2017 Aurora Prize finalists Fartuun Adan, Jamila Afghani, Dr. Tom Catena and Dr. Denis Mukwege introduced their work, the causes that motivate them, and discussed the support that they need to deliver tangible change in their communities. The meeting prior to the 2017 Aurora Prize weekend was organized at the American University of Armenia attended by the students and professors of the Armenian universities.
Welcoming the guests and the finalists Armen Der Kiureghian, President of the American University of Armenia, said: “A university is a perfect setting for this purpose. In a sense the audience here which includes hundreds of students of AUA and other universities in Yerevan represents a good number of future humanitarian activists. Surely they will benefit hearing this group of role models.”
“Today we are presenting only five stories but believe me it’s happening all over the world every day and there are many people who put their lives at risk,” in his opening remarks added Ruben Vardanyan, Co-founder of the Aurora Humanitarian Initiative.
Marguerite Barankitse, the inaugural Laureate of the Aurora Prize for Awakening Humanity was invited to stage to talk about the impact of the 2016 Aurora Prize and to salute the 2017 Aurora Prize finalists.
“Aurora Prize completely changed our lives, the life of Burundian refugees. All those young people who returned to universities, all that women who can feed and send their children back to the school they sent me here to thank you,” she said.
The conversation with the finalists was moderated by Donald E. Miller, Leonard K. Firestone Professor of Religion at the University of Southern California. He emphasized the importance of the presentation of their work to the wider audience adding: “These five individuals are all individuals with a deep moral center. They are people of courage, of tenacity, of vision, and of commitment. They express the possibility of hope in a world that sometimes is very dark filled with violence and exploitation. In some ways they might be viewed as moral entrepreneurs.”
2017 Aurora Prize finalists were invited to talk about their work and particularly what they are doing to address women’s rights and issues as humanitarians.
“When we are working with young girls they think “if I got raped I don’t have a future” we tell them “no, you have a future, this is not your fault.” We are providing education, providing place to stay. And it motivates me seeing those girls playing basketball, running around, having tea together,” said Ms. Fartuun Adan who was nominated for the Aurora Prize along with her daughter Ms. Ilwad Elman.
Professor Miller asked the finalists how they get strength to continue their work, what motivates them during hard times.
“The work we do is extremely interesting, it’s never boring. We treat all the types of problems. It’s also exhausting work. You wake up in the morning and you know you are going to see 500 patients that day. The strength comes from God,” said Dr. Tom Catena, 2017 Aurora Prize Laureate.
“If you secure the life of one person it means you have secured the life of all universe. This is what motivates me,” added Ms. Jamila Afghani.
“We have to look deeply at this commandment “to love others as we love ourselves.” We have to look deeply at ourselves as we are doing this in the context of loving God,” concluded Dr. Denis Mukwege.
Students and guests asked the finalists about their views on global humanitarian crisis and seek their pieces of advice on making career in humanitarian area. The finalists also talked about the organizations that they want to support in order to help the situation in their areas.
The conversation with the finalists was summarized by Professor Vartan Gregorian, Co-founder of the Aurora Humanitarian Initiative and the President of the Carnegie Corporation of New York. He said: “I want to salute all the heroes because they remind us how to be decent, how not to reach only the powerful but the ordinary.”
