贩工作条件的项目。
Nevertheless, the challenges for sustained growth and development remain awesome. Our stability is threatened by the thousands of returnees from U.S. prisons and regional refugee camps, the bulk of whom are lacking in technical skills. Our peace is threatened by the challenging neighborhood where we live: two of our three neighbors have either experienced, or narrowly avoided, civil war in the past year, and we patiently host their refugees, since not even a decade ago it was they who hosted so many of us. 然而，要保持持续增长与发展，我们面临的挑战依然严峻。数千名从美国监狱和周边地区难民营返回的人威胁着国家稳定，其中大多数缺乏职业技能。复杂的周边局势也威胁着我们的和平：三个邻国中有两个在过去一年经历了内战或险些陷入内战。我们耐心接纳他们的难民，因为不到十年前，正是这些国家收容了我们许多人。
Implementation of our economic development agenda is constrained by low implementation and absorptive capacity, which means that we are not constrained by funding alone. Plans to enhance performance in governance move slower than desired due to long-standing institutional decay and a corrupted value system of dishonesty and dependency. The development of infrastructure is constrained by the high capital cost of restoration, brought about by the lack of maintenance and exacerbated by wanton destruction over two decades of conflict. 经济发展议程受到项目执行能力和资金吸纳能力不足的制约，这说明资金并非唯一瓶颈。由于机构长期衰败，以及不诚实、依赖成性的扭曲价值观，改善治理绩效的计划进展慢于预期。基础设施建设则受制于高昂的修复成本；长期缺乏维护，再加上二十年冲突中的肆意破坏，使问题更加严重。
Yet, today, we are proud that young Liberian children are back in school, preparing themselves to play a productive part in the new Liberian society. Our seven-year-olds do not hear guns and do not have to run. They can smile again. We can thus say with confidence that we have moved our war-torn nation from turmoil to peace, from disaster to development, from dismay to hope. 然而今天，我们自豪地看到，利比里亚的孩子们重返校园，准备在新的利比里亚社会中发挥建设性作用。我们的七岁孩子听不到枪声，不必奔逃。他们可以重新绽放笑容。因此，我们可以满怀信心地说：我们把这个饱受战争蹂躏的国家从动乱带向和平，从灾难带向发展，从沮丧带向希望。
And it was the Liberian women who fought the final battle for peace, who came, their number and conviction the only things greater than their diversity, to demonstrate for the end to our civil war. I am, therefore, proud to stand before you, humbled by the success in representing the aspirations and expectations of Liberian women, African women, and, I dare to say, women worldwide. 为和平打赢最后一场战役的，正是利比里亚妇女。她们虽然背景各异，但参与人数之众、信念之坚更胜于彼此的差异；她们走上街头，要求结束内战。因此，我能够代表利比里亚妇女、非洲妇女——我甚至敢说，全世界妇女——的愿望与期待站在你们面前，既感到自豪，也深感谦卑。
Today I stand equally proud, as the first woman president of our African continent, a continent that has embraced the process of change and transformation. I am proud that Liberia became a beacon of hope in Africa. With few notable exceptions, Africa is no longer a continent of countries with corrupt big men who rule with iron fists. It is no longer the Dark Continent in continual economic free fall, wallowing in debt, poverty and disease. 今天，我同样自豪地站在这里，作为我们非洲大陆的第一位女性总统——这片大陆已经拥抱了变革与转型的进程。我自豪，利比里亚成为非洲的希望灯塔。除了少数明显的例外，非洲不再是一个由腐败强人以铁腕统治的国家组成的大陆。它不再是那个经济持续自由落体、深陷债务、贫困与疾病的"黑暗大陆"。
When he addressed the Ghanaian Parliament in 2009, President Barack Obama reminded the people of Africa that it would no longer be the great men of the past who would transform the continent. The future of all of our countries is in the hands of the young people, people like you, Obama said, "brimming with talent and energy and hope, who can claim the future that so many in previous generations never realized." 2009年，贝拉克·奥巴马总统在加纳议会发表演讲时提醒非洲人民：改变这片大陆的，将不再是过去的伟大人物。奥巴马说，我们所有国家的未来都掌握在年轻人手中——像你们这样的人，“才华横溢、充满活力与希望，能够开创前几代人未能实现的未来”。
