Gonzaga University has been chosen to host the 2014 Opus Prize, which is one the world’s most prestigious faith-based humanitarian honors. The university will welcome prize finalists to campus in October for a series of events designed to inspire the campus and regional communities, according to a press release.
The presentations and conversations Oct. 13-16 (2014) with the Opus Prize finalists will include open forums, classroom discussions and a community awards ceremony on October 16 at Martin Woldson Theatre at The Fox that will highlight the power of the finalists’ transformative work. Gonzaga expects the finalists’ narratives of ‘faith that does justice’ will propel the campus community and residents of the Inland Northwest toward greater social justice work worldwide.
Among the world’s major honors for faith-based humanitarian initiatives, the annual Opus Prize carries a $1 million award and two $100,000 runner-up honors to individuals whose work has yet to be widely recognition.
The university has tapped its global networks to identify leading candidates for the prize, and screened nominees from which the finalists will be selected by an independent jury. People of all faith traditions who are working to address the world’s most complex social problems, including issues such as poverty, illiteracy, hunger, disease and injustice are considered. A “jury” of 15 distinguished individuals from Spokane, the Northwest and the nation will narrow the list of nominees down to three, and the Foundation will select the primary award winner by late summer based, in part, on the judgment of GU students who will participate in vetting trips to the work sites of the finalists, according to a press release.
