The UN Sasakawa Award Jury decided to give the Global Network of Civil Society Organizations for Disaster Reduction a "Letter of Commendation" in recognition of its rapid mobilization of a vast network and its success to coordinate local organizations supporting disaster risk reduction.

The jury decided that the Network is too young to be recognized with an official award like the monetary award or the Certificates of Merit/ Distinction, but wanted to give this Letter as an encouragement for its continued efforts for reducing risks at local level.

You can see our submission document here

For additional information about this year's award, please visit the web page for UN Sasakawa Award for Disaster Reduction: www.unisdr.org/we/campaign/sasakawa

Below are some of the reactions from our members:

Congratulations to you and of course all team members of GNDR.

Best Regards

Muhammad Humayun

Deputy Executive Director

Community Research and Development Organization

KPK Pakistan

Accept my hearty Congratulations for getting UN Sasakawa Award 2011.

Thanks & Regards,

Abhinav

GREETINGS!! It's wonderful to hear the news of what you have been done.Where Success'st time seems so hard to get,it's nice to see that you achieve that stage.I express my sincere Congratulations  to You and Entire GNDR team. Now,You proved that,and make it happen. May todays Success be the begining of tomorrows Achievement.I Greet to the entire GNDR Team with a magnitude of Charecters and Charms like you.

Keep it on!!

BANSHIDHAR BEHERA
ANCHALIKA JANA SEVA ANUSTHAN(AJSA)
DISTRICT-BOLANGIR,ORISSA,INDIA

Heartiest congratulations Marcus. You deserve the loudest applause for leading the effort on behalf of all our members. Also a big thank you to all the gndr members for keeping the network alive with excellent inputs and contribution.

Regards

Syed Sharfuddin

CEO, Muslim Aid

www.muslimaid.org

Congratulations, Marcus! Thanks for your leadership. We are proud of GNDR and its works. Regards, Amod

Greetings!!  Big congrats to you and entire team of GNDRR . This has become possible only because of tireless work and making binding force. hard work never goes waste, recongnition is a must.  this award will accelerate your responsibilty and more to put into action. we all are proud of the UNISDR SASAKAWA AWARD.

Dear Marcus and Global Network Friends,

Let me add my congratulations to Marcus, Terry, Regine and to everyone else who was involved in preparing the application for the Sasakawa Award - I seem to remember Andrew Bidnell also had a role to play in the process at one point. How wonderful it is too to see all the messages of congratulations - it speaks of the great depth of feeling that the members have for this network, which for me is one of its great strengths.

As many have pointed out, the award is recognition of what the network has been able to achieve in a relatively short amount of time, and provides us with added incentive to redouble our efforts into the future. Here in Thailand we are currently collaborating with a range of organizations and agencies to address the extensive risks posed by climate change, and in this respect the need to promote good local governance and to ensure the voices of those at the frontline are clearly heard is as important as ever. This recognition from UNISDR will only serve to add weight to GNDR's messages when we communicate with the global community.

Congratulations to the secretariat and to everyone who has been involved with GNDR and VFL, it is a wonderful and heartening achievement indeed.

With very best wishes to one and all,

Jo
 

Jonathan Shott (Jo)
Project Manager and Disaster Management Consultant

Thank you Marcus and the Coordination Team for your good work and congratulation for you and the organisations all over the world.

Regards

Ma. Verónica Bastías

This is very well deserved, especially by the many devoted people in GNDR member organisations all over the world who have been working so hard with communities for so long, and lobbying with their governments, and by the communities themselves!

Congratulations!

BEN

Dear Marcus:
 
Good for this recognition!
Congratulations to all the friends of the Red Globall!
 
Abelina

Congratulation to the entire group for the great work!

This is a very satisfactory news.

Best regards,

Illari.

Marcus, Terry and Regine

We are so proud of your leader role in all this process!!!!

Greetings from Nicaragua.

Jaime Mok

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Estimado Marcus:

 Felicitaciones  por esta  carta de  reconocimiento.

 Muchos  saludos:
Pedro Ferradas

Pedro Ferradas Mannucci

Gerente del Programa de Gestión de Riesgo

y Adaptación al Cambio Climático - GRACC

Wow!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Great work, great contribution,
I wish to congratulate specially to  Marcus, Terry, Regine  and all the team members of  GNDR for their hard and dedicated work. This is really an honour for all of us, being the network members. We are proud of you our great team! You remember Marcus, I wrote you couple of days before, acknowledging your contribution, which ultimately brought this great name to us.

For you and for all of us this is the challenge started, the award is an acknowledgment to your efforts by UNISDR, however, the real award is the people, the communities. the humanity, who are continually suffering due to natural, technological and human induced disasters. I look forward and wish , GNDRR must the only 1st network to achieve the public recognizance awards for disaster risk reduction.   
We need to look into this challenge and design strategies to develop local coping mechanism at local level.

Syed Harir shah
Executive Director
International Institute for Disaster Risk Management

Dear Marcus,

Congratulations!!! I am glad that our work has been recognized!!!

Kind regards

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Congratulations for your group and for all the GNDR members!!.

Sincerelly, GAbriela Pignataro

CULTURA AMBIENTAL

Montevideo, Uruguay

Congratulations. Please keep the fire burning. You providing a voice and platform for the voiceless who are making a difference in their communities and nations.  Without your platform their voices would not be heard.

Congrats Marcus, Terry, Regine & all the champions of GNDR! Yes, we may be kindagarden amongst graduates but like our saying goes 'only when a kid washes his hands clean can he/she eat with elders' Bravo VFL, in just 2 years you achieved what others took retirement age to accomplish.

We are proud of this network.

Congratulations Marcus, and to everyone who has been part of it. Great to get the recognition.

Congratulations !!!! I like this that we are "to young "!!!

All the best 

graciela

Uruguay

Congratulations to Marcus and All!

Best regards,

Baltz

Dear Marcus
Great and congratulations !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I am sure the decision ISDR has taken "Letter of Commendation" to honour and encourage VFL contributions is one of the just decisions.

i am so happy to express my thankfulness to you as the Chair, Terry as a very hard working project manager, Regine as  responsible administrator, Steering Committee Members for their efficient supports, VFL Regional and National Coordinators for their dedicated commitments and overall the 22000 respondents who reflected their views to the global arena that lead VFL to be honoured.

Taking this opportunity, i would thank you again on behalf of SEA region, Cambodia NC and POs and respondents and our organization Save the Earth.

I wish VFL is coming up with more visible feedback (once we complete, sub-national, national, regional consultations and reports to lead the VFL global report 2011) that would be assisting ISDR to think more rigorously for the upcoming 2013 and 2015 and beyond ......... in the DRR fields.

Best regards
sano

Dear Marcus and Global Network members,

Having actively supported the submission by the GNDR to the Sasakawa Award I am extremely pleased that the judges have finally taken steps to acknowledge the very considerable achievement  of the GNDR and VFL work over a short period of time and despite its youth. Congratulations to all of you.

Best regards.

John Norton

Président

Development Workshop France (DWF)