While many challenges persist, times have changed and the world you enter today, graduates of the Class of 2011, is much more accountable than the one we faced. At the beginning of this year, 17 elections were scheduled across our continent. In 1989, there were three democracies in sub-Saharan Africa; by 2008, there were 23. That is progress. This is a significant improvement from the days when violent overthrows were the default means of transition. 尽管许多挑战依然存在，时代已经改变。2011届毕业生们，你们今天踏入的世界，比我们当年面对的世界拥有更完善的问责机制。今年年初，非洲大陆共有17场选举列入日程。1989年，撒哈拉以南非洲只有三个民主国家；到2008年，这一数字已增至23个。这就是进步。与暴力推翻政权曾是权力更替常态的年代相比，这是显著改善。
A clear example stands out in West Africa. Although they did not get as much focus as postelection violence in Côte d'Ivoire, Niger and Guinea proved exemplary where the military oversaw democratic elections, turned power over to the civilian government, and returned to the barracks. In the case of Côte d'Ivoire, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and the African Union recognized a nonincumbent as the legitimate winner. That, again, is progress. 西非有一个鲜明的例子。虽然尼日尔和几内亚没有像科特迪瓦选后暴力那样受到关注，但它们的军队监督了民主选举、把权力移交给文官政府、返回军营，堪称典范。在科特迪瓦，西非国家经济共同体（西共体）和非洲联盟承认非现任者为合法赢家。这，同样也是进步。
We also see evidence of this progress in the African economy, which has been growing at more than 5 percent over the past decade. A recent African Development Bank report measured the rise of the middle class in Africa, totaling 313 million out of 1 billion Africans. The countries experiencing exceptional growth in their middle class include Ghana, Mozambique, Mali, Tanzania, Cape Verde, Botswana, Burkina Faso, and Rwanda. This middle class is changing the face of Africa. 我们也从非洲经济中看到这种进步：过去十年，非洲经济年均增速超过5%。非洲开发银行最近的一份报告估算，在十亿非洲人中，中产阶级已达3.13亿。中产阶级增长尤为显著的国家包括加纳、莫桑比克、马里、坦桑尼亚、佛得角、博茨瓦纳、布基纳法索和卢旺达。这个不断壮大的群体正在改变非洲的面貌。
We are moving away from dependence on extractive industries and agriculture. There is a rising consumer class that helped brace Africa during the global economic crisis. This is emblematic not only of the progress in purchasing power in Africa, but in the progress that means you can still put food on the table for your family when the rains fail, that you can engage intelligently in political debates and hold your leaders accountable. 我们正在摆脱对采掘业和农业的依赖。一个不断壮大的消费阶层帮助非洲抵御了全球经济危机。这不仅体现了非洲购买力的提高，也意味着即使遭遇旱灾或雨季失常，你仍能让家人吃饱饭，能够理性参与政治辩论，并要求领导人承担责任。
Instability and years of conflict in Liberia have pushed us to the bottom of this table in terms of the size of our middle class. We stubbornly refuse to accept this and are preparing a new development agenda that aims, through proper allocation of our natural resources, to graduate Liberia from development assistance in 10 years, and propels us to a middle-income country by 2030. 利比里亚多年的动荡与冲突，使我们在中产阶级规模排行榜上位居末位。我们倔强地拒绝接受这一现实，正在制定新的发展议程：通过自然资源的合理配置，让利比里亚在十年内从发展援助中"毕业"，并在2030年之前跻身中等收入国家。
As Africa charts its economic path, we are taking advantage of South-South partnerships as China, India, and Brazil, not to mention Nigeria and Ghana, become more significant partners in our economic expansion. Their experience is closer to ours, and our cooperation going forward will be crucial. 在非洲规划自身经济道路之际，我们正积极利用南南合作关系。中国、印度和巴西，以及尼日利亚和加纳，正在成为推动我们经济扩张的更重要伙伴。它们的经验与我们更为接近，未来的合作将至关重要。
