The Police bassist and rock and roll legend Sting serenaded graduates after he received an honorary degree from Brown University.
On Sunday, May 27, as part of the Ivy League school's 250th commencement, the English musician and his wife, Trudie Styler, received recognition for their work their effort to protect rainforests and indigenous people through their foundation Rainforest Fund.
Nobel Prize for Physics winner J. Michael Kosterlitz also received an honorary degree at the event. Aside from handing honorary degrees, Brown University distributed over 2,000 degrees to undergraduate, graduate, and medical students.
Sting Receives Honorary Degrees
At the event, Sting brought something new to the table. After receiving his honorary degree, the 66-year-old performed the ballad "My One and Only Love" to liven up the graduation ceremony.
He received cheers and applause from the students.
"I'm optimistic this morning because I've taken part in this joyous celebration of diversity," he said in his commencement address. "The future is yours, and I'm much more optimistic today than I was yesterday, so thank you for that."
Sting's Goal To Protect The Rainforest
Sting, whose real name is Gordon Summer, established the Rainforest Fund with his wife back in 1987. The goal is to help give indigenous communities a legal right to their ancestral lands, the rainforests, and protect the area from mining, illegal logging, and other developments. The foundation already has set up operations in Brazil, Peru, Panama, and Guyana.
"I really worry that my children are going to say, 'what did you do to save the rainforest, dad?'" I have to have a good answer," the musician explained on the organization's website.
Those who want to help could donate $5 to save an acre of rainforest somewhere in the world.
In a new interview, he also reiterated his duty to make the world a better place for his children and grandchildren.
"I'm a 66-year-old man, and a grandfather, with a duty to try and make the world as safe as I can possibly make it for my offspring and community," he told The Scotsman.
Sting opened his musical The Last Ship in the United Kingdom earlier this year and, this month, he is bringing the show in Scotland. He explained that the stage production centers around the dignity that a man gets from his work. The place Sting was born and raised — Wallsend, Northumberland in England, near the shipyards, inspired the story.
The Last Ship will run from June 11-16 at Festival Theatre in Edinburgh and then at the Theatre Royal in Glasgow from June 18-23. The cast includes Richard Fleeshman, Charlie Hardwick, Joe McGann, and Frances McNamee.
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