Celebrating Partnership Honoring Leadership
The 2010 Fairness Award Honoree Ela Bhatt, the Founder of the Self Employed Women's Association.
Honorees
2012 Grasstops Honoree: President Joyce Banda
Her Excellency, Mrs. Joyce Banda, was sworn in as President of the Republic of Malawi on 7th April, 2012. She was born on 12th April, 1950 in Malemia Village, Traditional Authority Malemia in Zomba. She was first elected Member of Parliament in 2004 under the United Democratic Front (UDF). She served as Minister of Gender, Child Welfare and Community Services (2004-2006) and Minister of Foreign Affairs (2006-2009); and in 2009 she was elected Vice President of the Republic of Malawi. In 2011 she formed the People’s Party (PP) following her expulsion from the then ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP). H.E. Mrs. Banda has strong passion for women, children and the under-privileged. In this regard, she has been involved in development and humanitarian work. The first Malawi female President has been a panellist and motivation speaker at a number of international conferences and fora and involved with numerous missions, organizations, and organizations throughout the world.
2012 Grassroots Honoree: Ms. Lucy Kanu
Ms. Lucy Kanu is a Nigerian social entrepreneur and innovator who has helped build innovative private-public partnerships to serve Nigeria’s underserved and under-represented communities. Ms. Kanu has led a process of economic empowerment that prioritizes local aspirations, introduces outside resources, and builds scalability across sub-Saharan Africa. The success of her organization, Idea Builders, and her model to transition local priorities into powerful engines for development has created a shift that favors local ownership and strategies, and builds on best practices to ensure success. Through Idea Builders, Ms. Kanu has worked with disadvantaged women and youth to provide sustainable livelihood programs that foster entrepreneurial spirit in the SME and agricultural space. Read more...
Presenters
2012 Grasstops Honoree Presenter: The Honorable Jeanne Shaheen
The only woman in U.S. history to be elected both a Governor and a United States Senator, Jeanne Shaheen has been committed to serving the citizens of New Hampshire for decades and is known for her common-sense leadership, hard work and dedication to improving the lives of the middle class. She has served in the United States Senate since 2009 and is a member of the Senate Committees on Armed Services, Foreign Relations, Energy and Natural Resources, and Small Business and Entrepreneurship. As New Hampshire’s Governor, Shaheen helped create nearly 67,000 new jobs while keeping New Hampshire’s tax burden the lowest in the country. Between her time as Governor and election to the U.S. Senate, Shaheen served as the Director of Harvard University’s Institute of Politics at the Kennedy School of Government. Shaheen was born in Saint Charles, Missouri. She and her husband, Bill, live in Madbury and have three daughters, Stefany, Stacey and Molly, and seven grandchildren.
Special Guests
2012 Masters of Ceremony: Mr. Jim Vance
Jim Vance anchors News4 at 6 and News4 at 11 with Doreen Gentzler. Vance has been part of the News4 team since 1969. He started as a General Assignment reporter then moved to the anchor desk in 1972. Vance began his reporting career with The Philadelphia Independent newspaper and radio station WHAT-AM, all while teaching in the Philadelphia public school system. In 2007, the National Association of Black Journalists inducted Vance into its Hall of Fame. Other honors include 17 Emmy Awards, induction into the Journalists Hall of Fame and membership in the Silver Circle of the Washington Chapter of the National Association of Television Arts and Sciences. He also holds the Ted Yates Award for outstanding community service and has been honored as a "Washingtonian of the Year." A native of Ardmore, Pa., Vance holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Secondary Education from Cheyney University in Cheyney, Pa.
Honorees
2012 Grasstops Honoree: Ambassador Melanne Verveer
Melanne Verveer is the U.S. Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women’s Issues and was appointed to this newly created role by President Barack Obama in 2009. The President’s decision to create a position of Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women’s Issues is unprecedented, and reflects the elevated importance of these issues to the President and his entire Administration. In her capacity as director of the Department of State’s new office on Global Women’s Issues, Ambassador Verveer coordinates foreign policy issues and activities relating to the political, economic and social advancement of women around the world. She mobilizes concrete support for women’s rights and political and economic empowerment through initiatives and programs designed to increase women’s and girls’ access to education and health care, to combat violence against women and girls in all its forms, and to ensure that women's rights are fully integrated with human rights in the development of U.S. foreign policy. Read more...
Presenters
2012 Grassroots Honoree Presenter: The Honorable John D. Podesta
John Podesta is Chair and Founder of the Center for American Progress and the Center for American Progress Action Fund. Prior to founding the Center in 2003, Podesta served as White House chief of staff to President William J. Clinton. Most recently, Podesta served as co-chair of President Obama’s transition, where he coordinated the priorities of the incoming administration’s agenda, oversaw the development of its policies, and spearheaded its appointments of major cabinet secretaries and political appointees. Additionally, Podesta has held numerous positions on Capitol Hill, including counselor to Democratic Leader Sen. Thomas A. Daschle (1995-1996); chief counsel for the Senate Agriculture Committee (1987-1988); and chief minority counsel for the Senate Judiciary Subcommittees on Patents, Copyrights, and Trademarks; Security and Terrorism; and Regulatory Reform (1981-1987).
