DR DANIEL MAMER grew up in South Sudan in the 1950s amid the oppressive regime of the north in Khartoum. His subsequent education took him from bush and missionary schools all the way to post-graduate theses in universities in America and France. He gained a PhD at the University of Juba and went on to pursue an academic career until, in December 1994, he was forced to flee his homeland due to the overwhelming political oppression and human rights violations against him and many others from South Sudan. In the more than 20 years since then he has worked continuously as a consultant for many NGO, international and United Nations projects improving the livelihood of his fellow South Sudanese. He is happily married with five children and numerous grandchildren.