Eight Celebrities Share What They've Learned

Distinguished individuals reveal what they would like others to know.

By Andrew Zuckerman

From Reader's Digest Originally in Wisdom

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Desmond Tutu: "Each one of us can be an oasis of peace."

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Jane Goodall: "The most important thing we can do to try to get out of the mess we've made on this planet is to spend time thinking about the consequences of the choices we make. "

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Clint Eastwood: "Take your profession seriously; don't take yourself seriously. You really only matter to a certain degree in the whole circus out there."

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Lella Vignelli: "Aspiring designers should know about the good things that happened before. Have a little history. Go back and see what was done before."

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Massimo Vignelli:"Learn from the past if you want what matters in the present."

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Desmond Tutu: "Each one of us can be an oasis of peace."

The greatest gift from one generation to the next? It's wisdom gained from experience. Award-winning photographer Andrew Zuckerman traveled to seven countries, flew 65,000 miles, and drove 5,000 more, all in a quest to ask 50 distinguished individuals ages 65 years and older what they would like others to know. Here, a selection of our favorites from his just-published book, Wisdom.

DESMOND TUTU - cleric; antiapartheid activist; winner, 1984 Nobel Peace Prize; winner, 2005 Gandhi Peace Prize

"Each one of us can make a contribution. Too frequently we think we have to do spectacular things. Yet if we remember that the sea is actually made up of drops of water and each drop counts, each one of us can do our little bit where we are. Those little bits can come together and almost overwhelm the world. Each one of us can be an oasis of peace."

JANE GOODALL - primatologist and conservationist; founder, the Jane Goodall Institute for Wildlife Research, Education and Conservation, based in Washington, D.C.

"We've been very arrogant in assuming that there's a sharp line dividing us from the rest of the animal kingdom. We are not the only beings on this planet with personalities, minds, and, above all, emotions. We need to be more respectful.

As a child, I dreamed of going to Africa, living there with the animals, and not a day passed when I wasn't almost disbelieving that such an amazing thing happened. Being out on my own in nature, with or without the chimpanzees, is just something I loved.

The most important thing we can do to try to get out of the mess we've made on this planet is to spend time thinking about the consequences of the choices we make. What did we eat? How was it grown? Did it adversely affect animal welfare?

Is it good for human health? What do we wear? Where was it made? Could we make

it in a way that is less damaging to the environment? If we start thinking like that, inevitably people make small changes. And if people start making small changes, then you start getting the major change that we must have if we care about the future for our children."

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• Exculsive Extras: Wisdom of Celebrities Around the World
• Award-winning photographer Andrew Zuckerman traveled to seven countries, flew 65,000 miles, and drove 5,000 more, all in a quest to ask 50 distinguished individuals ages 65 years and older what they would like others to know.
• 

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