Global Citizen Prize 2023: Meet the 5 Remarkable Activists Who Are This Year’s Winners

From conflict to food insecurity to climate change, the world is facing multiple compounding crises and it can be easy to feel like the future is bleak. But look around, and the world is also full of remarkable individuals, dedicating themselves to the fight to uplift the most vulnerable and achieve equality and justice for all. 

Enter the Global Citizen Prize, a yearly award that recognizes and celebrates the unsung activists who are fighting the good fight, going above and beyond to tick things off the world’s most important to-do list: the United Nations’ Global Goals.

This year’s Global Citizen Prize Citizen Award recognizes four trailblazing activists who are profoundly impacting their local communities across food security, climate change, civic space, and sexual and reproductive health, in the fight to end extreme poverty, demand equity, and protect the planet, in line with Global Citizen’s campaign to End Extreme Poverty NOW. 

Meanwhile, the Cisco Youth Leadership Award — established by Cisco and Global Citizen in 2018 — celebrates an individual aged between 18 and 30 whose leadership, dedication, and innovation is contributing towards ending extreme poverty in their community. 

Candidates for the Cisco Youth Leadership Award were judged by a panel including representatives from Global Citizen, Cisco, esteemed activists, and leaders in the international development field, against five equally-weighted criteria, including impact, vision, catalyst, global citizenship, and technology innovation. 

Each of this year’s winners — read on to learn more about them and their work! — will receive a year-long program of support from Global Citizen, together with a donation to their organization to further support their work. Proud Global Partners of the Global Citizen Prize 2023 include Cisco, Citi, and P&G. 

The award recipients will be honored at a ceremony taking place during the Global Citizen NOW summit at The Glasshouse in New York City on Thursday, April 27. The ceremony will be hosted by actress, humanitarian, and Global Citizen Ambassador Nomzamo Mbatha and feature appearances by Sabrina Dhowre Elba, Chair of Global Citizen's Europe Board of Directors and United Nations IFAD Goodwill Ambassador; Padma Lakshmi, producer, TV host, author, and activist; Bridget Moynahan, Global Citizen Ambassador; and Erna Solberg, Former Prime Minister of Norway; and will feature performances by Natasha Bedingfield, Chloe Flower, and Samara Joy.

Global Citizen NOW is a two-day summit taking place in New York City on April 27 and 28, convening government leaders, private sector executives, grassroots activists, cultural innovators, philanthropic experts, and leading journalists to set a global agenda for action on the most urgent issues facing humanity and the planet. Find out more about Global Citizen NOW and how you can get involved. 

cover photo:Meet the winners of the 2023 Global Citizen Prize! From left to right, Ineza Umuhoza Grace; Pashtana Durrani; Nkosana Butholenkosi Masuku; Wangari Kuria; Deja Foxx.