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WINNERS ANNOUNCED FOR 2023 GLOBAL PLURALISM AWARD

WINNERS ANNOUNCED FOR 2023 GLOBAL PLURALISM AWARD

Three winners have been selected as this year’s recipients receiving $50,000 to continue their work towards pluralism

OTTAWA, CANADA, October 25, 2023 – Independent, charitable organization Global Centre for Pluralism today announced the three winners of the 2023 Global Pluralism Award. 

An independent, international jury of experts selected this year’s three winners and seven honourable mention recipients from among 200 submissions across 60 countries following a rigorous review process. Presented every two years, the Global Pluralism Award celebrates the inspiring and brave work that is helping to build more inclusive societies where diversity is valued and protected.  

Dr. Marwan Muasher, Award Jury Chair and Vice President for Studies at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, said, “The Award winners’ work has enormous value in the world today. Pluralism is not embedded in every society or every country in the world. Those who work for pluralism, those who truly believe that diversity is a source of strength and not weakness, need to be acknowledged and celebrated.” 

Meredith Preston McGhie, Secretary General of the Global Centre for Pluralism said, “I can think of nothing more important than recommitting to the values of pluralism and encouraging leaders everywhere to do the same. The 2023 Global Pluralism Award winners demonstrate how pluralism can be advanced with creativity and courage. I hope they are seen as examples of the leadership that is possible, even when divisions seem insurmountable.” 

Esther Omam said, “This award is a reaffirmation of the value of the concept of ‘Leave no one behind’. That humanity, more than ever before, should always come first. That our diversity is our bond and that, with pluralism, everyone can have a voice. This award symbolizes all that I fight for as a woman, a peacebuilder, and a leader in Cameroon, a country where the acceptance of our diversity and plurality can be a solution to our plight.” 

Eduardo Martinez, Director-General and Legal Representative of Red de Intérpretes y Promotores Interculturales Asociación Civil said, “This award offers an opportunity to highlight the struggles of youth in the South, racialized youth who resist the linguistic and cultural oppression of the State and its justice system. We reinvent ourselves, and we fight, together, from our territories.” 

Oday Karsh, General Director of REFORM said, “Since its inception, REFORM has been dedicated to promoting diversity and embracing differences as a valuable resource for social and cultural diversity, which in turn fosters solidarity amongst the various components of Palestinian society. We actively combat stereotyping and stigmatisation on all fronts. This award is a testament to our commitment on the right path, and we look forward to it being an international achievement for Palestine. It incentivises us to continue our courageous efforts against exclusion, power asymmetry and marginalisation. It will help in amplifying our voices to demand the restoration of democracy in Palestine.” 

The award recipients will be recognized at a ceremony to be held in November in Ottawa, Canada. Each winner will receive $50,000 (CAD) to further their work in support of pluralism.  

2023 Global Pluralism Award Honourable Mentions (alphabetical):  

Build Up(Kenya/United States/Global) works with peacebuilding institutions and a network of peace innovators to tackle polarization and make peacebuilding processes more inclusive of diverse voices and perspectives with a specific focus on digital technologies.  

Deeyah Khan (Norway/United States) is a documentary filmmaker and activist countering extremism and fostering understanding and empathy across ideological, religious and racial divides.  

The Global Interfaith Network for People of All Sexes, Sexual Orientations, Gender Identities and Expressions – GIN-SSOGIE (South Africa/Global) supports LGBTIQ+ people of faith from the Global South and East to advocate for an end to violence and persecution against sexual and gender minorities.  

India Love Project (India) challengesexclusion and prejudice in India by sharing love stories of non-traditional unions between interfaith, inter-caste and LGBTQ+ couples on social media.   

Lea Baroudi (Lebanon) is a peace mediator using art, culture and social enterprise to provide Lebanese youth with the rare opportunity to build a future outside of violent extremism and sectarianism.   

