Health of Mother Earth Foundation (HOMEF) celebrated its Executive Director, Dr. Nnimmo Bassey, as he received the prestigious 2024 Wallenberg Medal, marking him as the first Nigerian and the fifth African to earn the award. Bassey joins the ranks of distinguished recipients such as South Africa’s Helen Suzman, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Rwanda’s Paul Rusesabagina, and Congo’s Denis Mukwege.
The award ceremony took place on September 10, 2024, at the Ross School of Business Robertson Auditorium, University of Michigan. The Wallenberg Medal honors exceptional humanitarians who, like Raoul Wallenberg—the Swedish diplomat renowned for saving thousands of Jews during World War II—have dedicated their lives to protecting the vulnerable and oppressed.
Swedish Ambassador to the United States, Urban Ahlin, paid tribute to Wallenberg’s legacy, urging attendees to commit to humanitarian causes. Additional speakers included Professor Sioban Harlow, Chair of the awards committee, and Professor Laurie McCauley, the university’s provost.
In his acceptance speech titled “We Are Relatives,” Dr. Bassey highlighted “love, humility, dignity, and respect” as essential to a sustainable future for all. Emphasizing the importance of addressing the root causes of global crises rather than their symptoms, he stated, “Understanding the roots of polycrisis helps us to see the phenomenon of expanding sacrifice zones in our world today. It also places on us the duty of standing with the oppressed to halt the expansion of sacrifice zones in Nigeria, in Africa, and elsewhere by seeking to overcome the energy and other hegemonic transitions that sacrifice nature and are driven by colonial extractivism built on embedded geopolitical power imbalances.”
Bassey’s speech underscored the global nature of the climate crisis, critiquing the pursuit of infinite growth on a finite planet as a “false dream.”
Joyce Brown, Director of Programmes at HOMEF, praised Bassey’s achievements, stating that his work has brought global recognition to both him and the foundation. She also highlighted the role of cultural tools like poetry in addressing environmental and humanitarian challenges.
Bassey, a noted environmental activist and author, has published significant works, including “To Cook a Continent: Destructive Extraction and The Climate Crisis in Africa” (2012) and “Oil Politics: Echoes of Ecological War.” His poetry collections, such as “We Thought It Was Oil But It Was Blood” (1998) and “I See the Invisible” (2024), continue to inspire resistance and hope globally.
