The award will be bestowed after Ezekwesili presents a keynote address, titled “‘,” as part of the , a conference organized by the .
A leader across global, national and local scales, and across the realms of economics, governance and politics, Ezekwesili will be recognized with the award particularly for her contributions to promoting due process and transparency in government operations and for her work with the #BringBackOurGirls campaign, which she helped co-found in response to the Chibok schoolgirls’ kidnapping by Boko Haram in Nigeria in April 2014.
“It is often assumed that powerful private and public interests will inevitably corrupt governance, no matter where you are in the world. Ezekwesili’s contributions as both a policymaker and intellectual leader show that there is nothing inevitable about this,” said , director of the , which bestows the award.
“She teaches us that ethical norms can and must guide effective policymaking.”
Ezekwesili is senior economic adviser of the Africa Economic Development Policy Initiative and one of the co-founders and pioneer directors of Transparency International, the Berlin-based global anti-corruption organization. She also is the founder and CEO of Human Capital África, working in the education sector across the continent.
In early 2020, Ezekwesili founded the #FixPolitics initiative, a research-based, citizen-led movement created “to structurally redesign politics and its outcomes.” She also is founder and chairperson of the 91Ƶ of Politics, Policy, and Governance in Abuja, Nigeria, an outgrowth of #FixPolitics that seeks to create a new “disruptive thinking political class” by educating current and future leaders dedicated to the common good.
Ezekwesili served in the government of Nigeria between 2000 and 2007, first as minister of minerals and later of education. She was a vice president of the World Bank – Africa Region in Washington, D.C., between 2007 and 2012 and worked as the director of the Harvard-Nigeria Economic Strategy Project with the Center for International Development at the Kennedy 91Ƶ of Government, Harvard University.
Recognized as one of Time magazine’s “100 Most Influential People,” Ezekwesili also was listed by the New York Times as one of the “25 Women of Impact” in 2015. She is one of 100 visionaries featured by the Albert Einstein Foundations in the 3D-printed book “Genius: 100 Visions of the Future.” The Peace Research Institute Oslo listed her as one of potential candidates for the 2018 Nobel Peace Prize. She was decorated with the national award of Commander of the Order of the Federal Republic by her country.
Ezekwesili was a Richard von Weizsäcker Fellow at the Robert Bosch Academy in Berlin between 2019 and 2020. She currently is a senior fellow at the Jackson Institute for Global Affairs at Yale University.
The Ford Family Notre Dame Award for International Human Development and Solidarity recognizes substantial contributions to human development through research, practice, public service or philanthropy. Recipients are honored for standing in solidarity with those in deepest need. The award is named in honor of University Trustee Emeritus Doug Ford ’66 and his wife, Kathy, whose generosity helped establish the Ford Program.
Past award recipients are , the founder of Meeting Point International; Nobel Peace Prize laureate and social business pioneer ;, Archbishop of Manila; Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations ;; social entrepreneur , CEO and founder of Acumen; development economist and Nobel laureate ;, whose co-founders Paul Farmer and Ophelia Dahl accepted the award on its behalf; and , the United Nations Secretary General’s Special Envoy for Malaria.
The Ford Program in Human Development 91Ƶ and Solidarity, part of the , promotes the interdisciplinary study of international human development with an innovative mix of research, teaching and community engagement and a focus on integral human development, which considers the flourishing of the whole human person.
]]>Pérez-Liñán has a long history with the Kellogg Institute, beginning in 1994 when he was a doctoral student at the University of Notre Dame, receiving a Kellogg Dissertation Year Fellowship in 1998. He returned to Kellogg as a in 2007-08 and again as in 2015-17.
“The Kellogg Institute is a unique community of scholars and a center of research excellence,” Pérez-Liñán said. “It was my long-standing connection to Kellogg that drew me back to Notre Dame in 2018, and I am delighted to have the opportunity to lead the Kellogg Institute in 2022.”
An accomplished teacher and widely cited scholar of processes of democratization, political instability and the rule of law in new democracies, Pérez-Liñán is one of two principal investigators for the , a of the Kellogg Institute and the .