Politize! Civic Education Institute (Brazil) is a non-partisan and non-profit organization tackling polarization in Brazil by producing free and unbiased political education, training civic leaders to solve public policy problems and training teachers to educate youth to become engaged citizens. 

Touché (Belgium) is a social enterprise providing support to current and former prisoners and at-risk youth and, in the process, advancing a positive view of anger and aggression.   

FOR MEDIA INQUIRIES, PLEASE CONTACT:

Calina Ellwand

Senior Manager, Communications and Public Affairs, Global Centre for Pluralism

+1-613-688-0137

[email protected]

TEN FINALISTS CHOSEN FOR 2023 GLOBAL PLURALISM AWARD

TEN FINALISTS CHOSEN FOR 2023 GLOBAL PLURALISM AWARD

Global Centre for Pluralism recognizes outstanding global efforts contributing to more inclusive societies

OTTAWA, CANADA, Sept. 13, 2023 – Responding to the urgent need to support positive responses to diversity, the Global Centre for Pluralism today announced 10 finalists for the 2023 Global Pluralism Award. Presented every two years, the Award celebrates the inspiring and brave work that is helping to build more inclusive societies where diversity is valued and protected.   

“The creativity, courage and commitment shown by this year’s finalists is so important at this moment,” said Meredith Preston McGhie, Secretary General of the Global Centre for Pluralism. “At a time of increasing polarization globally, it is critical to magnify the impacts of pluralism leaders who are creating more inclusive and peaceful societies where diversity is valued. I hope these examples spur us all to follow their example and take action.”  

According to jury chair Dr. Marwan Muasher of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and a former foreign minister and deputy prime minister of Jordan: “The Award finalists have made outstanding contributions to fostering pluralism in some of the world’s most challenging contexts. They are strengthening their communities by helping to build a foundation of mutual respect, cooperation and shared purpose.”  

Nominees for the Award undergo rigorous review and finalists are selected by an independent, international jury of experts. This year’s finalists—chosen from among 200 submissions from 60 countries—are working to strengthen pluralism in their societies across a wide range of disciplines, from peacebuilding to translation, social enterprise, sport therapy, storytelling, technology, and beyond. While many are having a global impact, the 2023 finalists are based out of Belgium, Brazil, Cameroon, India, Kenya, Lebanon, Mexico, Palestine, South Africa and the United States. 

From among these 10 finalists, three winners and seven honourable mention recipients will be announced in October and recognized at a ceremony to be held in November in Ottawa, Canada. Each winner will receive a prize of $50,000 (CAD) to further their work in support of pluralism.  

Meet the 2023 Global Pluralism Award finalists (alphabetical):  

Build Up(Kenya/United States/Global) works with peacebuilding institutions and a network of peace innovators to tackle polarization and make peacebuilding processes more inclusive of diverse voices and perspectives with a specific focus on digital technologies.  

Deeyah Khan (Norway/United States) is a documentary filmmaker and activist countering extremism and fostering understanding and empathy across ideological, religious and racial divides.  

Esther Omam (Cameroon) is a peacebuilder, mediator and human rights defender mobilizing women and youth from across Cameroon to advocate for an end to conflict and hostilities.   

The Global Interfaith Network for People of All Sexes, Sexual Orientations, Gender Identities and Expressions – GIN-SSOGIE (South Africa/Global) supports LGBTIQ+ people of faith from the Global South and East to advocate for an end to violence and persecution against sexual and gender minorities.  

India Love Project (India) challengesexclusion and prejudice in India by sharing love stories of non-traditional unions between interfaith, inter-caste and LGBTQ+ couples on social media.   

Lea Baroudi (Lebanon) is a peace mediator using art, culture and social enterprise to provide Lebanese youth with the rare opportunity to build a future outside of violent extremism and sectarianism.   

Politize! Civic Education Institute (Brazil) is a non-partisan and non-profit organization tackling polarization in Brazil by producing free and unbiased political education, training civic leaders to solve public policy problems and training teachers to educate youth to become engaged citizens. 

