Alixandra Fazzina.The Norwegian hero and Nobel Peace Prize-winner Fridtjof Nansen has an own award named after him – the
Nansen Refugee Award. The award, consisting of a commemorative medal and a US$100,000 monetary prize, is given annually to an individual or organization for outstanding work on behalf of refugees.
This year’s winner of the Nansen Refugee Award is photojournalist Alixandra Fazzina. Born in the United Kingdom and now based in Pakistan, Fazzina has spent a decade working in dangerous locations and portrays the plight of displaced people with compassion and empathy.
Her work has been published in major news media around the world, driving attention and sympathy to the people she portrays. Focusing on often under-reported or forgotten conflicts ignored by mainstream media, her reportage looks at the human impact and greater issues that paint a bigger picture. Fazzina received the price in Geneva.
Fridtjof Nansen.– No other journalist or photographer has ever won it before, I wasn't sure if I really stood a chance. But it's really amazing, a little overwhelming, Fazzina says in an interview with UNHCR.
Nansen-anniversary celebrated next year
Many Norwegians associate Fridtjof Nansen with arctic expeditions and crossing Greenland on skis in 1889. His achievements are more than that. Nansen is recognized as a well known scientist, diplomat, statesman and a humanist with a deep compassion for his fellow human beings.
Nansen also won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1922 for his pioneering work on behalf of refugees. Recognized as a charismatic leader, he was made the first High Commissioner for Refugees in 1921.
A painting by Axel Revold of Nansen in front of Smyrna, a city destroyed by fire in 1922 during the war between Turkey and Greece.He immediately undertook the formidable task of helping hundreds of thousands of refugees to survive, to acquire legal status and to attain economic independence.
Nansen also became highly celebrated in Greece as he was involved in the negotiations which led to the 1923 Treaty of Lausanne between the Greek and Turkish governments in the aftermath of the Ottoman Empire.
The next year, in 2011, there will be a worldwide celebration of Fridtjof Nansen as it is 150 years since he was born. This anniversary and celebration will also take place in Greece and Athens.
Support from the Norwegian government
To promote greater interest in the refugee cause and keep alive the humanitarian spirit of Nansen, the first UN High Commissioner for Refugees, G. H. van Heuven Goedhart, instituted the Nansen Refugee Award in 1954.
The monetary prize that comes with the Nansen Award is donated by the governments of Norway and Switzerland to support a refugee project of the laureate’s choice.
Refugees strugling in Charsadda, Pakistan. Photo: Alixandra Fazzina.