This award marks what is now the ninth time that the University of Potsdam has honored an academic who has demonstrated particular commitment to dialogue in society, the freedom of research and teaching and the right to freedom of expression. Funded by the Friede Springer Foundation, the €5,000 prize has now been presented at a special ceremony forming part of the University of Potsdam’s New Year reception on its Griebnitzsee campus.
Professor Rosario Figari Layús’s research and social engagement are geared toward upholding human rights, explaining science to the general public and promoting justice and peace, especially in Latin America. Within this region, she has conducted research in contexts of extreme violence and discrimination while also working tirelessly to get the voices of the victims heard and defend their rights.
Even while she was still a student in Buenos Aires, she interviewed relatives of missing persons and survivors of illegal imprisonment and torture for a research project on the crimes of Argentina’s military dictatorship. Later, she would go on to address paramilitary violence in Colombia and work closely with victims of the armed conflict there. As well as courage, this required a strong sense of ethical responsibility. “Professor Layús has always put the protection and dignity of the people affected at the forefront of her research and made sure that they have been able to reap maximum benefit from her findings,” said panel member Professor Florian Schweigert in the speech that he gave in her honor. In 2018, she and some colleagues set up “Academicxs en Riesgo,” an international network that helps to raise awareness across the world of the risks and threats facing Latin America, drum up support and formulate joint strategies for tackling the problems. Rosario Figari Layús has also been a member of the advisory board of the UNESCO Chair on the Protection of Human Rights Defenders for the past two years, in which role she is currently helping to develop a timetable for good practice. “With her work, her persistence and her courage, Professor Layús truly is the living embodiment of Voltaire’s ideals,” praised Florian Schweigert.