Young Innovators in Social Justice to Receive 2014 Grinnell Prize

This year’s Grinnell Prize will go to founders of two organizations making the world a healthier, cleaner place. The winners were selected from among 211 nominees representing 34 countries and working in a total of 43. They are:

• Kiah Williams and Adam Kircher, co-founders and directors of Supporting Initiatives to Redistribute Unused Medicine (SIRUM), which saves lives by administering the redistribution of surplus prescription medications to California residents who cannot afford their prescriptions.
• Lindsay Stradley and Ani Vallabhaneni, co-founders of Sanergy, which builds and franchises Fresh Life toilets that improve sanitation and public health, create jobs, and convert waste into organic fertilizer in Nairobi, Kenya.

The largest prize for social justice awarded by a college, the $100,000 Grinnell Prize is presented annually to leaders under 40 who make creative innovations in social justice.

The 2014 Grinnell Prize medals will be presented at a ceremony at 4:15 p.m., Tuesday, Oct. 7, in the College’s Herrick Chapel. You can watch it online live at www.grinnell.edu/livestream.

The ceremony will include a keynote address by Charlayne Hunter-Gault, award-winning journalist, author, and civil rights activist. She was one of the first two African-American students to integrate the University of Georgia amid violent protests in 1961.

Hunter-Gault will discuss “My Sixties: Reflections on Coming of Age in the ‘Miracle Decade’ and Enduring Lessons.” She is married to life trustee Ronald Gault ’62.

Following the ceremony, there will be a reception and book signing featuring the new paperback edition of Hunter-Gault’s book, To the Mountaintop: My Journey Through the Civil Rights Movement.

The award winners also will participate in the Grinnell Prize Symposium Week Oct. 6–10. They will give public presentations about their work and meet with students, faculty, staff, and the wider community to discuss their approaches to social justice, sources of inspiration, and success in overcoming obstacles.

Call for 2015 Nominations

To submit nominations for the 2015 Grinnell Prize (Deadline: Dec. 1, 2014), see www.grinnell.edu/grinnellprize.