Palestinian activist Issa Amro received the Right Livelihood Prize—often regarded as an alternative Nobel—on Thursday in recognition of his “nonviolent resistance to Israel’s illegal occupation” in the West Bank, according to the award jury.
Born in Hebron, a contentious city in the West Bank housing approximately 1,000 Jewish settlers under heavy Israeli military protection, Issa Amro has dedicated his life to combating the Israeli occupation. The 44-year-old is the founder of the Youth Against Settlements group, which campaigns against the expansion of Jewish settlements deemed illegal under international law.
The foundation noted that Amro has faced repeated detentions and torture at the hands of both the Israeli authorities and the Palestinian Authority. “It’s a miracle that I still exist,” he remarked upon receiving the prize.
Amro’s activism began early in his life. When Palestine Polytechnic University, where he was studying, closed during the Second Intifada in 2003, he successfully led a six-month civil disobedience campaign to reopen the institution.
The Sweden-based Right Livelihood Foundation also awarded prizes to Joan Carling, a Filipina advocate for indigenous rights, and Anabela Lemos, a climate activist from Mozambique. The research agency Forensic Architecture was recognised for its work in exposing human rights violations globally.
The foundation highlighted that the four prize recipients have “each made a profound impact on their communities and the global stage.” It praised their “unwavering commitment to speaking out against forces of oppression and exploitation, while strictly adhering to non-violent methods.”
Carling has dedicated three decades to defending indigenous communities, particularly against harmful mining projects. Lemos leads the NGO Justica Ambiental (JA!) and has been active in opposing liquefied natural gas extraction projects in northern Mozambique.
Forensic Architecture, based in London, was honoured for its innovative digital forensic methods that help ensure accountability for human rights violations. Notably, the firm collaborated with Ukraine’s Center for Spatial Technologies to reconstruct Mariupol’s Drama Theatre before its destruction in 2022, highlighting Russia’s “strategies of terror” and efforts to obscure evidence of its actions.
The Right Livelihood award was founded in 1980 by Swedish-German philatelist Jakob von Uexkull, who sold part of his stamp collection after the Nobel Prize Foundation declined to establish new distinctions honouring efforts in environmental and international development fields.
