From the 10 nominees, three winners will be announced in the autumn and honoured at a ceremony in Ottawa on 20 November this year.
“At a time of heightened hatred and escalating tensions in communities around the globe, these winners embody the best of humanity,” said the Right Honourable Joe Clark, former Prime Minister of Canada and Jury Chair. “The emphasis on pluralism is much more important now than ever. In only a few years, we have moved from a time in which there was, at least, a general acceptance of difference, to a time where there is fear about it, and very often a contesting of it.”
The 2019 finalists — from Canada, the United States, Lebanon, Hungary, Ghana, France, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Myanmar and several countries of the former Yugoslavia — are making vital contributions to pluralism, mainly through peacebuilding, the arts, education, social cohesion and integration of refugees and migrants.
This year, the Global Centre for Pluralism received over 500 applications spanning 74 countries for the 2019 Global Pluralism Awards — more than double the submissions to the inaugural awards in 2017. All nominees undergo a rigorous review and jury selection process. The field of finalists will be narrowed down to three winners, to be announced in the autumn, following in-country visits and consultations with key partners on the ground. These three winners will each be granted a monetary prize to advance their work in promoting pluralism.
More information on each of the nominees, can be found on the AKDN website.
