2024 Right Livelihood Award
Our partner RIGHT LIVELIHOOD announced today four new Laureates at a Press Conference
STOCKHOLM – Right Livelihood Press Release - This year’s Right Livelihood Laureates have each made a profound impact on their communities and the global stage. Their unwavering commitment to speaking out against forces of oppression and exploitation, while strictly adhering to non-violent methods, resonates far beyond their communities.
With violence raging in all parts of the world, these Laureates show that the way forward is through empowering communities, peace-making, and a steadfast commitment to truth. Their work serves as a beacon of hope in these challenging times.
The 2024 Right Livelihood Award goes to:
Joan Carling (Philippines) “for raising Indigenous voices in the face of the global ecological breakdown and her leadership in defending people, lands and culture,”
Issa Amro and Youth Against Settlements (Palestine) “for their steadfast non-violent resistance to Israel’s illegal occupation, promoting Palestinian civic action through peaceful means,”
Anabela Lemos and Justiça Ambiental! (Mozambique) “for empowering communities to stand up for their right to say no to exploitative mega-projects and demand environmental justice,” and
Forensic Architecture (UK) “for pioneering digital forensic methods to ensure justice and accountability for victims and survivors of human and environmental rights violations.”
“The 2024 Laureates demonstrate the power of non-violent resistance and truthtelling, placing decision-making into the hands of local communities. Faced with violence, exploitation and oppression, this year’s Laureates are charting ways towards a just, peaceful and sustainable future for all. Let their commitment inspire us all to be braver and take action for the benefit of our communities!” said Ole von Uexkull, Right Livelihood’s Executive Director during their Press Conference today followed by the Global Campus of Human Rights press office.
Anabela Lemos and Justiça Ambiental! are the first Laureate from Mozambique to receive the Right Livelihood Award.
Short biographies of the 2024 Laureates
Joan Carling
Joan Carling is a Filipino Indigenous activist who has been defending the rights of Indigenous Peoples for more than 30 years. Her work spans grassroots and international levels, focusing on human rights, sustainable development, climate justice and the fight against land exploitation. Since the late 1990s, Carling has led multiple Indigenous rights organisations. She continues to play a pivotal role in amplifying the voices of Indigenous Peoples across the Philippines, Asia, and globally, with a focus on combating the systemic marginalisation and criminalisation of Indigenous communities.
Carling has dedicated her life to protecting Indigenous communities, often at great personal risk. She has been unjustly arrested, labelled a terrorist, falsely accused of crimes and received threats on her life. Despite this, she continues to fight for Indigenous Peoples’ rights, helping communities defend their lands and resist exploitation by powerful corporate and state interests.
Carling’s advocacy has had a profound impact, from helping stop destructive mining projects opposed by Indigenous communities to influencing policies on Indigenous women’s rights at the United Nations. Her work in the Philippines, one of the most dangerous countries in the world for Indigenous Peoples—where activists are frequently targeted, killed and forcibly disappeared—has been especially critical. By empowering Indigenous Peoples to defend themselves against these threats, Carling has helped communities across the Philippines take an active role in defending their rights and protecting their lands.
“This recognition sends a powerful message—not just to me, but to all activists—that our work is being acknowledged. It encourages others to keep fighting for human rights and shows that standing up for what’s right can make a global impact.” Joan Carling
Issa Amro and Youth Against Settlements
Issa Amro is a Palestinian human rights activist who has dedicated his life to peaceful resistance against Israeli occupation in the West Bank city of Hebron. Together with the activist group he founded, Youth Against Settlements (YAS), he has become a leading voice in the non-violent movement, striving to create a future where Palestinians live freely and with dignity. His efforts have garnered international recognition, and his strict commitment to non-violence stands in stark contrast to the violent realities of the Israeli occupation.
Amro and YAS have successfully mobilised local communities and international allies to resist the ongoing Israeli occupation through peaceful means. YAS plays an essential role in documenting human rights violations, organising protests, and supporting local communities in Hebron who live under constant threats and attacks from Israeli settlers and military forces. The group’s initiatives have also served as an inspiration for non-violent resistance in other Palestinian cities under Israeli occupation.
Amro and the group have been under constant pressure from settlers, the Israeli military and also the Palestinian Authority. Amro has been detained, tortured, attacked on the streets, evicted from home and subjected to judicial harassment. However, he has kept his unwavering commitment to non-violent resistance, which he sees as the only way to achieve justice and peace for the people of Palestine.
