21st Bruno Kreisky Awards Ceremony for Services to Human Rights

WELCOME:
Mayor Dr Michael Ludwig
Former Governor, University Professor. Dr Ewald Nowotny, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Bruno Kreisky Foundation for Services to Human Rights

GUEST LECTURE:
Attacks on the independent judiciary, academia and the media
Professor Frauke Brosius-Gersdorf, PhD, legal scholar, University of Potsdam

AWARD CEREMONIES:
Presentation of the Bruno Kreisky Prize to:
Youth Initiative for Human Rights - Kosovo
Laudatio: Marijana Grandits, human rights expert
Presentation of the Bruno Kreisky Prize to:
Mag. Martin Schenk
Laudatio: Dr Harald Katzmair, sociologist and philosopher
Presentation of the Bruno Kreisky Prize to:
Dr Volker Türk, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights – Award presented in absentia

PRESENTATION, ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS AND CLOSING REMARKS:
Professor Emeritus DDr Oliver Rathkolb, Member of the Executive Board, Bruno Kreisky Foundation for Human Rights

Subsequent reception

For security reasons, admission to the event is granted only upon by registering personally via email at office@kreisky-menschenrechte.org providing the following details: first name, surname, address and mobile phone number by 15 October 2026 at the latest, and presenting an official form of identification (passport, identity card, driving licence) for identification purposes.

Admission is only possible until 18:15.

2026 AWARD WINNERS

Youth Initiative for Human Rights – Kosovo
The Youth Initiative for Human Rights (YIHR) was founded in 2003 as an NGO and has developed into a regional network covering Kosovo, Serbia, Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Croatia. YIHR Kosovo (YIHR KS) has been in existence since 2004 and has been working for two decades to protect and promote human rights and democratic values in Kosovo and across the region. Over the years, YIHR KS has successfully engaged thousands of young people, established lasting cross-border partnerships and received national and international recognition for its contributions to human rights and peace-building. Its key areas of focus are dealing with the past, protecting human rights and the rule of law, and empowering young people at local and regional levels. YIHR KS’s mission is to inspire young people to document human rights violations, take preventive action, promote their inclusion and build partnerships to amplify voices and foster peace. The Executive Director is Marigona Shabiu, who has extensive experience in civil society and relevant academic qualifications.

Mag. Martin Schenk
Martin Schenk is a social psychologist who has worked for Diakonie for many years and previously worked in youth services as well as with people with disabilities, the homeless and those suffering from severe trauma. As a social expert, he has been committed for decades to the common good, justice and harmonious social coexistence, and in the mid-1990s he co-founded the Poverty Conference, in whose coordination team he continues to serve to this day. He is a networker and the initiator of, amongst others, „Hunger for Art and Culture“, „Hemayat“, the „Journalism Prize for the Marginalised“, the „Social Rights Network“ and the „Mitgehen“ project. Using academic evidence and the experiences of those affected, he combats myths and stigmatisation, raising public awareness and seeking solutions. He writes regularly for the street newspaper *Augustin* and teaches at the Vienna University of Applied Sciences for Social Work. His book *Brot und Rosen* (Bread and Roses) emphasises both material and non-material foundations of life. He has also co-initiated relevant studies and has been a member of the Human Rights Advisory Board since 2000.

United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Dr Volker Türk
Dr Türk took up his post as the eighth United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights in Geneva in October 2022.Prior to this, Dr Türk served as Under-Secretary-General for Policy (2021–2022) and Assistant Secretary-General for Strategic Coordination in the Executive Office of the Secretary-General of the United Nations in New York (2019–2021). In this role, he coordinated system-wide strategic initiatives and policy issues, including the Secretary-General’s report „Our Common Agenda“ – a vision for strengthening multilateralism that served as the basis for the Future Summit and the Future Pact. As Deputy High Commissioner for Refugees for Protection at UNHCR in Geneva (2015–2019), Dr Türk played a key role, amongst other things, in the development of the Global Compact on Refugees. Prior to that, Dr Türk held key positions with the UNHCR in Geneva as well as in various countries, including Malaysia, Kosovo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Kuwait.Dr Türk obtained his PhD in international law from the University of Vienna and has published numerous academic papers on international refugee law and international human rights issues.