MPI is proud to share that MPI facilitator Maria Ida “Deng” Giguiento is a 2015 Tanenbaum Peacemaker in Action awardee.
As quoted in her the announcement of her being one of the awardees, her co-facilitator at MPI in 2015, Mohammed Abu-Nimer, stated, “Deng has exceptional power and strength that has sustained her work for over 20 years. Her capacity to connect with people from different races, ethnicities and religions is amazing.”
Deng had been an MPI facilitator since the very beginning of the training in 2000, never missing a single training. In 2015 she co-facilitated Fundamentals of Peacebuilding and Interreligious Dialogue and Peacebuilding: Frameworks and Applications Read more about Deng and her work on the Tanenbaum website here. You can also read a brief bio of Deng on our own website here.
Congratulations to Deng from all of us at MPI!
Tanenbaum is a secular, non-sectarian nonprofit that promotes mutual respect with practical programs that bridge religious difference and combat prejudice in schools, workplaces, health care settings and areas of armed conflict.
Tanenbaum shares that "Peacemaker in Action awardees are from diverse peacemaking and peacebuilding backgrounds, as well as different religions. Some Peacemakers are educators, some clergy; others are NGO directors, government officials, negotiators and activists."
The following five criteria must be evident when someone is nominated for the award:
- Religious Motivation: Their peacemaking has been fueled by teachings from their religious traditions.
- Armed Conflict: They are dedicated to stopping violent conflict and to sustaining peace in war torn countries.
- At Risk: They have jeopardized their life or freedom in the pursuit of peace.
- Locally Based: They are closely connected to the conflict situation “on the ground,” at the local level.
- Relatively Unknown: Despite the significant impact of their efforts, they have generally gone without the recognition and support they deserve.