Red de Intérpretes y Promotores Interculturales Asociación Civil (Mexico) is an Indigenous youth collective in Oaxaca, Mexico tackling exclusion by providing otherwise unavailable Indigenous language interpretation to those involved in legal proceedings.   

REFORM: The Palestinian Association for Empowerment and Local Development (Palestine) is a non-governmental organization building solidarity between groups in Palestine by empowering them to get involved in social life and influence decision-making.   

Touché (Belgium) is a social enterprise providing support to current and former prisoners and at-risk youth and, in the process, advancing a positive view of anger and aggression.   

FOR MEDIA INQUIRIES, PLEASE CONTACT:

Calina Ellwand

Senior Manager, Communications and Public Affairs, Global Centre for Pluralism

+1-613-688-0137

[email protected]

Global Centre for Pluralism announces the 2021 Global Pluralism Award Winners

Global Centre for Pluralism announces 2021 Global Pluralism Award Winners

Hand in Hand: Center for Jewish-Arab Education in Israel (Israel), Namati Kenya (Kenya) and Puja Kapai (Hong Kong) awarded for outstanding achievements in promoting inclusion worldwide

February 23, 2021, Ottawa, Canada – Today, the Global Centre for Pluralism announced three winners of the 2021 Global Pluralism Award, listed alphabetically: Hand in Hand: Center for Jewish-Arab Education in Israel – a network of bilingual and integrated schools that foster a community of inclusion, cooperation and respect among Jewish and Arab students; Namati Kenya – an organization advancing citizenship rights and access to justice for Kenya’s minority communities; and Puja Kapai (Hong Kong) – a lawyer, professor and social justice advocate challenging gendered and racialized cultural norms to promote equal rights for Hong Kong’s ethnic minorities.

“Hand in Hand is deeply moved and honoured to be selected as a Global Pluralism Award winner and for this recognition of our work promoting pluralism, equality, and shared society in Israel,” said CEO Hand in Hand, Dani Elazar. “Now, more than ever, the time is ripe to advance initiatives which foster equality and combat the deep-seated divisions within Israel’s education system and Israeli society at large.”

“Access to identification documents is the opener to inclusion – whether in economic, social, or political domains,” said Mustafa Mahmoud, Senior Program Manager for Namati Kenya’s Citizenship Justice program. “Receiving the Global Pluralism Award is an honour, to be recognized for our work supporting diverse minority communities in Kenya to overcome discrimination in securing their own ID cards and to push for equal access to identification for all.”

“I am most humbled to receive the Global Pluralism Award. By honouring my work in advancing social justice in relation to race, gender and minority rights, the Award renders visible the lived realities of all those who are routinely marginalised and experience systemic exclusion and discrimination in nearly every sphere of life. The Award also signals the responsibilities we each carry to begin the journey of inclusion, acceptance and pluralism at home,” said Puja Kapai, Associate Professor of Law at the University of Hong Kong.

The Global Pluralism Award celebrates pluralism in action. As a result of their sustained achievements to promote respect across differences, the Award winners and seven honourable mention recipients are helping to build more inclusive societies, in which human diversity is valued and thrives.

The Global Centre for Pluralism received 500 nominations spanning 70 countries for the 2021 Global Pluralism Award. This year’s winners underwent a rigorous review process by an independent, international jury of experts from various disciplines related to pluralism and have made extraordinary strides to advance pluralism through education, legal empowerment and minority rights. The Global Centre for Pluralism, founded by His Highness the Aga Khan and the Government of Canada, recognized the three winners and seven honourable mentions at a virtual award ceremony today. The winners were each granted $50,000 and in-kind support to further their work in promoting more inclusive, just societies.

“We live in times of great division and inequity.  We need to push back against these trends.  The 2021 Awardees offer us tangible and innovative examples of pluralism in action.  They demonstrate courage and creativity in the face of extraordinary challenges and in times of conflict and crisis.  Their stories have the capacity to inspire us to take action towards pluralism in our own spaces.  The Centre is deeply honoured to be supporting their work.” said Meredith Preston McGhie, Secretary General of the Global Centre for Pluralism.  

