Her Majesty Queen Noor to Award 7th King Hussein Leadership Prize to Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu and Seeds of Peace

NEW YORK — Her Majesty Queen Noor will chair the King Hussein Foundation International annual Peace-Builders Dinner and ceremony for the 7th King Hussein Leadership Prize on November 2 at the Mandarin Oriental in New York City. The King Hussein Foundation International is pleased to announce that Nobel Peace Prize winner Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu and Seeds of Peace will be the recipients of the 2006 King Hussein Leadership Prize.

“I am deeply honored and humbled to receive this prize that honors one of my heroes, King Hussein. I congratulate Seeds of Peace the other co-winner. God bless you,” said Archbishop Emeritus Tutu.

“Seeds of Peace is enormously grateful for this distinguished award,” said Janet Wallach, President, Seeds of Peace. “We congratulate our fellow recipient, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, and thank all of the trustees for choosing to honor Seeds of Peace.”

Archbishop Emeritus Tutu was chosen for his lifelong mission to build a democratic and just society without racial divisions not only within his South African homeland, but around the world. Archbishop Emeritus Tutu’s determination and commitment to the principles of equal civil rights for all people, his dedication to the ideals of nurturing peace by promoting ethical, visionary, and values-based human development lead the Foundation to honor his work.

Seeds of Peace is an internationally recognized organization for its unique model of long-term engagement with its youth participants, and its empowerment of leaders of the next generation. Since 1993, Seeds of Peace has graduated over 3,000 teenagers and young adults from several regions of conflict and has reached several thousand more in their communities through unique initiatives. Because Seeds of Peace teaches its participants to develop empathy, respect, and confidence, and gain critical leadership, negotiation and conflict resolution skills, they were chosen as a winner of this year’s prize.

The formal evening will feature a dialogue among distinguished voices from the Middle East. The event will highlight the mission and work of the King Hussein Foundation International, established in 1999, a nonprofit, nongovernmental organization, founded to ensure that the international community would benefit from King Hussein’s humanitarian vision and legacy.

The Foundation’s work promotes cross-cultural dialogue and understanding and, building on efforts in Jordan, advances social, economic, and political opportunity in the Arab and Muslim world.

The King Hussein Leadership Prize recognizes individuals, groups, or institutions that demonstrate inspiring and courageous leadership in their efforts to promote sustainable development, human rights, tolerance, equity, and peace. A prize of $50,000 accompanies the award.

Previous prize winners include Muhammad Yunus, recipient of this year’s Noble Peace Prize; Former President of Ireland Mary Robinson, for her efforts as an advocate for human rights; the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), for its more than fifty years of service to millions of Palestinian refugees; Medecins Sans Frontieres, for providing humanitarian and medical assistance to people in distress around the world; the Jordan Hashemite Charity, for its outstanding relief work; The Arab Human Development Report, for its courageous and groundbreaking analysis and reports on the conditions and challenges facing the Arab world today; Dr. Rola Dashti, for her leadership of the women’s suffrage movement in Kuwait; Saliha Djuderija, for her leadership in promoting post conflict reconciliation among the different ethnic groups in Bosnia Herzegovina; and OneVoice, a movement that strives to empower the moderate majority of Israelis and Palestinians to take a more assertive role in resolving the conflict.

Source: King Hussein Foundation

CONTACT: Kate Fralin, +1-202-422-3524, for the King Hussein Foundation

Web site: http://www.kinghusseinprize.com/

NOTE TO EDITORS: The KHFI Award will be presented on Thursday, November 2 at 6:30 PM at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in New York City. Photographic opportunities will be available during the event. To attend, or to find out more about the organization, call 202.833.4999 or visit www.kinghusseinprize.com. Black Tie. Advance Reservations Required. King Hussein Foundation International, P.O. Box 1195, McLean, VA 22101.