“Voices” recognizes individuals committed to the defense and promotion of peace, human rights, justice and dignity in their life trajectories. There are twelve stories full of values and teachings that inspire and motivate our effort.
In 1978, the Polish Karol Wojtyla became Pope John Paul II. For almost 27 years of pontificate, he has changed and strengthened the position of the institution on diplomatic matters and visited 129 countries, engaged in political discussions in all forums and in the role of world leader. He pledged to help resolve the conflicts in the Middle East and forced the Vatican to recognize the state of Israel in 1994, being the first pope to visit a synagogue and a memorial of victims of the Holocaust. He was also responsible for a significant improvement in the Vatican's relations with Islam, the Anglican and Lutheran Churches, Buddhism, among other beliefs, and he apologized for the errors committed by the Catholic Church in recent centuries. The refugee drama was defined by him as the "shameful sore of our time." Beatified in 2011, he will become a saint of the Catholic Church in one of the fastest processes of canonization in history. read more
Maria Montessori faced the resistance of her father and society to be the first Italian female physician, specializing in children with special needs. The accumulated knowledge and experience served as a basis for the renewal of traditional education of children through the Montessori Method, in which the individual is both subject and object of teaching. Activity, individuality, and freedom make up the triad of principles of the Method with the use of material aimed at the sensory and intellectual stimulus in which the children learn for themselves and following the rhythm of their own discoveries. Montessori graduated in pedagogy, anthropology and psychology and put her ideas into practice in the "House of Children" schools. Her philosophy of self-education through culture, responsibility and the liberation of the deep potentialities of being was widespread internationally. read more
Malala Yousafzai became known in 2009 when writing to the Urdu BBC the blog "Diary of a Pakistani girl" about the difficulties she faced in studying in the northwest region of Pakistan, where the Taliban banned girls from going to school and more than 60 % of women are illiterate. Malala defended women's access to formal education and openly criticized the Taliban, winning prizes and securing political improvements for the schools of the region. However, in 2012, she was hit in the head by a shot of an extremist Taliban while she walked for school. She received medical treatment in the UK, where she currently lives with her family. For her efforts for a free and universal education for all, she is the youngest person nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize and the UN declared the date of her birthday, July 12, as the "Malala Day." read more
After years of dedicated service to UNHCR and the cause of refugees, in April 2012, Angelina Jolie was appointed Special Envoy to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees by António Guterres. In her new and expanded role, she will focus on major crises that result in mass population displacements; defend and represent UNHCR and Guterres at diplomatic level; and engage with decision makers on issues of global displacement. Through this work, she will help contribute to the vital process of finding solutions for people displaced by conflict. Jolie has previously represented UNHCR as Goodwill Ambassador and, in this role, she has conducted more than 40 field visits around the world, becoming proficient in the phenomenon of forced displacement and relentless advocate of the subject. read more