Musical Guest
Special Musical Performance by SWEET HONEY IN THE ROCK
Founded by Bernice Johnson Reagon in 1973 (with Mie, Carol Maillard and Louise Robinson) at the D.C. Black Repertory Theater Company, Sweet Honey In The Rock®, internationally renowned a cappella ensemble, has been a vital and innovative presence in the music culture of Washington, D.C., and in communities of conscience around the world. Sweet Honey was a 2008 Grammy® Award nominee, composed new material in celebration of the Alvin Ailey Dance Theater’s 50th anniversary, and honored to accept an invitation from President and Mrs. Barack Obama to give a concert at the White House on Feb. 18, 2009. Sweet Honey In The Rock members are Ysaye Maria Barnwell, Nitanju Bolade Casel, Aisha Kahlil, Carol Maillard, Louise Robinson, and Shirley Childress Saxton (Sign Language Interpreter).
About the Award
Launched in 2010 at the Kennedy Center Opera House, the Fairness Award brought together an audience of more than 2,000 invited guests including members of the Cabinet and Congressional leaders, Ambassadors and media personalities, luminaries and thought leaders all joined together to celebrate partnership and honor leadership.
The Global Fairness Initiative is a not- for-profit international organization that promotes a more equitable, sustainable approach to economic development, ensuring that benefits and prosperity are extended to all people, including the working poor. Our work throughout the world helps create economic opportunity and security for the world’s poorest workers in Africa, Asia, and Latin America. The event and its proceeds go directly to support our collaborative and innovative programs that change lives and the way charitable work is done by giving nations and local people ownership of their success.
Each year the Global Fairness Initiative selects two honorees, one from the grass-tops who has enabled and supported marginalized communities and one from the grassroots who has led communities in building a stronger voice and finding a place in our global community. Together, these honorees highlight the power of bringing together top-down opportunity and bottom-up leadership to drive change. Join us in a celebration of what's possible when the hand reaching down meets the one reaching up.
History
In November of 2010, the first Fairness Award brought together a diverse audience, including Washington elite from the Cabinet, Congress, and the diplomatic corps, as well as local leaders, community and NGO activists, and dignitaries from around the globe.
At the first annual Fairness Award, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton presented the Fairness Award to Ms. Ela Bhatt, Founder of the Self Employed Women’s Association (SEWA) of India, a group of 1.5 million poor women in India united in their struggle for empowerment. Together, these first honorees set a precedent for bringing together top-down opportunity and bottom-up leadership that can improve the lives of millions of working families around the globe.
The Fairness Award is a chance to be part of something truly different in DC, a ceremony full of entertainment and a celebration of what’s possible when the hand reaching down meets the one grasping up. In 2010, the event drew over 2,000 people to the Kennedy Center Opera House in its inaugural year. In 2011, the Fairness Award honored President Jose Maria Figueres and Ms. Albina Ruiz at the historic Lincoln Theatre in front of 1600 friends and supporters.
Past Recipients
2011 Grasstops Honoree: José María Figueres Olsen
José María Figueres served as President of Costa Rica from 1994 to 1998. As such, he was the youngest President of a Central American country in modern times. During his presidency, he created a comprehensive national Sustainable Development strategy combining sound macroeconomic indicators, together with strategic investment in human development, and a strong alliance with nature through the implementation of innovative environmental policies. Prior to serving as President he was Minister of Foreign Trade (1987-1988) and Minister of Agriculture (1988-1990).
2011 Grassroots Honoree: Ms. Albina Ruiz
For Albina Ruiz trash is good business! Concerned by the health and environmental threats posed by inadequate public-sector solid waste disposal services, and the consequent accumulation of huge masses of garbage and other forms of refuse in urban areas of Peru, Ruiz came up with an idea that would impact the lives of thousands of Peruvian women. Read more
2010 Grasstops Honoree: Honorable Hillary R. Clinton
On January 21, 2009, Hillary Rodham Clinton was sworn in as the 67th Secretary of State of the United States. Secretary Clinton joined the State Department after nearly four decades in public service as an advocate, attorney, First Lady, and Senator. She has worked tirelessly to support communities around the world and at home - when she declared that "human rights are women's rights, and women's rights are human rights" – inspiring women worldwide and helping galvanize a global movement for women’s rights.
Photo Credit: State Department
2010 Grassroots Honoree: Ms. Ela Bhatt
Ela Ramesh Bhatt is the founder of the Self Employed Women's Association of India (SEWA). A lawyer by training, Bhatt is a respected leader of the international labor, cooperative, women, and micro-finance movements who has won several national and international awards. She is widely recognized as one of the world’s most remarkable pioneers and entrepreneurial forces in grassroots development and known as the "gentle revolutionary."
Photo Credit: The Elders
Stay Connected
Tuesday, November 13th, 2012
6:00 to 7:00pm Honoree Reception
7:00 to 8:30pm Awards Ceremony
The Historic Howard Theatre
620 T Street Northwest
Washington, D.C. 20001
