Changing the World,
One Leader at a Time.

What do a human rights activist, a biotech entrepreneur, a peace negotiator, a climate scientist, and a social media influencer have in common? They are all past winners of the Tällberg-SNF-Eliasson Global Leadership Prize, an award that celebrates exceptional leadership in any field and any region of the world.

About the Prize

The Tällberg Foundation’s core purpose is identifying, honoring, nurturing, and networking outstanding leaders. The kind of women and men who understand the challenges our societies face, who take the risks and who—above all—produce impact.

In alignment with that ethos, we established the Tällberg-SNF-Eliasson Global Leadership Prize. The prize name honors the Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF), whose support makes it possible, and Jan Eliasson, one of the most accomplished global diplomats of our era. Both SNF and Jan share Tällberg’s deep commitment to encouraging positive global change.

The world faces accelerating climate change, disruptive technology, increasing conflict and war, massive numbers of displaced people seeking safety, the breakup of the post-war global order that framed and facilitated the great human advances of the past decades.

We made it; we broke it; and the good news is we can fix it.
We believe that great leadership can bend the arc of history.

What kind of leaders are awarded the Prizes?  

  • Leaders who are innovative, courageous, dynamic, ethical and who understand global challenges require global solutions.
  • Leaders who seize the moment instead of waiting for politicians to stop squabbling and act.
  • Leaders who recognize that borders and barriers—whether physical or cognitive—are inimical to addressing, never mind overcoming, today’s challenges.
  • Leaders who reject the lengthening list of “isms”—nationalism, exceptionalism, racism, wokeism, Putinism, the list goes on—that substitute for thought today.

We believe that exceptional leadership is not bound by geography or discipline. Prize winners are honored not only for what they have already accomplished but for their commitment and capacity to continue seeking the kinds of positive change our societies demand. 

In 2024, through the generous support of the Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF), we will award three prizes. Each winner will be celebrated by their peers, receive an unrestricted grant of $50,000, and be invited to join the Tällberg network of global leaders. Indeed, the ongoing engagement with other leaders working for positive change at the global level is an integral element of the Tällberg-SNF-Eliasson Global Leadership Prize. 

  • Anyone, anywhere is eligible for nomination if they meet the core criteria of the Prize. Candidates are nominated through an open, online process and ultimately selected by a jury of international leaders. In 2024 the nomination process begins on March 15 and ends on May 15. 
  • Anyone, anywhereexcept for prize jurors and candidates themselves—may nominate. This means that self-nominations are not considered; candidates must be nominated by someone else.

The Tällberg Leaders Mentoring Leaders program aims to identify and nurture emerging leaders with outsized potential, leveraging the Tällberg Foundation’s global network to accelerate their growth as impactful leaders. Encourage them to apply now!

The Nomination Process

1. Nominations

Anyone, anywhere can make nominations (except Prize jurors and the nominees themselves). We look forward to receiving nominations from March 15 – May 15, 2024 for leaders who demonstrate the willingness and capacity to address the complexity of 21st-century challenges in innovative, risk-taking, and ethical ways, and whose work is global in aspiration or implication and is rooted in universal values.

2. Jury

A pre-jury team reviews the nominations and determines if a given nomination meets the broad Prize criteria. Then an international jury reviews the nominations during the summer and selects the people who, in their judgment, best exemplify the types of leaders needed today.

3. Celebrate!

The winners are invited to celebrations and explorations of global leadership  where they will join past laureates, jury members and other global leaders.

 

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Stories

Join the conversation and follow the stories of the Tällberg-SNF-Eliasson Global Leaders

Climb a Tree!

Climb a Tree!

Winners of the Tällberg-SNF-Eliasson Global Leadership Prize typically have several things in common. They look at the big challenges confronting society as opportunities for innovation. They don’t...

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A Visionary Leader

A Visionary Leader

Andrew Bastawrous solves problems. As a well-trained, highly skilled ophthalmologist he was devoted to treating as many patients as possible, in Kenya and elsewhere in Africa. But even gifted...

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Who makes this possible?

Sponsor

The Tällberg Foundation, launched in 1981, exists to explore the issues that are challenging —and changing— our societies. Today, those challenges are profound: the world that we have known since the mid 20th century, which produced unprecedented peace as well as human advance, is changing at a pace and in directions that threaten to evolve towards Orwellian dystopia.

But forces for “good” still exist and need to be renewed, made more muscular and more effective. The Foundation aspires to be part of that process.

Tällberg’s work program focuses on understanding how to re-inject ethics into leadership; re-establish the legitimacy of governance; and manage, instead of being managed by, disruptive technologies, climate change, mass migration and other phenomena. We aim to contribute to the new thinking —and new acting— required by this moment in history.

Learn more at tallbergfoundation.org

Lead Supporter

 

The Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) is one of the world’s leading private, international philanthropic organizations, making grants to nonprofit organizations in the areas of arts and culture, education, health and sports, and social welfare. SNF funds organizations and projects worldwide that aim to achieve a broad, lasting, and positive impact for society at large, and exhibit strong leadership and sound management. The Foundation also supports projects that facilitate the formation of public-private partnerships as an effective means for serving the public welfare.

Since 1996, the Foundation has committed more than $3.7 billion through over 5,400 grants to nonprofit organizations in more than 130 countries around the world.

Learn more at SNF.org.

Prize media kit

Download a handful of content about the Tällberg-SNF-Eliasson Global Leadership Prize

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