Even as the African renaissance appears on course, we must recognize that some of this progress is driven by the same forces of commodity demand that led to temporary gains four decades ago. We are the source of raw materials, now to India and China as well as the Western world, yet we generate the least profits from these exhaustible resources. 尽管非洲复兴似乎正在轨道上，我们必须认识到，这些进步中有一部分是由商品需求的推动力驱动的——正是四十年前带来短暂繁荣的同一股力量。我们是原材料的来源地——如今供应印度、中国以及西方世界——但我们从这些不可再生资源中获取的利润最少。
Moreover, we remain vulnerable to external price shocks and receive very little transfer of technology, or growth in related industries. Until we begin to make products to sell, build better road and rail systems, and improve the easy movement of people and goods across our borders; until we supply the engineers and geologists and marketers of our resources, our middle class will remain stunted. 此外，我们仍然容易受到外部价格冲击，技术转移和相关产业的增长少之又少。除非我们开始制造产品出售，建设更好的公路和铁路系统，改善人员和货物跨境便捷流动；除非我们能够提供本国的工程师、地质学家和资源营销人才，否则我们的中产阶级仍将发育不良。
In spite of these needs, and the fundamental economics of resource extraction, everywhere I travel in Africa, I see signs of a continent rising. We are producing more, manufacturing more, trading more, and cooperating more. Words like accountability, transparency, and reform are not just the calling card of some foreign donor; they are the words that must adjudicate closed-door decisions for those governments in Africa that seek re-election. There is a growing consensus on these issues, giving me great optimism about the future of Africa's common economy and democratic prospects. 尽管存在这些需求，也受到资源开采基本经济规律的制约，但无论走到非洲哪里，我都能看到这片大陆正在崛起。我们生产得更多、制造得更多、贸易得更多，也合作得更多。“问责”“透明”和“改革”不再只是外国捐助者挂在嘴边的口号；对于谋求连任的非洲政府而言，这些原则必须成为闭门决策时的判断标准。这些问题正在形成越来越广泛的共识，让我对非洲共同经济和民主前景充满乐观。
I am excited about Africa's future, and more so about Liberia's future. In a few months, the Liberian people will have the opportunity to select their political leadership. This means that Liberia will know a second peaceful democratic transition in six years: this in a country that was riven by political rivalries, tribalism, and civil war for two decades. 我对非洲的未来感到兴奋，对利比里亚的未来更加兴奋。几个月后，利比里亚人民将有机会选择他们的政治领导层。这意味着，利比里亚将迎来六年之内的第二次和平民主政权更替：而这发生在一个被政治斗争、部族主义和内战撕裂了二十年的国家。
It is, nonetheless, with cautious optimism that we approach this event and the future. Anxieties remain because we know that as impressive as Liberia's rebirth has been, our achievements remain fragile and reversible. 尽管如此，我们仍以审慎的乐观迎接这一事件和未来。忧虑依然存在，因为我们知道，无论利比里亚的新生多么令人瞩目，我们的成就依然脆弱、依然可能逆转。
I have no personal anxieties, however, for in a decades-long career in public service, I have learned many lessons that I can share with you today. In my journey, I have come to value hope and resilience. As an actor in Liberia's history as it has unfolded over the last 40 years, I have seen these characteristics come full circle. 不过，我个人并不忧虑。在数十年的公共服务生涯中，我学到了许多经验，今天可以与你们分享。一路走来，我愈发珍视希望与韧性。作为利比里亚过去40年历史的参与者和见证者，我亲眼看到这些品质经历兴衰之后重新彰显。
