Award 2009

The Prize: The “Peace Summit Award 2009″, is a bronze sculpture created by the artist Massimo Liberti especially for this occasion.

This bronze sculpture represents the crossroads that humanity has to face. A human being covering his face from the burning sun that blinds the sight, or the explosion of a bomb searing the skin.

Only those who are still taking charge of protecting and granting a future to new generations can take action, being aware that drastic change is needed. On the other hand a shield made of a leaf, offering a breath to a world in poor health, giving shadow for the rebirth of a flower, the flower of Hope and Maternity.

A leaf that is also the sail of an “Ark” that is carrying in unstable balance the precious things that humanity can still rejoice with, love, diversity and life.

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WASHINGTON, DC (Nov. 9, 2009) – International music legend Annie Lennox will be presented with the Woman of Peace Award by former Soviet President and 1990 Nobel Peace Laureate Mikhail Gorbachev at the 10^th World Summit of Nobel Peace Laureates meeting in Berlin Nov.10 and 11.

Lennox was chosen by 22 Nobel Peace Laureates for her work in raising awareness of the HIV/AIDS impact on women and children, especially in South Africa, through her SING campaign that enlisted 23 of the world’s most acclaimed female vocalists in recording “Sing,” written by Lennox.

Lennox started the SING campaign after visiting South Africa to perform in the inaugural concert of Nelson Mandela’s 46664 HIV campaign. During that trip, she witnessed the lack of resources available to help the world’s largest population living with the devastating disease. Since 2003, SING has raised $2 million and through its partnership with the Treatment Action Campaign (TAC), has helped to provide South Africans with treatment and testing, HIV education, and prevention programs. For more information, please, visit www.annielennoxsing.com.

The Oct. 26^th issue of Holyrood, Scotland’s leading current affairs magazine, said of its native daughter, “There is something incredibly human about Lennox…She undoubtedly has a huge capacity for compassion.”

Each year, the Nobel Peace Laureates honor a distinguished figure in the entertainment and arts community for their efforts in defending human rights and promoting world peace and solidarity. Recent Peace Summit Award winners include U2’s Bono, actors Don Cheadle and George Clooney, and Genesis frontman Peter Gabriel.

On the occasion of the 20^th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, the Nobel Peace Laureates Summit will focus global attention on breaking down walls that divide humanity and building bridges of understanding, much as the Berlin Wall divided the East and West until its fall 20 years ago.

About

The Permanent Secretariat of Nobel Peace Laureates Summits derives from a new and more broadly based collaboration between the International Gorbachev Foundation and the City of Rome for realizing the World Summits of Nobel Peace Laureates. The Permanent Secretariat, based in Rome, is a non-profit association without political aims.
As well as organizing the tasks of the Summit, the Secretariat monitors the activities of Nobel Peace Laureates, while promoting the adoption of the "Charter for a world without violence" and supporting the work of the Nobel, who participate in the annual Summits at Rome, as mediators in various conflicts around the world (Article 3 of the Statute).