Roots of Peace Selected as a 2006 Skoll Award Recipient

The Skoll Foundation has selected Roots of Peace, one of the Office of Weapons Removal and Abatement’s Public-Private Partners in humanitarian mine action, as one of the recipients of the 2006 Skoll Award for Social Entrepreneurship. The award was presented on March 30 at the Skoll World Forum Awards Ceremony in Oxford, England. The Skoll Foundation seeks to advance systemic change to benefit communities around the world by investing in, connecting and celebrating social entrepreneurs.

Roots of Peace was recognized for its successful efforts to remove landmines and replant valuable agricultural land in mine affected countries around the world. Roots of Peace began in 1997 with Founder and President Heidi Kuhn’s vision of turning dangerous minefields into thriving farmland. Roots of Peace’s "mines to vines" initiative has helped to support mine clearance efforts in Angola, Afghanistan, Cambodia, Croatia, and Iraq.

Heidi Kuhn (center), Founder and President of Roots of Peace, accepts the 2006 Skoll Award for Social Entrepreneurship from (left to right) Sally Osberg, President and CEO of the Skoll Foundation; Academy Award winner Sir Ben Kingsley; Actor/Producer Robert Redford; and Jeff Skoll, Founder and Chairman of the Skoll Foundation. (Photo credit: The Skoll Foundation)