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Hans Herren wins Right Livelihood Award

http://www.rightlivelihood.org/herren.html

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Credit: Peter Lüthi

Hans Herren / Biovision Foundation (Switzerland)

“for his expertise and pioneering work in promoting a safe, secure and sustainable global food supply”.

The Swiss agronomist/entomologist Dr Hans R. Herren is one of the world’s leading experts on biological pest control and sustainable agriculture. When a new pest threatened the cassava root in Africa, he designed and implemented a successful biological control programme that has been credited with saving millions of lives. Later, Herren was the co-chair of the International Assessment of Agricultural Knowledge, Science and Technology for Development (IAASTD), endorsed by 59 countries. Today, Herren is helping farmers in Africa to combat hunger, poverty and disease through ecologically sound agriculture with his Swiss-based Biovision Foundation. With his theoretical and practical work, Herren has proven that an agriculture anchored in agro-ecological principles can nourish a world with a growing population and changing needs.

The 2010 Right Livelihood Awards, winners this year include Nnimo Bassey

The 2010 Right Livelihood Awards

The 2010 Right Livelihood Awards: True change starts at the grassroots level!

Jakob von Uexkull, Founder and Co-Chair of the Right Livelihood Awards, noted after the jury decision:

“True change starts at the grassroots level: physicians who did not wait for politicians before acting to end unnecessary suffering in the Middle East; villagers who work themselves out of poverty; and environmental movements which unite the victims of ecological devastation. Combine this work on the ground with targeted advocacy, for example for the constitutional rights of indigenous people, and you understand why this year’s Right Livelihood Award Laureates yet again offer role models, whose work and commitment can be replicated throughout the world.”

The 2010 Right Livelihood Awards go to four recipients who will share the € 200.000 cash award:

Bassey surrounded by journalists during climate talks in Copenhagen, Dec 2009

Nnimmo Bassey (Nigeria) receives an Award “for revealing the full ecological and human horrors of oil production and for his inspired work to strengthen the environmental movement in Nigeria and globally”.

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Kräutler (middle) marching against Belo Monte dam

Bishop Erwin Kräutler (Brazil) is honored “for a lifetime of work for the human and environmental rights of indigenous peoples and for his tireless efforts to save the Amazon forest from destruction”.

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Upadhyay (left) discussing with irrigation user group in Makwanpur

Shrikrishna Upadhyay and the organisation SAPPROS (Nepal) are recognised “for demonstrating over many years the power of community mobilization to address the multiple causes of poverty even when threatened by political violence and instability”.

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Dr. Hassan Matani operating on a Palestinian villager in a class room, Burin village, Nablus district
Picture: Muchamad Abu Ali

The organisation Physicians For Human Rights-Israel (Israel) is awarded “for their indomitable spirit in working for the right to health for all people in Israel and Palestine”.

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http://www.rightlivelihood.org/2007_10_02.html

2007 Right Livelihood Awards highlight solutions to global challenges

The 2007 Right Livelihood Award of SEK 2 million is shared between four Recipients, who show that there exist practical solutions to pressing global challenges:

Christopher Weeramantry (Sri Lanka) is a world-renowned legal scholar, best known for his landmark International Court opinion on the threat and use of nuclear weapons. The jury honours “his lifetime of groundbreaking work to strengthen and expand the rule of international law”.

Dekha Ibrahim Abdi (Kenya) has engaged in effective peace work and conflict resolution in many of the world’s most divided countries. The Jury commends her “for showing in diverse ethnic and cultural situations how religious and other differences can be reconciled, even after violent conflict, and knitted together through a cooperative process that leads to peace and development”.

Percy and Louise Schmeiser (Canada) have given the world a wake-up call about the dangers to farmers and biodiversity everywhere from the growing dominance and market aggression of companies engaged in the genetic engineering of crops. The Jury honours the Schmeisers “for their courage in defending biodiversity and farmers’ rights, and challenging the environmental and moral perversity of current interpretations of patent laws”.

The company Grameen Shakti (Bangladesh) has shown that solar energy applications can be scaled up massively and rapidly to provide an affordable and climate-friendly energy option for the rural poor. The Jury commends Grameen Shakti “for bringing sustainable light and power to thousands of Bangladeshi villages, promoting health, education and productivity”.

Quote Jakob von Uexkull: “The 2007 Right Livelihood Award Recipients highlight existing solutions for today’s world: Dekha Ibrahim Abdi and Christopher Weeramantry demonstrate how war and terror can be overcome by peace-building and the rule of international law. The Schmeisers and Grameen Shakti show us how to protect two essential services of our global ecosystem: our agricultural resources and our global climate.”

Background:

The Right Livelihood Award Foundation is a Swedish charitable foundation that has so far presented Awards to 123 Recipients from 56 countries. The presentation takes place in the Swedish Parliament, with the support of Members of Parliament from all political parties.

The Awards were founded in 1980 by Jakob von Uexkull “to honour and support those offering practical and exemplary answers to the most urgent challenges facing us today”. Since then, the Award has been supported by individual donors. The total prize money is SEK 2 million (USD 310,000/EUR 220,000).

The Right Livelihood Awards are often referred to as “Alternative Nobel Prizes”.