Friday, October 03, 2008

Amy Goodman of Democracy Now! wins Right Livelihood Award, also dubbed the Alternative Nobel (Sweden)


From Democracy Now!:

Democracy Now! host Amy Goodman has become the first journalist to receive the Right Livelihood Award, established to honor those “offering practical and exemplary answers to the most urgent challenges facing us today." The annual prize, also known as the Alternative Nobel, will be awarded in the Swedish parliament in December. The other winners were Indian activists Krishnammal and Sankaralingam Jagannathan, women’s rights advocate Asha Hagi of Somalia, and sexual violence victims’ advocate Monika Hauser of Germany.
About the award:
The Right Livelihood Award was established in 1980 to honour and support those "offering practical and exemplary answers to the most urgent challenges facing us today".

It has become widely known as the 'Alternative Nobel Prize' and there are now 133 Laureates from 57 countries.

Presented annually in Stockholm at a ceremony in the Swedish Parliament, the Right Livelihood Award is usually shared by four Recipients.

[...]

The Right Livelihood Award is widely recognized as the world's premier award for personal courage and social transformation. Besides the financial support, it enables its Recipients to reach out to an international audience that otherwise might not have heard of them. Often, the Award also gives crucial protection against repression. For the Laureates, the Award has opened many doors, including prison doors.

Unlike the Nobel Prizes (for Physics, Physiology/Medicine, Chemistry, Literature, and Peace), the Right Livelihood Award has no categories. It recognises that, in striving to meet the human challenges of today's world, the most inspiring and remarkable work often defies any standard classification. For example, people who start out with an environmental goal frequently find themselves drawn into issues of health, human rights and/or social justice. Their work becomes a holistic response to community needs, so that sectoral categories lose their meaning.

LINKS
- Democracy Now!: Amy Goodman wins Alternative Nobel
- Right Livelihood Award: For Outstanding Vision and work on behalf of our planet and its people

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