“Receiving the Right Livelihood Award makes me feel happy, proud, motivated and inspired to continue my hard work to defend human rights in Palestine, to defend Palestinian children’s rights, Palestinian women’s rights and the Palestinian people’s right to remain and live with freedom, justice and equality in their land.” Issa Amro
Anabela Lemos and Justiça Ambiental!
Anabela Lemos is a Mozambican environmental activist and Director of Justiça Ambiental! (JA!), an organisation committed to environmental justice in Mozambique. For over 20 years, Lemos and JA! have fought corporate-led projects that displace communities, damage livelihoods and intensify climate change. The organisation’s leadership in the ‘Say No to Gas Campaign’ has brought international attention to the environmental and human rights violations caused by liquid natural gas (LNG) extraction projects in northern Mozambique.
In addition to grassroots activism, JA! is renowned for its effective global advocacy, particularly against Mozambique LNG, a 24-billion-USD gas extraction project in Cabo Delgado backed by TotalEnergies. The organisation has built alliances with civil society in over 23 countries to challenge this project. By providing critical on-the-ground evidence of the project’s harm to local communities, JA! has exposed human rights violations and corporate crimes, successfully delaying Mozambique LNG’s progress.
Despite operating in a politically oppressive space, Lemos and JA! continue to amplify local voices on the world stage, demonstrating that the fight for environmental justice transcends borders. Their work has empowered communities to defend their rights, paving the way for a future where all people’s environmental and human rights are respected.
“The Award will give us visibility and provide both myself and Justiça Ambiental! the assurance that the work we do is valuable and important. It shows we’re not just a group of people opposing development for no reason. We take risks because we believe in our work.” Anabela Lemos
Forensic Architecture
Forensic Architecture is a pioneering research agency dedicated to uncovering and documenting the truth about environmental and human rights violations using cutting-edge open-source investigation and digital modelling techniques. Based at Goldsmiths, University of London, Forensic Architecture integrates advanced technology with witness and historical accounts to create powerful visual and spatial reconstructions, which have been used as evidence in landmark legal cases worldwide.
Since its founding in 2010, Forensic Architecture has led the development of new methodologies that combine technology with human rights advocacy. They have conducted more than 100 investigations on behalf of affected communities, uncovering truths about events both historic, such as the German colonial genocide in Namibia, and current, like the 2017 fire at Grenfell Tower in London. Their innovative methodologies not only set new standards for accountability but also assist survivors in processing trauma.
In an era when truth and facts are constantly challenged, including by governments, Forensic Architecture’s work helps usher in a new layer of oversight to ensure accountability, harnessing technology and witness testimony. With a fierce commitment to collaborative work with frontline communities and to developing and disseminating new evidentiary techniques, the organisation’s work has significantly impacted international legal processes and human rights investigations. As such, they help to hold perpetrators accountable and empower communities to seek justice on their own terms.
“I’m always saying I prefer winning cases to winning prizes, but, especially at this time of brutal carnage, the one accolade I wanted Forensic Architecture to get is the Right Livelihood Award. Some of the previous Laureates are the people I most admire, and it’s especially great to receive it alongside my friend Issa. The Award has a spirit of doggedness and resistance and will help us confront the powers we face.” Eyal Weizman, Founder and Director Forensic Architecture
Besides being available for one-on-one interviews, the Laureates held consecutive online press conferences during the day.
For 45 years, the Right Livelihood Award has honoured and supported courageous people solving global problems. The award comes with long-term support to highlight and expand Laureates’ work.
In 2024, 176 nominees from 72 countries were considered. Previous Laureates include Ukrainian human rights defender Oleksandra Matviichuk, Congolese gynaecologist and women’s rights advocate Dr Denis Mukwege and American public interest lawyer Bryan Stevenson.
The 2024 Laureates will be honoured during a televised Award Presentation in Stockholm on Wednesday, December 4 .
More information:
- International media: Emoke Bebiak, emoke.bebiak@rightlivelihood.org , +41 78 333 84 84 and Sydney Nelson, sydney.nelson@rightlivelihood.org , +46 73 043 13 01
- German media: Julia Naumann and Nina Tesenfitz, presse@rightlivelihood.org ,
- +49 170 5763 663
- Spanish media: Nayla Azzinnari, nayla@rightlivelihood.org , +54 9 11 5460 9860
- Scandinavian media: Sonja Leister, sonja.leister@arenagruppen.se , +46 736 541319
- Photos, videos: Mikaela Fredrikson, mikaela.fredrikson@rightlivelihood.org
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