Whatever he carried on the inside after more than 25 years in prison, Nelson Mandela reentered society focusing on the milieu, or surrounding culture, of South Africans and not the prison milieu he had left behind.
A milieu is both "surroundings" and everything that makes up the surroundings. Your milieu is your world, or the context you come from. Sometimes a milieu shapes a person, as when a "milieu of abuse and poverty," inspires someone to improve things for others. Milieu sounds a lot like "mildew" without the "d," but unless you grew up in a moldy bathtub, mildew probably has little to do with your milieu, or environment.