I was there in the early '70s, a decade after the independence movement had swept across Africa. Back then, the future appeared full of endless possibilities. Then across the continent there was a gradual descent into militarism, sectarian violence, and divisive ethnic politics. But I have been blessed with the opportunity to watch and participate as not only my nation but other African countries rise out of the ashes of war. With cautious optimism, it is my hope that I will continue to lead Liberia to consolidate and realize the dividends of peace. 七十年代初，在非洲独立运动席卷大陆十年之后，我亲历了那个时代。当时，未来似乎蕴含着无限可能。此后，整个大陆逐渐滑向军国主义、教派暴力和分裂性的族群政治。但我有幸亲眼见证并参与自己的祖国乃至其他非洲国家从战争废墟中重新崛起。怀着审慎的乐观，我希望继续领导利比里亚巩固和平、收获和平红利。
As much as I have lived and experienced, what you graduates will know and do will far exceed it. History, it seems, is speeding up. After graduation, you leave the relative security, predictability, and certainty of these walls for a world full of uncertainties. Across the globe, entire societies are being transformed, new identities forged, and national stories retold. 尽管我有过丰富的人生阅历，你们这些毕业生未来的见识和成就仍将远远超过我。历史似乎正在加速。毕业后，你们将离开这些高墙内相对安全、可预测和确定的生活，走向一个充满不确定性的世界。在全球各地，整个社会正在转型，新的身份正在形成，国家叙事正在改写。
People your age across the world are becoming increasingly vocal about how they are governed and by whom. Old templates of control have been overturned as States struggle internally with issues about national character and destiny. People who, heretofore, had no say in those conversations are asserting themselves and taking a place at the table, with or without an invitation. 全世界像你们这个年龄的人，正越来越多地为由谁治理、如何治理发出自己的声音。旧的控制模板已被推翻，各国在国内挣扎于国家品格与命运的问题。那些此前在对话中没有发言权的人正在挺身而出，无论是否受邀，都要在桌旁占有一席之地。
Ten years ago, information about the tragic events of September 11 came to us mainly through traditional media: radio, television, and … cnn.com. There was no Facebook, no YouTube, no Twitter and all the other social networking sites that my grandchildren now take for granted. In the intervening 10 years, young people like yourselves have gone on to use technology to improve the overall quality of life and created wealth. 十年前，关于"9·11"悲剧事件的消息主要通过传统媒体传给我们：广播、电视，还有……cnn.com。那时没有脸书，没有YouTube，没有推特，也没有我的孙辈们如今习以为常的其他所有社交网站。在这十年间，像你们一样的年轻人用技术改善了整体生活质量，创造了财富。
In those 10 years, the world has become smaller and more connected. The complex financial instruments of 10 years ago would seem quaint to the hedge funds and investment banks of today. In those 10 years, our markets and economies have become more connected and adjusted faster. 在这十年间，世界变得更小、联系更紧密。十年前复杂的金融工具，在今天的对冲基金和投资银行看来已显得老派。在这十年间，我们的市场和经济联系更紧密，调整更迅速。
Just six months ago, the Tunisian revolution began, leading rapidly and inexorably to fundamental change across North Africa and the Middle East. Could this have happened without digital social media, or without heightened correlation of food prices across time and space? Could this have happened just 10 years ago, with the same preconditions but a different degree of connectivity? Can you imagine what the next 10 years will bring? The next 50? 就在六个月前，突尼斯革命爆发，迅速而不可阻挡地引发整个北非和中东的根本变革。如果没有数字社交媒体，没有食品价格跨越时空的紧密联动，这一切会发生吗？如果是在十年前，具备同样的先决条件但联动程度不同，这一切会发生吗？你能想象未来十年会发生什么吗？未来五十年呢？
