FROM THE MARGINS
Last Nov. 11, I attended the Ramon Magsaysay Awards Foundation (RMAF) awarding ceremonies with my wife, Annie and our young granddaughter, Margarett. Dubbed as the Nobel Prize of Asia, the Ramon Magsaysay Award is bestowed on individuals who embody “greatness of spirit and transformative leadership in selfless service to the people of Asia.” For 2023, the four Magsaysay Laureates are Miriam Coronel-Ferrer from the Philippines, Eugenio Lemos from Timor-Leste, Ravi Kannan R. from India and Korvi Rakshand from Bangladesh.
Coronel-Ferrer, this year’s lone female awardee, was recognized “for her deep, unwavering belief in the transformative power of non-violent strategies in peace building” and her strong “devotion to the agenda of harnessing the power of women in creating a just and peaceful world.” The first female chief negotiator of the country’s government peace panel, she led the signing of the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro which ended decades of hostility with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).
The other awardees were: Lemos, who was recognized “for his indomitable spirit in uplifting the lives of local communities, his vision and passion in integrating indigenous cultures in his advocacy for the care of the environment and well-being of the people” and Kannan, who was chosen “for his devotion to his profession’s highest ideals of public service, his combination of skill, commitment and compassion in pushing the boundaries of people-oriented, pro-poor health care and cancer care.”
Rakshand was honored “for his strong, visionary leadership in democratizing education and inspiring thousands of young people to heed the call of social transformation.”
My granddaughter, who is just 14 years old, was so inspired to hear the testimonies to the work of these four laureates. She was especially impressed upon meeting the emergent leadership awardee, Rakshand, for despite his young age and privileged upbringing, he chose to work among Bangladesh’s poor children. Together with his six friends, Rakshand established the JAAGO Foundation, which sought to provide accessible and quality education to underprivileged children. Starting from only a classroom and 17 pupils, JAAGO has grown into one of Bangladesh’s largest non-profit organizations, with 206 classrooms and 30,000 students.
The following day, I attended the launching of “Greatness of Spirit: Stories of Love, Courage and Service” to celebrate RMAF’s 65th anniversary. The book series — a collection of Magsaysay awardees’ biographies, accolades, anecdotes and photographs – will be available in January 2024. The goal, according to RMAF President Susan Afan, is to share the stories of their more than 340 laureates to ignite the spirit of future generations. I applaud this initiative to preserve the remarkable legacies of the Magsaysay awardees, especially the inspirational “Messages to the Youth” that had been eloquently written by living laureates. Their words and deeds are beacons of inspiration to the youth of today, bridging generations in efforts to ensure a better world.
The event was capped with the reading of the messages by selected laureates in different fields such as peace building, arts and culture, community development, microfinance, and health, among others. I was honored to deliver my message to the youth on behalf of CARD MRI. In essence, my message exhorts the youth to be brave and steadfast amidst all the challenges of this ever-changing world. To not waver in their determination to improve their realities. To not just dream, but to DREAM BIG, in their aspiration to make a positive impact on people’s lives.
I hope that the story of CARD MRI – which started as just a dream – would serve as a testament that a vision to enhance the world, even amid tribulations, could succeed with passion and determination. As a young man, with only ₱20 and an old typewriter, I embarked on a project to make my dream of helping eradicate poverty in my country a reality. I dreamt not just about giving the poor access to finance, but of establishing a bank that they will own and manage. I dreamt of empowering the poor by giving them ownership of financial and non-financial institutions that would enable them to change their destinies. And with God’s grace, for almost four decades, CARD MRI has been helping transform the lives of poor Filipinos.
With digitalization and advancements in technology, there is a lot of potential for the youth of today to explore solutions that can change the world into a better place. Undoubtedly, choosing a path towards social transformation will be strewn with challenges. This journey is not for the faint of heart. But every effort to create positive change has a ripple effect that reverberates and inspires many more, culminating in big waves of changes that could positively impact the lives of millions of people. They can learn from the Magsaysay Laureates and their remarkable journeys in diverse fields of contributions to the betterment of humanity.
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“Create the highest, grandest vision possible for your life, because you become what you believe.” — Oprah Winfrey
(Dr. Jaime Aristotle B. Alip is a poverty eradication advocate. He is the founder of the Center for Agriculture and Rural Development Mutually-Reinforcing Institutions (CARD MRI).)