John Dau

John Bio John Dau has experienced challenges in his life that most people never imagine. Born in war-torn Sudan, Dau is one of 27,000 Lost Boys of Sudan, driven from their villages when the northern Arab government attacked the ethnic minority population of South Sudan in 1987. For the next five years, John Dau led groups of displaced boys across Sudan for hundreds of miles facing starvation, disease, and violence. While living in a Kenyan refugee camp from 1992-2001, John Dau attended school...See more

John Bio John Dau has experienced challenges in his life that most people never imagine. Born in war-torn Sudan, Dau is one of 27,000 Lost Boys of Sudan, driven from their villages when the northern Arab government attacked the ethnic minority population of South Sudan in 1987. For the next five years, John Dau led groups of displaced boys across Sudan for hundreds of miles facing starvation, disease, and violence. While living in a Kenyan refugee camp from 1992-2001, John Dau attended school for the first time at the age of 17 and earned a prestigious Kenyan Certificate for Secondary Education. In 2001, Dau was selected to immigrate to the United States and settled in Syracuse, New York. Following his initial culture shock, John Dau took on two, sometimes three jobs, earned an associates degree and Bachelor degree at Syracuse University. Currently, John Dau is the President of both the John Dau Foundation (JDF) and the South Sudan Institute (SSI). He is an influential part of many efforts to bring hope and peace to the people of South Sudan, founding four non-profits and with help from American volunteers, John raised over $3,000,000 to build and operate the Duk Lost Boys Clinic in his home village of Duk Payuel. John Dau now speaks professionally throughout the United States, Canada and Europe. In 2006, John Dau was featured in the award-winning documentary film, "God Grew Tired of Us", and wrote his first book also entitled "God Grew Tired of Us": a Memoir, published by National Geographic in 2007 both of which are circulating in the West, South Korea and other places as well. As a human- rights activist for the people of South Sudan, John has lived a remarkable life of cultural adaptation in America. He has received many prestigious awards, including National Geographic Emerging Explorers Award and was a Volvo for Life finalist in the Quality of Life category, which carried a financial contribution from Volvo to the John Dau Foundation. John was also named alongside of DRC President Joseph Kabila, a World Economic Forum Young Global Leader for 2008 and together with Former Secretary of State, Gen. Collin Powell, he received a Most Caring Award from the Caring Institute and received an Honorary Degree of Letters from Alma College along with 38 other awards. John Daus life provides the ultimate example of a profile in courage. He is a natural leader who exemplifies true resilience and perseverance under the most horrific of circumstances. Today, John Dau is a compelling motivational speaker whose life is defined by his uncompromised commitment to having a lasting impact on the future of his native country. "I think people refuse to try things because they fear failure," he observes. "There have been many impossible situations in my life, but I keep trying. My family in Sudan thought I was dead and I feared they were dead, but 20 years later we were reunited. You can't give up." More About John Dau . . . John Dau is an experienced social entrepreneur. He has founded four non-profit organizations. In 2003, he founded the Lost Boys Foundation of New York, which raised funding for books and medical expenses for Lost Boys living in the United States and was instrumental in founding the American Care for Sudan Foundation, which solicited funds to build and operate the Lost Boys Clinic in Southern Sudan. John Bul Dau speaks on a variety of topics at corporations, churches and colleges, including a commencement address to 10,000 people at the University of Minnesota's College of Arts and Sciences graduation, for top executives at a United Technologies Corporation conference. His mission is to create possibilities in life for those who are in dire circumstances within his home country... See less