“Aníbal’s areas of expertise and intellectual leadership could not be more timely for the Keough 91Ƶ’s growth as an influential site of global research, policy and practice,” said , the Marilyn Keough Dean of the Keough 91Ƶ of Global Affairs. “An authority on Latin American societies, politics and governance, Aníbal stands squarely in the Kellogg Institute’s renowned tradition of pioneering study of democratization — and the challenges to it — in Latin America and beyond. And he is dedicated to continuing and extending Kellogg’s building of excellence in the study of development and democracy in Africa as well as in Latin America.”
Also noting Pérez-Liñán’s strong international reputation as a leading expert on Latin American democracy, , the I.A. O’Shaughnessy Dean of Notre Dame’s College of Arts and Letters, called him “the most outstanding choice” to lead the Kellogg Institute.
“As a faculty member in our Department of Political Science, Aníbal is well known as an innovative researcher, a thoughtful colleague, a dedicated mentor and a generous collaborator,” Mustillo said. “I look forward to working with him in this new role and continuing to strengthen the student and faculty connections between the College of Arts and Letters and the Kellogg Institute.”
“Aníbal Pérez-Liñán is widely admired by students, staff members and his colleagues at Notre Dame and across the discipline of political science,” said Kellogg Faculty Fellow , one of Pérez-Liñán’s research partners and co-author of their award-winning book, “” (Cambridge University Press). “He has an exceptional ability to get along with very different publics and to get things done.”
Pérez-Liñán is also the author of “Presidential Impeachment and the New Political Instability in Latin America” (Cambridge University Press) and more recently published a series of journal articles on democratic backsliding in Latin America and threats to democracy in the 21st century.
Pérez-Liñán recently served as editor-in-chief of the Latin American Research Review, the scholarly journal of the Latin American 91Ƶ Association, and as co-editor, with Carozza, of the published by University of Notre Dame Press. His research has been funded by the National Science Foundation, the United States Agency for International Development, the Inter-American Development Bank, Uruguay’s National Agency for Research and Innovation and Paraguay’s National Council of Science and Technology.
“I owe a great debt to the Kellogg Institute,” Pérez-Liñán said. “In many ways, my Kellogg experiences and connections have shaped my whole career. I have known every director of the institute throughout the years, and I am grateful for their leadership. I recognize the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead, and this is my opportunity to pay forward what has been given to me.”
The Kellogg Institute for International 91Ƶ, part of the Keough 91Ƶ of Global Affairs at the University of Notre Dame, promotes research excellence on critical global challenges, with a particular focus on democracy and human development. Building on a core interest in Latin America and Africa, Kellogg fosters research on the developing world and beyond. Supporting the research and educational mission of the University by engaging faculty, students and visiting scholars in a supportive intellectual community, the institute helps to project the University onto the global stage.
]]>Piraino, an associate professor in the , assumes the position left vacant when inaugural director ., was named assistant provost for internationalization with last year.
“Patrizio brings to the Ford Program the ideal combination of first-rate research that makes valuable contributions to the field, a multidisciplinary and practice-oriented orientation, and a keen sensitivity to the normative commitments of the Ford Program to advancing integral human development,” said Kellogg Institute Director . “I am excited to see how the program will thrive under his leadership.”
As an applied microeconomist whose work has focused on determinants of socioeconomic disadvantage and issues of global socioeconomic mobility, Piraino brings to the Ford Program experience on a range of economic development questions.
With its emphasis on partnerships and team research, the Ford Program will also benefit from Piraino’s expertise in collaborative international research. His projects in recent years have included collaborations with government agencies and the World Bank on the impact of alternative public services to promote youth work-readiness and employment, as well as a large cross-institutional project on education and social protection with 19 universities around the world, mostly from emerging regions.
“It is a great privilege to serve as director of the Ford Program, a unique initiative that combines academic rigor with a sincere and proven commitment to human dignity and community engagement," said Piraino. "I hope to continue the excellent work of Father Bob in encouraging and supporting opportunities for Notre Dame faculty to embark on research that advances the mission of the program.”
Piraino is an affiliate of the and the and is one of co-founders of , a world database on equality of opportunity and social mobility. His work has been published in numerous high-impact journals including the American Economic Journal, Applied Economics, the Journal of Labor Economics, and Science.
Now with projects in various countries spanning three continents, the Ford Program was founded to foster research, teaching and service that promote integral human development, a holistic model of flourishing rooted in a person's dignity and full potential. The Ford community-engagement model offers a unique approach to research, working collaboratively with partner organizations and community members to identify key concerns and investigate challenges with the aim of offering sustainable solutions.
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