No big names, but big deeds: activists and organizations from the West Bank, Mozambique, Great Britain and the Philippines will be honored with the Alternative Nobel Prize this year.
Palestinian human rights activist Issa Amro, along with the activist group he founded, Youth Against Settlements, is one of this year’s recipients of the Right Livelihood Award, known as the Alternative Nobel Prize. Also receiving the prize are indigenous activist Joan Carling from the Philippines, environmental activist Anabela Lemos and her organization Justica Ambiental from Mozambique, and the British research project Forensic Architecture. This was announced by the director of the Right Livelihood Foundation, Ole von Uexküll, in Stockholm.
The 2024 laureates demonstrated the power of nonviolent resistance and truth-telling, putting decision-making in the hands of local communities, praised von Uexküll. “In the face of violence, exploitation and oppression in the world, this year’s honorees show paths towards a just, peaceful and sustainable future. Their commitment should inspire us all to be braver.”
The Right Livelihood Award, which has been awarded since 1980, has nothing to do with the actual Nobel Prizes, whose winners will be announced in Stockholm and Oslo from Monday. The award often goes to personalities and organizations who are committed to a better world far away from the global spotlight. Last year, the European aid organization SOS Méditerranée, the women’s rights activist Eunice Brookman-Amissah from Ghana, the Kenyan environmentalist Phyllis Omido and the Cambodian environmental activist group Mother Nature Cambodia were awarded the prize.