Chulpan Khamatova, the co-founder of Gift of Life Foundation has joined the Independent Expert Panel of the Aurora Prize for Awakening Humanity. The famous Russian actress, who has been involved in humanitarian activities for years, will take part in the assessment of the 2017 Aurora Prize nominations.
The Independent Expert Panel is part of the Aurora Prize Secretariat. The members of the Expert Panel assess all eligible nominations in accordance with the Aurora Prize Selection Criteria to narrow the overall list to 20-25 nominees for the Selection Committee’s attention.
“It is horrendous to read about the suffering of people who, even in this age, live on the line between life and death but it is also heartwarming for me to learn about these modern day heroes. Their existence, brave and committed actions prove that nothing is lost and human life still has an absolute value”, said Chulpan Khamatova. “I am extremely honored having an opportunity to become part of this humanitarian movement and contribute to the process of pre-selection of the 2017 Aurora Prize’s laureate. This is a very important and challenging experience.”
The Expert Panel is comprised of humanitarian professionals and leaders of humanitarian organizations. The members of the 2017 Aurora Prize Expert Panel are Dr. Comfort Ero, Crisis Group’s Nairobi-based Africa Program Director, Dr. Jonathan Fanton, President of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, Mr. Stephen Kurkjian, journalist, winner of the Pulitzer Prize, Ms. Lesley-Anne Knight, Mr. Pedro Mouratian, Expert-Consultant to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Former CEO of The Elders, Dr. Aryeh Neier, President Emeritus of the Open Society Foundations, Prof. Michael Posner, Co-Director of the Center for Business and Human Rights of New York University Stern School of Business, Ms. Nicola Reindorp, Campaign Director of Crisis Action, Mr. Eric Schwartz, Former US Assistant Secretary of State for Population, Refugees, and Migration and Dr. Mego Terzian, President of Medecins Sans Frontieres France.
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The pre-selected nominees of the Aurora Prize are being considered by the Selection Committee chaired by Academy Award-winning actor and humanitarian George Clooney. The Selection Committee will announce the 2017 Aurora Prize finalists in February.
About the Aurora Prize for Awakening Humanity
On behalf of the survivors of the Armenian Genocide and in gratitude to their saviors, an Aurora Prize Laureate will be honored each year with a US$100,000 grant as well as the unique opportunity to continue the cycle of giving by nominating organizations that inspired their work for a US$1,000,000 award. Recipients will be recognized for the exceptional impact of their actions on preserving human life and advancing humanitarian causes.
About the Aurora Humanitarian InitiativeThe Aurora Humanitarian Initiative is committed to building a broad, global humanitarian movement. The initiative is rooted in inspiring stories of courage and survival that emerged during the Armenian Genocide, when 1.5 million Armenians perished. Those fortunate few who survived were saved by the courageous and heroic acts of institutions and individuals who intervened, at great risk. A century later, the Aurora Humanitarian Initiative seeks to express gratitude, share remarkable stories of survivors and their saviors, and celebrate the strength of the human spirit.
The Aurora Humanitarian Initiative creates and supports projects designed to raise public awareness and address some of the world’s most pressing humanitarian issues. These projects include the Aurora Prize for Awakening Humanity, the Aurora Dialogues, the Aurora Humanitarian Index, the Gratitude Projects and the 100 LIVES Initiative. The Aurora Humanitarian Initiative is an enterprise of the IDeA Foundation (Initiatives for Development of Armenia).
Further information is available at www.auroraprize.com