A Nigeria Wins Award Alongside, Jennifer Hudson, Samuel Jackson, Kevin Hart, Nikole Hannah-Jones
By Bisade Ojoye
It is the award season in the US and across some western nations’ deserving citizens and immigrants have been recognized and honored for their contributions to humanity in many of the major cities in US.
The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is the largest civil rights organization established over 113 years ago to advocate for the socio-economic and political rights of people of color are not left out of this yearly ritual.
The NAACP Awards are categorized from entertainment, social Justice and environmental Justice they can be national or regional (branch). Either way the 2022 Award cycle acknowledges the outstanding accomplishments from people of color who have inspired transformational changes over the years in socio-political, environmental climate justice, technology, and entertainment across the 2,500 branches.
This year was no exception as Jennifer Hudson was named entertainer of the year for 2022 during the NAACP 2022 Entertainment awards which highlight works from artists, entertainers, producers, and writers of color.
The NAACP 2022 Image awards also saw Samuel L. Jackson receive the NAACP Chairman’s award for his public service, social activism, and his acting achievements which have inspired thousands.
Some other notable NAACP Image awards winners this year include: Mr. Kevin Hart for his role in True Story and Ms. Nikole Hannah-Jones, who received the Social Justice Impact Award and Dr. Gbujie Daniel Chidubem, a Nigerian who was honored on the 20th of April 2022 by the NAACP’s Mid-Manhattan Branch in New York with the prestigious Environmental Climate Justice Award.
He is a multi-award winner, global health consultant and a UN sustainable development goals (SDGs) advocate who has been featured in China’s Forbes magazine edition in March 2021 as an emerging African social innovator for the app idea he created called “SpaceClime and RepClime” and having won the Manevia African Leadership Award in honour of Young Diaspora professionals inspiring change in Diaspora.
The profile of this exceptional young Nigerian who hails precisely from Akabor-Umuayaka, Ahiazu Mbaise LGA, Imo State in the South Eastern part of Nigeria has endeared him to
many Africans and non-Africans who have been excited by his feat of clinching of the environmental award last week.
Gbujie has been able to build an international platform using his organization, a youth-based environment group registered in the US called Team54Project.org, to rally tens of thousands of people, especially youth to join the push in locally addressing the climate crisis through education, training, skills, talents and exploration of technology.
Gbujie’s award has not gone unnoticed as notable international and continental personalities have also been sending congratulatory messages since the news was announced in New York a few days ago.
One notable international personality is the former President of the World Medical Association in 2015, Dr. Xaiver Deau of France, who a day ago posted online his congratulatory message by highlighting that Dr. Gbujie has always been exceptional, following his impressive performance at the WMA/Junior Doctor Network Award in April 2015 in far away from Oslo, Norway where he won an award for his innovative solution to addressing the dying medical education programs called medical residency in Nigeria. Dr. Deau said, “Gbujie, I have only good memories from our encounter, we are proud of you and share in the incredible journey you have paved, Congratulations”. He said.
Gbujie this year joins the likes of other Africans based in the USA who also have been winners of other NAACP awards though in different categories at the national and regional levels one notable mentions is Trevor Noah from South Africa who’s Shows won the outstanding comedy TV shows.
Gbujie displays an uncommon mental capacity and creativity that makes him stand out from billions of young people across the globe and he has joined the growing list of Africans representing the continent.
His accomplishments may have been responsible for H.E António Guterres the
Secretary-General of the United Nations to invite him to the 2019, UN General assembly and likely the same reason the UNICEF had him as one of their ambassadors and advocate for one of their community based project managed with Conceptos Plasticos, an international firm based in Latin America they currently are working at building high-end plastic schools in Cote d’Ivoire from solely plastic waste collected by locals in the West Africa nation.
In his words, Gbujie said, ‘Service to humanity is the currency that responsible human should pay for the advancement of our society, because it is what creates the ideal community that everyone wishes to reside in, however this peaceful environment must be intentionally created through genuine services to others, especially the most vulnerable in the society who can’t speak for themselves.’ he said.
A Namibian based in Windhoek, Nerson Tjelos in his social media posting explained that Dr. Gbujie has been a mentor and has inspired tens of thousands of Africa and that himself has benefited from the educational outreach, furthermore, he said Gbujie was instrumental to him coming for a climate reality project training in the US in 2018 where he was better able to understands the climate crisis and how it affects his country.
Nerson say he now works for a leading water management and renewable energy firm in and he is an active member of the Team54project family in Namibia.
Gbujie in his acceptance speech sent to the award-giving body and made public, Gbujie thanked the NAACP mid manhattan executive council who where the host of the environmental climate justice for 2022 and also the ECJ committee members who were jurists that selected him for 2022.
He gave thanks to the Almighty God and acknowledged the support he got from his wife, parent, relatives and members of the organization he founded.
Gbujie explained that
“African immigrants over the last 100 years have added value to the US and this is against the various forms of huddle set before them, many have continued to redefine what perseverance looks like and have gone on to share their success stories and accomplishment in the different sectors here in the US, am just keeping that tradition alive” Gbujie said.
Gbujie’s global and national contributions seem to go beyond that of the environmental concerns, they include community health program, youth mentorship, and social entrepreneurial training, developing conceptual content especially back on the African continent and few vulnerable nations in Pacific region.
He also congratulated other awardees like Ms. Chante Harris, one of the leading female minds addressing climate crisis through the use of technology and Rev. Dr. Patricia Singletary, who is one of the leading female clergywoman advocate to be first female to lead the black clergy association in the 90s, she is a known champion for the empowerment and respect for dignity to people of color in New York and across the US.
Source: Daily Digest News
