We’re proud to announce that JA Worldwide has been nominated for the 2023 Nobel Peace Prize, the second such honor in two years.

Nominations may be received only from heads of state and certain elected officials, university professors in selected fields, past Nobel laureates, and a few other notable individuals. We were approached throughout the last year by a number of eligible nominators and, although the identity of each nominee officially remains anonymous for 50 years, we know that at least one of those nominations was accepted by the Nobel Peace Prize Committee. There may have been more.

Founded 104 years ago, JA is now one of the largest youth-serving NGOs in the world, delivering over 15 million student learning experiences for employment and entrepreneurship in the last year alone. Operating in over 100 countries, JA teaches youth to develop the skillset and mindset to create businesses, find meaningful employment, and build thriving communities.

Thanks to what they learn in JA, students develop ambitions beyond their own economic reward, with young people understanding that entrepreneurship is not only a means to healthy finances for themselves and their families but also a vehicle to cultivate social stability and build healthy communities. JA students and alumni create companies that offer products and services that fill a consumer need; enable an ecosystem of employees, partners, and suppliers to thrive; and also fundamentally transform the world, or at least their small corner of it.

Impact data has shown that entrepreneurship education doesn’t just prepare youth for entrepreneurship; it also develops job-ready skills, fosters creativity, and builds resilience. For many students, the early experience of being a CEO or COO during their formative years helps them develop the self-efficacy that will assure they will reach their goals, regardless of the challenges that lay ahead. JA may also expose them to a world that their parents cannot introduce to them and changes their life trajectory by providing job skills and economic empowerment.

Given our global reach, as well as an ecosystem that nurtures a global community of alumni, JA also builds cross-border friendships that reinforce exactly what the world needs: curiosity about cultural and religious practices, respectful and honest conversations, expectations of equality and equal opportunities, and a win-win approach to conflict.

Asheesh Advani, CEO of JA Worldwide, shared his perspective in response to the nomination:

“Peace is possible only when youth in all countries and regions have economic empowerment. By creating opportunity, prosperity, and self-belief, JA’s work empowers youth in over 100 countries with the skillset and mindset to build thriving communities. For over a century, JA has operated in areas of political instability, violence, and war, helping youth build entrepreneurship skills and economic resilience. For this work, JA Worldwide is recognized year after year as one of the top ten NGOs in the world, providing economic empowerment to millions of young people.”