01Why UMANE

The world's greatest challenges demand more than technical solutions.They demand stronger human values.

Yet values are left to chance. Today, 1 in 7 young people aged 10 to 19 lives with a mental disorder, and 1 in 6 people worldwide is affected by loneliness.

Source: World Health Organization, 2025.

UMANE is a non-profit organization that brings human values back to the center of how we live, learn, and lead.

We work to inspire, educate, and support the next generations to lead with empathy, respect, courage, and responsibility.

Children playing together on the front steps of a city building.
Long shadows of people walking, cast across a path in low sun.

(Im)perfectly human.

Both light and dark are part of who we are.

From the UMANE manifesto

02Our Approach

We work at the root:
human values.

Two hands holding a young plant, soil still on its roots.
Three young people painting together on a large sheet of paper on the floor.
People walking side by side along a misty shoreline, reflected in the wet sand.
Two women facing each other in conversation on a city street.
  1. Two hands holding a young plant, soil still on its roots.

    Start at the root

    Before any cause, there are people choosing how to act. We work on the values behind those choices.

  2. Three young people painting together on a large sheet of paper on the floor.

    Learn by doing

    Values are learned in real situations: on stage, in classrooms, in conversations.

  3. People walking side by side along a misty shoreline, reflected in the wet sand.

    Bring everyone together

    Students, teachers, families, leaders, companies and artists, side by side.

  4. Two women facing each other in conversation on a city street.

    Keep the conversation alive

    The UMANE Summit opens it. Our podcast and campaigns keep it going all year round.

03Our programs

One movement, three ways in.

Three ways to bring human values into everyday life, schools and leadership. It all begins with the first UMANE Summit, coming soon.

Our programs are taking shape

  1. A man resting on a bench in a Lisbon square, in the morning sun.

    Live

    Everyday conversations about human values, open to everyone.

    • UMANE Podcast
    • #weareumane
    Get involved
  2. Two students sharing a moment on the stone steps outside a school, backpacks beside them.

    Learn

    Human values practiced in schools, with teachers and young people.

    • UMANE Roadshow
    • UMANE Academy
    Get involved
  3. An audience listening closely, seated on the floor of a crowded room.

    Lead

    Leaders and decision-makers, together around what matters.

    • UMANE Summit
    • UMANE Retreats
    Get involved

Images reflect the values we share. They do not depict UMANE programs or participants.

Human values. Our shared ground.

04Our values

Basics for Humanity.

The seven human values behind everything we do.

Integrity

The integrity to unveil who we truly are.

A firm commitment to authenticity and truth. The genuine over the superficial.

Respect

For ourselves, to guide our morals. For others, to guide the rest.

To give up our seat, to thank, to listen unconditionally.

Empathy

The force that can change the world.

To stand in someone else's shoes, and value compassion over conflict.

Non-violence

To be on the right side of history.

A seed that grows in the soil of compassion: peace, understanding, healing.

Gratitude

Gratitude as an act of selfless service.

Seeing the good in the difficult, and the abundance around us.

Courage

The courage to change, to be different, to boldly be you.

To stand for what is right, beyond fear and conformity.

Freedom

The freedom to act, to take responsibility, to inspire.

To challenge the status quo and choose our own path.

It is what difference we have made to the lives of others that will determine the significance of the life we lead.

Nelson MandelaWalter Sisulu’s 90th birthday, May 18, 2002
A boy leaping across the gap between two walls, against a pale sky.

05Join the movement

Be part of the beginning.

Everyone has a place in UMANE.

  • Individuals and families

    Follow UMANE, share the seven values with the people around you, and join us at the first UMANE Summit.

  • Companies and foundations

    Support the first UMANE Summit and help bring human values into schools.

  • Schools and institutions

    Bring human values into your classrooms and communities. Talk to us about the UMANE Roadshow and the UMANE Academy.

Join the movement

Or write to us at hello@weareumane.org

Together, we build a world with room for everyone.

Join the movement