UNHCR searching for heroes who help refugees and displaced
Deadline to nominate for the prestigious Nansen Refugee Award is just days away.
Sister Angélique Namaika won the 2013 Nansen Refugee Award for her work in Democratic Republic of the Congo. © UNHCR/Brian Sokol
GENEVA, Switzerland – Zannah Mustapha, Efi Latsoudi, the Hellenic Rescue Team and Aqueela Asifi. These are not household names, but ‘unsung heroes’ who have devoted their lives to supporting people forcibly uprooted from their homes. Their tireless efforts have continued throughout the years, quietly and under the radar, with limited resources. They were driven to continue only by their personal determination to the cause of displacement.
They are the most recent winners of UNHCR’s Nansen Refugee Award. A prestigious humanitarian honor with a US$ 150,000 cash prize donated by the governments of Norway and Switzerland. Each laureate has since invested the funding into projects which enable them to continue their life-saving efforts long into the future.
UNHCR is now searching for another incredible hero.
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Mustapha and the students of Future Prowess Islamic Foundation School before morning assembly. © UNHCR/Rahima Gambo -
Efi Latsoudi (left), joint-winner of the 2016 Nansen Refugee Award. © UNHCR/Caroline Irby -
Volunteers from the Hellenic Rescue Team on the Greek island of Lesvos. © UNHCR/Gordon Welters -
Aqeela Asifi won the 2015 Nansen Refugee Award for her efforts to promote education for refugee children in Pakistan. © UNHCR/Sebastian Rich -
Butterflies, a group of courageous Colombian women, won in 2014. © UNHCR/Elisabet Diaz Sanmartin
Do you know an individual or group making a difference to the lives of refugees, internally displaced and stateless people? Winning the Nansen Refugee Award provides an incredible opportunity to raise the profile of the winner’s work and the humanitarian context they operate in.
Nominations for the 2018 Nansen Refugee Award close at midnight on 8 February. Nominate your hero today: www.unhcr.org/nominate