“The jury is delighted to be recognizing the 2021 Global Pluralism Award winners, selected from amongst hundreds of submissions. They are examples of what contagious change can be inspired by the creative and human instinct of pluralism, of acting together rather than apart,” said the Right Honourable Joe Clark, former Prime Minister of Canada and Chair of the Award Jury.

Past winners include Deborah Ahenkorah (2019) – a children’s book publisher from Ghana championing the importance of African literature for children; Leyner Palacios Asprilla (2017) – founder of the Committee for the Rights of Bojayá Victims, which represents 11,000 victims from the Colombian conflict; and Daniel Webb (2017) – Director of Legal Advocacy, Human Rights Law Centre, who combines legal action, medica advocacy, public campaigns and United Nations engagement to tackle the offshore detention issue in Australia.

About the 2021 Global Pluralism Award Winners:

  • Hand in Hand: Center for Jewish-Arab Education in Israel (Israel) is a network of integrated, bilingual and multicultural schools equipping a new generation to live together in cooperation and respect.  In these schools, Hebrew and Arabic languages have equal status, as do both cultures and national narratives. With over 2,000 students and supported by a community of active citizens who come together in solidarity and dialogue, Hand in Hand is working to build a shared, inclusive society.
  • Namati Kenya (Kenya) uses legal empowerment to aid historically excluded communities who lack national identification documents needed to access even the most basic services.  Since 2013, Namati Kenya has supported more than 12,000 Kenyans in efforts to obtain these legal identity documents. Through a network of community paralegals, the organization builds legal awareness, aiming to empower communities to overcome discrimination and cultivate inclusivity and belonging.

  • Ms. Puja Kapai (Hong Kong) is an academic, lawyer and social justice advocate who challenges gendered and racialized cultural norms and champions equal rights for Hong Kong’s ethnic minorities. Through an intersectional approach that combines research, advocacy and grassroots mobilization, Ms. Kapai has garnered unprecedented attention to the status of ethnic minorities in Hong Kong, contributing to the abolishment of racially segregated schools for ethnic minority children.

About the 2021 Global Pluralism Award Honourable Mentions:

  • All Out (Global) is a global LGBT+ movement committed to creating a world where nobody must sacrifice their family, freedom, safety or dignity because of who they are or who they love. Their work contributes to pluralism and the respect for diversity by building positive narratives about LGBT+ lives around the world, changing hearts and minds among potential allies and ultimately contributing to better lived experiences for LGBT+ communities.
  • ArtLords (Afghanistan) combines street art and activism to facilitate social transformation and trauma healing. Founded in Afghanistan, ArtLords’ collective of ‘artivists’ have painted over 2,000 murals across the country’s bomb-blast walls, spreading messages of peace, justice and tolerance. ArtLords is also pivoting their work to new global contexts, including Afghan refugee communities, with a vision to one day hold exhibitions around the world.
  • Ms. Carolina Contreras (Dominican Republic) is a social entrepreneur who empowers Afro-Latinxs by redefining beauty standards through Miss Rizos(in English, “Miss Curls”), a global movement that seeks to normalize and celebrate natural hair. With natural hair salons and youth empowerment initiatives in Santo Domingo and New York City, Ms. Contreras is empowering thousands of women and girls to celebrate diversity, challenge stereotypes and rewrite a deeply embedded colonial narrative about what it means to be beautiful.
  • Community Building Mitrovica (Kosovo) is a grassroots organization that creates safe spaces for dialogue and relationship-building across ethnic lines in northern Kosovo. Working in Mitrovica, a city known for its ethnic diversity and ethnic divides, the organization connects Serbian and Albanian communities that have been separated by war and mistrust. By gathering citizens around issues of peacebuilding, human rights and economic development, Community Building Mitrovica builds links of trust and contributes to advancing a pluralist society.
  • Mr. Lenin Raghuvanshi (India) is a human rights defender working to advance the rights of India’s most marginalized communities. He is co-founder of the People’s Vigilance Committee on Human Rights, an inclusive social movement that challenges the patriarchy and the caste system. Mr. Raghuvanshi works at the village level across 5 states in northern India to strengthen local institutions, promote human rights and to build connections across the society.
  • Ms. Rose LeMay (Canada) is an educator from the Taku River Tlingit First Nation and the CEO and founder of Indigenous Reconciliation Group. Through her organization, Ms. LeMay works to change the mindsets of non-Indigenous Canadians, encouraging them to take the first steps towards reconciliation. Ms. LeMay has spent her career advocating for Indigenous inclusion and has educated and coached thousands of Canadians on cultural competence and anti-racism.
  • Mr. Trésor Nzengu Mpauni (Malawi), also known as Menes la Plume, is a Congolese hip-hop artist and slam poet living in Dzaleka Refugee Camp, who uses his talents to raise awareness on issues surrounding refugees. Mr. Mpauni is the founder of Tumaini Festival, the only international arts and music festival based at a refugee camp, promoting intercultural harmony and greater understanding of the refugee experience. Since 2014, he has attracted hundreds of performers and thousands of attendees from around the world to what is today one of Malawi’s premier festivals.

