Nominations are open for the 2021 edition of Mayor Paweł Adamowicz Award

The Award recognises efforts to fight intolerance, discrimination, and inequality

On Monday 28 June, the European Committee of the Regions revealed that it has teamed up with the International Cities of Refuge Network (ICORN) and the city of Gdańsk to officially open the nominations for the first edition of the Mayor Paweł Adamowicz Award. This Award has been established in honour of the late Mayor Paweł Adamowicz who was stabbed on 13 January 2019 while speaking at a charity event.

His murder was reportedly brought about following a rise in hate speech directed at him. Now, the Mayor Paweł Adamowicz Award seeks to recognise and support the efforts of civic leaders, city leaders, and organisations working at local or regional levels to fight intolerance, hate speech, oppression, xenophobia, discrimination, etc.

What is the nomination process?

Leaders from all over the world can be nominated for the first edition of the Mayor Paweł Adamowicz Award. However, nominations will only be allowed from three sources this year: members of the European Committee of the Regions, ICORN member cities or regions, and a selected number of international bodies that have experience in the fields of the Award.

The deadline for submitting nominations is 15 September 2021 at 23:59 (Brussels time). The award ceremony will then take place at the end of the year in December.

Cities can only be considered safe when all citizens feel respected

Magdalena Adamowicz, Member of the European Parliament and Paweł Adamowicz’ widow urges individuals to nominate leaders who stand up for solidarity and equality: “Good is quiet, evil is clamorous. Particularly today, amid the din of xenophobia, homophobia, radicalism, nationalism and ubiquitous hate speech, our task must be to find all those who do good and hold them up as an example.

This is the purpose of the Mayor Paweł Adamowicz Award. I encourage you from the bottom of my heart: look around and nominate for the award all those who act for other people: their dignity, equality, safety. Good is quiet, but let us speak as loudly as possible about those who do it!''

Executive Director of ICORN Helge Lunde similarly encourages the aforementioned bodies to nominate leaders, explaining that cities cannot be considered as safe havens until all people respect the rights of others.

With this Award, democratic values such as freedom of speech are defended and promoted. What is more, the good deeds and honourable actions of world leaders are brought into the light and set as examples that must be followed.