Stuart Muir Wilson, the grandson of permaculture founding father Bill Mollison, has recently received The Right Livelihood Award, known as the alternative Nobel Prize, for his “outstanding vision and work on behalf of the planet and its people”.
Stuart, who lives in Australia, and who shares lessons imparted by Bill, received the award after the judging panel saw his feature in PM85 (‘Design For Humanity‘).
In 1980, the journalist Jakob von Uexkull felt that the Nobel Prize categories were too narrow and too concentrated on the interests of the industrialised countries to be an adequate answer to the challenges facing humanity.
Instead, he wanted to “recognise the efforts of those who are tackling these issues more directly, coming up with practical answers to challenges like the pollution of our air, soil and water, the danger of nuclear war, the abuse of basic human rights, the destitution and misery of the poor and the over-consumption and spiritual poverty of the wealthy”.
Jakob set-up two awards, one for ecology and one relevant to the lives of the poor.
Stuart, who is interviewed in Permaculture Magazine North America Issue 2, says “the award was recognition of my work in furthering the legacy of Grandpa’s work for humanity and the earth. The Right Livelihood is an incredible support network of practical resources and legal protections for humanitarians around the globe”.
Stuart is now an ambassador for the global permaculture network to the Right Livelihood organization.