In the time even before Friendster succumbed to Facebook, our world went through phases of transformation, and Harvard graduates, students, faculty, and commencement speakers have been key actors, writers, and chroniclers of those changes. In 1947, U.S. Secretary of State George Marshall stood in this very Yard before a graduating class such as this one to announce the plan to salvage Europe after the devastation caused by the Second World War: 甚至早在Friendster败给脸书之前，我们的世界就经历了一个又一个转型阶段，而哈佛的毕业生、学生、教师和毕业典礼演讲者，一直是这些变迁的关键行动者、书写者和记录者。1947年，美国国务卿乔治·马歇尔就站在这个庭院里，面对与你们相似的一届毕业生，宣布了在第二次世界大战的浩劫之后拯救欧洲的计划：
He began, "I need not tell you, gentlemen, (I don't know where the ladies were) that the world situation is very serious. But to speak more seriously" — Marshall said as he went on to advocate the well-known Marshall Plan. In time, we saw a rebounded Europe, and the subsequent rise of East Asia, have been the catalyzing forces behind Africa's own recent progress. 他开口说："我无需告诉诸位先生们——（我不知道女士们都到哪里去了）——世界局势十分严峻。但请让我更严肃地说下去。"——马歇尔如是说，随后他倡导了那个广为人知的马歇尔计划。后来我们看到的欧洲复兴，以及随后东亚的崛起，一直是非洲近期进步背后的催化力量。
When President John F. Kennedy, another Harvard graduate, spoke to this audience in 1956 as the junior senator from Massachusetts, he analyzed the tension between politicians and intellectuals. Of the politicians, Kennedy said, "We need both the technical judgment and the disinterested viewpoint of the scholar, to prevent us from becoming imprisoned by our own slogans." 又一位哈佛毕业生——约翰·F·肯尼迪总统，1956年以马萨诸塞州资浅参议员的身份对这一听众演讲时，分析了政治家与知识分子之间的张力。关于政治家，肯尼迪说："我们既需要学者的专业判断，也需要他们超然的视角，以免我们被自己的口号所禁锢。"
In newly democratic societies, where ballots are marked with distinctive icons as well as names since many voters remain illiterate, the danger of sloganeering political populism is only greater, and can lead down the road of war, not just bad policy choices. Kennedy, of course, would go on to launch the Peace Corps, which has impacted the lives of millions throughout the world by bringing Americans across the ocean, teaching students and training teachers, and making our world a smaller place. 在新生的民主社会里，由于许多选民仍是文盲，选票上除了姓名还要印上醒目的图标，口号式政治民粹主义的危险只会有增无减，它可能把国家引向战争之路，而不仅仅是糟糕的政策选择。当然，肯尼迪后来创建了和平队，它让美国人远渡重洋，教授学生、培训教师，影响了全世界数百万人的生活，让我们的世界变得更小。
Ralph Ellison, speaking at the 1974 Commencement, told the graduates and alumni: "Let us not be dismayed, let us not lose faith simply because the correctives we have set in motion, and you have set in motion, took a long time." Ellison believed that despite the challenge, the chance for national regeneration was there. 拉尔夫·艾利森在1974年毕业典礼上对毕业生和校友们说："让我们不要沮丧，让我们不要失去信心，仅仅因为我们已经启动的、你们已经启动的那些矫正需要很长的时间。"艾利森相信，尽管挑战重重，国家重生的机会就在眼前。
In the more recent past, Bill Gates, a famous Harvard attendee, has made our world smaller still by having all of us speak the same dialect, by connecting us electronically and opening doors that just one generation ago seemed to belong to the realm of science fiction. Today, because of him, we are closer to living in a global village. 在更近的年代，著名的哈佛学子比尔·盖茨让我们所有人说着同一种"方言"，通过电子方式把我们连接起来，打开了一代之前还只属于科幻领域的大门。今天，因为他，我们更接近于生活在一个地球村。
With the election of Harvard graduate Barack Obama to the presidency of the United States, the face of American politics has been altered for good. In the sea change that his election represents, let me remind you, America, that Liberia has you beat on one score: We elected our first female president, perhaps 11 years before the United States might do so. 随着哈佛毕业生贝拉克·奥巴马当选美国总统，美国政治的面貌被永远改变。在他当选所代表的时代巨变中，让我提醒你们，美国：在一点上利比里亚胜过了你们——我们选出了第一位女性总统，也许比美国早了11年。
