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An article from the Ajuntimiento de Barcelona
The Barcelona for Peace International Award recognises the trajectory, action or project of a person, organisation or institution at an international level which has helped, in a relevant, transformational and verifiable way, to promote peace, coexistence, human rights and the peaceful resolution of conflicts.
Launched by Barcelona City Council, Barcelona Provincial Council and the Fundació Pau Casals as part of the 150th anniversary of the artist’s birth, the biennial award carries 300,000 euros in prize money and is geared towards strengthening the media impact and transformational characters of the winning project or organisation. The first award will be held at L’Auditori de Barcelona in February 2027 and comes with a parallel cycle of dialogues for peace in other cities such as New York, Tangiers and Medellín.
The award is inspired by the universal values that define Barcelona as an open, diverse and inclusive city, committed to the defence of human rights, as well as the legacy of the maestro Pau Casals, remembered for his extraordinary musical talent and for his firm commitment to the values of freedom, democracy and peace.
The intention is for the award to be a catalyst for change, inspiring and recognising the work of people and institutions committed to the culture of peace at local and global levels. In this respect, the goals of the Barcelona for Peace International Award are to:
° Identify and recognise real and specific solutions for the main global goals, with peace and coexistence as the central threads.
° Increase visibility and support for transformational initiatives in fostering the culture of peace and coexistence.
° Foster institutional collaboration and the exchange of knowledge.
° Generate an inspirational and multiplying effect.
° International projection of the validity of the great legacy of the maestro Pau Casals.
Money to generate an impact
The Barcelona for Peace Award aspires to be one of the most important in the field of peace. With 300,000 euros in prize money, the intention is to reinforce the symbolic, mediatic and transformational impact of the project or organisation that receives the recognition.
The money should be devoted to guaranteeing the continuity, scaling up and consolidation of the winning project. Its execution will be assessed by the organising institutions through a social impact report, to be presented during the award ceremony.
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How can we develop the institutional framework for a culture of peace?
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Candidacies
The Barcelona for Peace International Award is open to natural and legal persons of any nationality, international organisations, foundations, NGOs, public institutions or collective initiatives propose by them, specialist organisations, international networks and members of the award’s advisory council.
For this first edition, the call will be opened through a public announcement in April. The directing committee will adopt their decision by majority in November, in accordance with the terms and conditions established by promoting organisations and in consultation with the advisory committee, to ensure the award reflects excellence, commitment and a real impact in the construction of peace.
Directing committee and advisory council
The directing committee will be tasked with deciding who receives the award according to the following criteria:
° Significant contribution to peace and coexistence.
° Sustainability and continuity of the project.
° Innovative, creative and exemplary character of the initiative in addressing conflicts.
° Social, political, cultural and humanitarian impact. Community roots and citizen participation.
° Inspirational capacity and multiplying effect.
° Cross-cutting nature in terms of gender, diversity, interculturality and/or community perspective.
° Ethical coherence and commitment to human rights, equity and inclusion.
International projection and relevance.
The advisory council, an independent and plural body, will be made up of figures with recognised trajectories in fields such a peace, human rights, diplomacy, culture, journalism, social innovation and activism. The advisory council will be coordinated by the Fundació Pau Casals.
This body is under construction and new members will be added. The first recognised figures on the advisory council are the Chilean senator Isabel Allende, daughter of the former president of Chile, Salvador Allende, plus princess Rym Ali of Jordan.
International cycle of dialogues for peace
A cycle of dialogues for peace will be promoted with the goal of giving global visibility to the award as an initiative that promotes the culture of peace around the world, at the same time consolidating Barcelona’s international projection as a leading city in the construction of peace from the urban sphere.
The idea is for these dialogues to take place as part of the next Global Congress by United Cities and Local Governments (UCLG), which is being held in Tangiers from 22 to 25 June. During the High Level Political Forum, from 6 to 15 July, there will be a debate at the Instituto Cervantes in New York about the role of cities in the construction of global peace. In addition, there will be a dialogue with European experts in peace, democracy and human rights in Brussels on municipal cooperation for peace, within the context of the District 11 initiative, and on policies for global justice in Medellín and Hiroshima.
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