Right Livelihood Award

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Jakob von Uexkull, founder of the Right Livelihood Award

The Right Livelihood Award, established in 1980 by Jakob von Uexkull, is presented annually in the building of the Swedish Parliament, usually on December 9, to honour those "working on practical and exemplary solutions to the most urgent challenges facing the world today". An international jury decides the awards in such fields as environmental protection, human rights, sustainable development, health, education, peace, etc. The prize money is shared among the winners, usually four, and is equivalent to US$ 250,000.

The prize has become widely known as the Alternative Nobel Prize, although it is not in any way related to the Nobel Prize. It states that, in the 21th century, the "greatest benefit to mankind" may be found in different fields than in the traditional sciences or in strict categories. Thus, RLA understands itself as a critical complement to the Nobel Prize. Consequently, the Right Livelihood Award Foundation has chosen to have its award ceremony the day before the Nobel Prize. On its web page, the Foundation makes various comparisons with the Nobel Prize, and also provides a number of diagrams detailing how much more fair distribution of the RLA prizes is than Nobel, which seldom awards people from the South, Third World countries or women [1].

Until now, the Right Livelihood Award Foundation has presented 115 awards to individuals and organisations often working on grassroot level. The Foundation's purpose is not only to bestow a prize but to make the work of its recipients widely known and by that creating a global platform for existing solutions.