Today, I share more than a Harvard background with you. In a way, this is also a commencement year for me. Just as you end one journey today and begin the next, so too do I in November. As my first term as the president of Liberia comes to an end, I will be standing for re-election. The person who claims to be the strongest opposition contender is a Harvard graduate. But I want you to know that the incumbent, who is also a Harvard graduate, is determined to win. The relationship between Harvard and Liberia is thus secured and in good hands! 今天，我与你们分享的不仅仅是哈佛背景。从某种意义上说，今年也是我的"毕业之年"。正如你们今天结束一段旅程、开始下一段旅程，我也将在11月如此。随着我利比里亚总统第一任期的结束，我将竞选连任。那位自称最强有力的反对派竞选者，是一位哈佛毕业生。但我想让你们知道，现任者——同样是一位哈佛毕业生——志在必得。哈佛与利比里亚的关系，就这样得到了保障，且后继有人！
Harvard Graduates, Class of 2011: I urge you to be fearless about the future. Just because something has not been done yet, doesn't mean it can't be. I was never deterred from running for president just because there had never been any females elected head of state in Africa. Simply because political leadership in Liberia had always been a "boys' club" didn't mean it was right, and I was not deterred. Today, an unprecedented number of women hold leadership positions in our country, and we intend to increase that number. 哈佛毕业生们，2011届的同学们：我恳请你们对未来无所畏惧。有些事至今没人做成，并不意味着它做不成。我从未因为非洲还从未有女性当选国家元首而在竞选总统面前却步。利比里亚的政治领导层向来是个"男人俱乐部"，但这并不意味着它就是对的，我没有退缩。今天，我国女性担任领导职位的人数空前，而且我们打算让这个数字继续增长。
As you approach your future, there will be ample opportunity to become jaded and cynical, but I urge you to resist cynicism — the world is still a beautiful place and change is possible. 在走向未来的路上，你们很容易变得倦怠、愤世嫉俗，但我恳请你们抵制犬儒主义——这个世界依然美丽，改变依然可能。
As I have noted here today, my path to the presidency was never straightforward or guaranteed. Prison, death threats, and exile provided every reason to quit, to forget about the dream, yet I persisted, convinced that my country and people are so much better than our recent history indicates. Looking back on my life, I have come to appreciate its difficult moments. I believe I am a better leader, a better person with a richer appreciation for the present because of my past. 正如我今天所讲的，我的总统之路从来不是一帆风顺，也从无必然成功的保证。牢狱、死亡威胁和流亡给了我种种理由放弃、忘掉梦想，但我坚持了下来，因为我深信，我的国家和人民远比近年的历史所呈现的更加美好。回望一生，我学会了珍视那些艰难时刻。我相信，正是过往的经历让我成为更好的领导者、更好的人，也让我更加珍惜当下。
The size of your dreams must always exceed your current capacity to achieve them. If your dreams do not scare you, they are not big enough. If you start off with a small dream, you may not have much left when it is fulfilled because along the way, life will task your dreams and make demands on you. 梦想的大小，必须始终超出你当前实现它的能力。如果你的梦想不能吓到你，那它们还不够大。如果你一开始就抱着一个小小的梦想，当它实现时，你恐怕已经所剩无几——因为一路走来，生活会考验你的梦想，向你提出种种要求。
I am, however, bullish about the future of our world because of you. We share one defining characteristic that prepares us to transform our world — we are all Harvard University graduates. When we add to that the traditional quests for excellence for which we are known, there is no telling what we can accomplish. 不过，我对世界的未来充满信心，正是因为你们。我们拥有一个共同的决定性特质，它让我们有能力改变这个世界——我们都是哈佛大学的毕业生。再叠加我们素来追求卓越的传统，我们将取得的成就将无可限量。
Go forth and embrace a future that awaits you. 勇往直前，去拥抱那个等待着你们的未来。
I thank you. 谢谢大家。