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Glasgow Caledonian University Chancellor, Professor Muhammad Yunus has been presented with the US Congressional Gold Medal at a ceremony on Capitol Hill, Washington, in recognition of his efforts to combat global poverty.

The Gold Medal represents the US Congress’s highest expression of national appreciation for distinguished achievements and contributions. The ceremony took place on Wednesday, April 17, 2013 in the Capitol Rotunda.

Professor Yunus, founder of the Grameen Bank, is one of only seven people to have won the Nobel Peace Prize, the Presidential Medal of Freedom and the Congressional Gold Medal. The previous individuals who have done so are Martin Luther King Jr., Mother Teresa, Nelson Mandela, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, Elie Wiesel and Norman Borlaug.

Principal and Vice-Chancellor of GCU, Professor Pamela Gillies CBE, and Professor Barbara Parfitt, Principal of Grameen Caledonian College of Nursing, were guests at the ceremony.

Prior to the presentation, House Speaker John Boehner, said: “Professor Yunus set out to do what may be the biggest thing of all, and that is liberating people to seek a better life. And not just any people, but men and women who had only known misery, who had been told they were no good.

“To do all this, he first had to teach himself how to run a bank from scratch. That was when he realised he had to do the exact opposite of what a bank normally does to make his idea work. Then there was actually getting people to borrow the money, to see value in themselves, to spark their sense of wonder. He had to convince them that they too didn’t need rank or status to advance their place in life.

“Then of course there were all the sceptics. One banker called his experiment ‘nothing, a flyspeck.’  Another said this ‘is not really a bank. It depends too much on Professor Yunus’s personality. We can’t have a Yunus in every branch.’

“Right then and there, in front of a table full of bankers, Professor Yunus drew up a five-year expansion plan for his experiment and challenged them to choose areas he could never reach all at once. Of course, his plan succeeded and millions around the world are better for it.

“It’s the hard work and the sacrifice that separates the doers from the dreamers. And so for Professor Muhammad Yunus – a revolutionary in his own right – the United States Mint has struck a Gold Medal, which we present with awe and gratitude.”

Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi also delivered an address.

She said: “From the villages of Bangladesh to the halls of the Nobel Committee to the corridors of power across the globe, Professor Muhammad Yunus has challenged the conscience of the world. He has inspired us in his the belief that ending poverty is possible. Ending poverty is necessary. Ending poverty is our moral responsibility. For his vision, for his leadership, for his efforts to unleash the power of human potential, especially among women, it is an honor to join my colleagues to award Professor Yunus with the Congressional Gold Medal.”

Glasgow Caledonian University is a registered Scottish charity, number SC021474

Winner: Times Higher Education’s Widening Participation Initiative of the Year 2009 and Herald Society’s Education Initiative of the Year 2009.

http://www.gcu.ac.uk/newsevents/news/bycategory/theuniversity/1/name,6219,en.html

Winner: Times Higher Education’s Outstanding Support for Early Career Researchers of the Year 2010, GCU as a lead with Universities Scotland partners.