Awards, Appreciation and Accolades

Jerry who is the founder of the coveted, prestigious and inclusive Karmaveer awards in partnership with the UN, ironically has a strict "NO AWARDS POLICY" because he believes he is not doing anything extraordinary and feels that social work, not be recognized with personal awards. Jerry Almeida has a policy of not accepting awards for 3 primary reasons: he does not want to lobby or campaign for them, and he believes that many awards are promoted by organizations, institutions, trusts, foundations and nations with vested interests that he often speaks out against for their wrongdoings and he does not want to be co-opted by their hidden agendas.

Humility to stay grounded: Jerry considers his social work to be a normal part of creating a better world for the benefit of future generations including his own children and children in his near and dear family and friend circle and does not see it as award-worthy. Jerry also feels that awards make one fly in the air and lose focus on the real mission as they then keep applying for more and more awards as done by many who make it their life mission to apply for every award.

Conflict of Interest: He avoids accepting awards from sponsors, governments, institutions, and businesses that he has publicly criticized, to maintain his independence and avoid being co-opted by their ideologies. Long-term vision: He believes that the social and economic benefits of his work should be a lasting legacy for all future generations, not a personal accolade for himself.

He prefers to focus his time and resources on grassroots work and believes that his work is not "great" enough to require recognition, stating that the work itself is the award and will benefit his own children and all future generations.

Focus on grassroots work: Almeida prefers to dedicate his time and resources to his social justice work rather than campaigning for awards.

Belief in work as the award: He believes that the work he does is not "great" enough to be awarded and that the true reward is the work itself.

Passing awards to volunteers: While declining awards for himself, he sometimes passes them on to volunteers and individuals who work with him to encourage their efforts.

However, Jerry does appreciate the kind gesture by many people who have nominated him for the awards as their love and respect is the highest awards and honour for Jerry. An indicative list of awards Jerry was nominated for is given below

2002: Rajiv Gandhi National Sadbhavana Award: An award given for outstanding contribution to the promotion of communal harmony, national integration, and peace. Jerry was nominated by “The Gandhi family” for all his proactive social justice and peace-building work in Gujarat and efforts to create awareness about the Gujarat pogrom and violence, after the Godhra incident in 2002.

2004: Indira Gandhi Prize for Peace, Disarmament and Development, an annual award given by the Indira Gandhi Memorial Trust for efforts in international peace, development, and scientific progress for humanity. Jerry was nominated by Mr. Vasant Sathe (Parliamentarian and Politician) for all his peace campaigns and for creating ad launching “The Joy of Giving movement” in 2003. This award was passed on by Jerry to Ms. Geeta Sawhney and Mr. Avinash Singh who were the filmmaker for “The Joy of Giving” documentary.

2006: The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship recognizes and awards social entrepreneurs and innovators who are creating systemic change. It is a part of the World Economic Forum and honours individuals and organizations across four categories: Social Entrepreneurs, Corporate Social Innovators, Public Social Innovators, and Collective Social Innovators. The awards celebrate pioneering leaders who develop and scale solutions to social and environmental challenges, such as improving health, education, and access to technology. Jerry was nominated by Ms. Meera Sanyal (Banker and Politician) and Mr. Deep C. Anand (Chairman of the ANAND Group) for creating and promoting iTEAM – Institutionalised Training Empowerment, Advancement of the Marginalised- to upskill youth from unserved and undeserved areas for industry based skill jobs in partnership with SNS Foundation (CSR arm of The Anand Group) and strategic alliance with the Government of India, CII, NASSCOM, RAI and FICCI. iTEAM sowed the seeds for the foundation of the National Skills Development Corporation.

2007: Eisenhower Fellowships identifies, empowers and connects innovative leaders through a transformative fellowship experience and lifelong engagement in a global network of dynamic change agents committed to creating a world more peaceful, prosperous and just. Mr. Arun Maira (Chairman of the Boston Consulting Group and Member of the Planning Commission of India) nominated Jerry for the fellowship.

2008: Yale World Fellows is an international fellowship program at Yale University for rising global leaders. World Fellows come from around the world and from diverse disciplines. They are selected through a competitive application process. Each year, the program selects 16 World Fellows to reside at Yale for the fall semester to study, share their knowledge, and expand their networks. Mr. Paul Folmsbee (US Diplomat, Ambassador and Consul General to India 2008-2011) nominated Jerry for the Yale World Fellows program.

2009: Aspen Institute fellowships support individuals who are leading in their fields—and who are committed to leading with purpose. Through transformative experiences, curated dialogue, and enduring peer networks, our fellowships help people explore their values, strengthen their impact, and connect across sectors, geographies, and generations. Ms. Anu Aga (Chairperson Thermax Group and Founding Trustee of the Aspen Institute India) nominated Jerry for the fellowship.

2011: The Ramon Magsaysay Award, Asia's premier prize and highest honour, recognizes greatness of spirit shown in selfless service to the peoples of Asia. Jerry was nominated along with Ms. Neelima Mishra for the ‘Caring Capital’ initiative launched in partnership with NABARD - National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development – and AFC India Ltd. (formerly Agricultural Finance Corporation Ltd.) to empower the marginalised farmers of Maharashtra and creating a model that could be replicated across India. Neelima and Jerry were nominated by Dr. Jagannath Wani (Indian-born Canadian statistician and philanthropist).

2013: Jerry’s first Karma Kurry book was launched and became a bestseller. The book and other books in the “Karma Kurry” series were nominated for bestseller listings by leading newspapers of the world and also nominated for the Crossword Book Award in the non-fiction category.

2016: Jerry was commissioned by the Prime Minister’s office to co-author PM Modi’s Mann Ki Baat book which was listed in several bestseller lists.

2017- Mode, a global business and lifestyle magazine profiled Jerry as the most energizing, empowering & experimental storyteller in the 10 most influential authors in the world, along with Brene Brown, Oprah Winfrey, Sheryl Sandberg, Neil Gaiman, Khaled Husseini, Malcolm Gladwell, Thich Nhat Hanh and others.

2019- Vista another global Magazine listed Jerry in the 50 most admired global Indians along with Arunima Sinha, Bhaichung Bhutia, Deepa Malik and Kartikeya Sarabhai.

2000 to 2025: Over the years Jerry as a coach, trainer, facilitator, mentor and leadership learning & organisation development professional has received many nominations from several coaching and mentoring federations and HR bodies for his work in Learning & Development. Many participants who have attended his Leadership learning sessions have also nominated him for HR and L & D awards.

While Jerry has declined all the awards since he wants to strictly adhere to his self-imposed “No Awards Policy” pledge, he is sincerely grateful and inherently obliged to all the people who have recognised and appreciated his work. OBRIGADO!