Following the MDC's announcement that it will join a government of national unity, The Elders call on all Zimbabweans to unite to end the terrible suffering in their country, and urge international donors to support this development.
Desmond Tutu, Lakhdar Brahimi, Jimmy Carter and Graça Machel, who visited Sudan in 2007 on The Elders' first mission, join the call for states to provide peacekeepers with helicopters in the Darfur region of Sudan.
Chair of The Elders Desmond Tutu announces that he will lead a delegation to Sudan to help strengthen and deepen the framework for assuring a permanent peace in Darfur.
On his 89th birthday in Johannesburg, Nelson Mandela announces the formation of The Elders, a group of independent global leaders brought together to work on peace-building and human rights.