Gene Sharp Reaction to Right Livelihood Award
The Albert Einstein Institution is pleased to announce that Senior Scholar Gene Sharp has won the Right Livelihood Award “for developing and articulating the core principles and strategies of nonviolent resistance and supporting their practical implementation in conflict areas around the world”.
The award will be presented in a ceremony at the Swedish Parliament on December 7, 2012 and carries a prize of $64,000 to continue the work of the Albert Einstein Institution.
Gene Sharp said:
“I have tried to explore why violence and oppression are so prevalent, how they can be controlled and diminished, and how an alternative type of realistic power can be applied in order to liberate oppressed people.”
“It is a great honor for me to receive the Right Livelihood Award. This important award is another indication of the growing recognition that people can wield great power in the nonviolent assertion of their rights.”
The award
The Right Livelihood Award was established in 1980 to recognize individuals and organizations “offering practical and exemplary answers to the most urgent challenges facing us today”. Awards are presented in fields such as environmental protection, human rights, sustainable development, health and education. Gene Sharp is honored to share this year’s award with Hayrettin Karaca of Turkey, Sima Samar of Afghanistan and The Campaign Against Arms Trade in the UK.
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