Ep. 2: Penny Abeywardena: New York City Commissioner for International Affairs | Choose to see the wider perspective

Penny Abeywardena was born in Sri Lanka and moved to the US as an undocumented immigrant, and after working for several years at the Clinton Global Initiative, she signed on as New York City’s Commissioner for International Affaires. She has since redefined what the role means, taking a stand on issues such as climate change and social justice .

Penny joined Everyday Ubuntu host Mungi Ngomane to discuss her role leading the City’s global platform for promoting its goals for a more just and accessible society, how she is handling Covid and her favourite part of the job.

In this episode, Penny discusses how she shares policies and best practices with cities and states around the world even when one may not have the same values as a government and why she thinks inspiring and empowering the next generation is so important. Her approach to work - and life - illustrates the Ubuntu lesson ‘Choose to See the Wider Perspective’ where one steps back and looks at the world from every angle to gain better understanding and do the most good.