FOR MEDIA INQUIRIES, PLEASE CONTACT:

Tanja Maleska, Manager, Communications and Public Affairs, Global Centre for Pluralism [email protected]
+1-343-996-7296

Global Pluralism Award Now Inviting Submissions From Worldwide Leaders of Inclusion and Respect for Diversity

Global Pluralism Award Now Inviting Submissions From Worldwide Leaders of Inclusion and Respect for Diversity

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                                              

Ottawa, Canada, March 6, 2018 – The Global Centre for Pluralism has launched a worldwide call for submissions to the Global Pluralism Award from individuals and organizations that champion respect for diversity. Through their remarkable achievements, Award winners are contributing in innovative and high-impact ways to building societies where diversity is respected and valued. Individuals, businesses, academics, civil society and government bodies from around the world are eligible for the Award. Submissions can be made at award.pluralism.ca until April 30, 2018.

Three Award winners will be selected by an independent, international Jury chaired by the Rt. Hon. Joe Clark, former Prime Minister of Canada. Each recipient will receive $50,000 CAD to further their work. Additional in-kind assistance may be provided, including engagements in each recipient’s country to raise the profile of their achievements. The Award will be presented in 2019 at the international headquarters of the Global Centre for Pluralism in Ottawa, Canada.

“The Award celebrates the often challenging and overlooked work of those tackling problems of exclusion in societies around the world. These inspiring leaders are seeking to change the negative mindsets and narratives that often shape responses to diversity. Their impressive work treats differences as assets rather than liabilities and directly the supports the Global Centre for Pluralism’s vision of a world where differences are valued and diverse societies thrive,” said John McNee, Secretary General of the Global Centre for Pluralism.

In its first edition, the Global Pluralism Award received over 200 submissions from 43 countries. The finalists came from sectors ranging from human rights law to conflict mediation to indigenous rights to technology. By engaging with a wide range of professionals and fields of practice, the Award affirms that the promotion of pluralism is not the sole responsibility of governments or non-profits, but of society as a whole.

The Global Pluralism Award is an initiative of the Global Centre for Pluralism. Founded in Ottawa by His Highness the Aga Khan in partnership with the Government of Canada, the Centre was created to understand the dynamics of pluralism and to advance positive responses to the challenge of living peacefully and productively together in diverse societies.

Nominations and applications for the Award are being accepted at award.pluralism.ca until April 30, 2018.

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MEDIA CONTACT:
Calina Ellwand
Global Centre for Pluralism
[email protected]
+1-613-688-0137

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