SCIC is excited to announce the 28th Annual Global Citizen Award Winners. Join us February 3rd in Saskatoon and February 8th in Regina, as we celebrate the contributions of these amazing Saskatchewan people and movements working for a more just and sustainable world: Dave Mitchell, Dr. Alaa Murabit, Abdullahi Nunow, Marcella Pedersen, and Terri Sleeva. Event details can be found on the International Development Week page or visit the Global Citizen Awards page for a complete list of winners since 1990.
Dave Mitchell is an editor, writer and organizer with deep roots in Saskatchewan's political scene. He edited Briarpatch Magazine (2005-2010), co-edited the books Beautiful Trouble: A Toolbox for Revolution (2012) and Beautiful Rising: Creative Resistance from the Global South (2017), and assembled content for GlobalHive.ca, an on-line public engagement toolkit for global citizenship. Dave has long worked for social and economic justice, and his contributions to communities and networks of organizers in Saskatchewan, Mexico, and points between are immeasurable. His quiet leadership in helping social movements to be more effective, coupled with his incisive analyses of capitalist and imperialist exploitation in the Global South (and all around us) are an inspiring model of cross-border solidarity and movement-building. Read Dave's Bio & Interview.
Dr. Alaa Murabit was born on October 26, 1989 in Saskatoon. She completed high school at the age of 15 and moved to Zawia, Libya where she enrolled in medical school, and where she founded “The Voice of Libyan Women” at the age of 21. Dr. Murabit is an UN High-Level Commissioner on Health Employment & Economic Growth, one of 17 Global Sustainable Development Goal Advocates, and has most recently been appointed the Executive Director of the Phase Minus 1 team, which provides thought leadership conflict resolution, inclusive security, peace building, sustainable development and security cooperation. Dr. Murabit is an MIT Media Lab Director’s Fellow and International Deliver For Good Influencer, she serves as a trustee for The Malala Fund International Alert, Malaria No More and Keeping Children Safe. In 2016, she founded a global Mentorship Programme for emerging leaders and co-founded The Omnis Institute. Her leadership in global policy and in elevating the role of women – particularly young, minority women – on global platforms was recognized by Harvard Law, who named her the youngest 2017 “Woman Inspiring Change”. Read Dr. Murabit's Bio
Abdullahi Nunow was born in Somalia and fled to Kenya where he lived as a refugee. After completing elementary and high school, he worked as a tutor helping students, and also taught at a secondary school in the refugee camp. In 2015, Abdullahi came to Canada from Kenya through WUSC's Student Refugee Program. As soon as he arrived in Regina he joined the WUSC U of R Committee because he wanted to get involved in helping refugee youth, like himself, build a better future, and wanted to give back to the community that helped him come to Canada. Before leaving the refugee camp where he grew up in Dadaab, Kenya, Abdullahi and his friend founded Give Hope, an organization to help vulnerable kids access education by raising funds for tuition fees and school materials. He considers that he will never give up working towards supporting people in need. Read Abdullahi's Bio & Interview
Marcella Pedersen has been an activist all her life. She has been deeply involved with several organizations that intersect with international and local justice including Development & Peace, the National Farmers' Union (NFU), the Catholic Women's League (CWL) and the New Democratic Party. It is particularly remarkable that Marcella has stepped up to take on leadership roles within these organizations, and has also done the hard work at the grassroots level. She has had a major impact in all of the organizations that she works with, in part by promoting action campaigns among her different communities, further enriching the campaigns of the other organizations in her network. Read Marcella's Bio & Interview
Terri Sleeva devotes her life to the struggle for peace and justice. Her level of commitment is outstanding, dedicating herself to concerns ranging from anti-poverty, anti-racism, disability, and human rights, to the environmental justice and anti-war movements. She is also a constant ally in Indigenous peoples’ struggle for justice. Terri is active in a variety of roles, with experience in policy development, advocacy, community building, communications and services, with an impressive and lengthy list of groups and organizations she serves. She is the proud mother of 2 children and 4 grandchildren, 2 of whom are adopted. Terri puts herself on the line for peace and justice on a daily basis. She believes that the status quo steps on human rights and peace initiatives so we need to address these concerns. Read Terri's Bio & Interview