Humpty Dumpty Institute (HDI)
NEW YORK, NY - Cosmo DeNicola is proud to announce that Humpty Dumpty Institute president and CEO Ralph L. Cwerman, has been awarded for his leadership and humanitarian work around the world for the past 17 years. Cwerman traveled to Kansas City, Missouri where Mary Jeanne Eisenhower, the granddaughter of America's 34th U.S. President, Dwight D. Eisenhower, presided over the ceremony and presented Mr. Cwerman with the award.
Mr. Cwerman and the Humpty Dumpty Institute (www.thehdi.org) were honored for their original groundbreaking work of clearing mine fields around the world, feeding thousands of school children in some of the poorest countries in the world, and implementing innovative solutions helping landmine victims overcome their economic hardships by providing them with new job opportunities. Unique projects in Sri Lanka, Vietnam and Laos are all fine examples of combining economic programs with mine clearance to provide disabled mine victims with a chance to get ahead in economic dead zones.
The Presidential Leadership award was given to Mr. Cwerman by the well known organization named People-to-People International located in Kansas City. For 50 years, People to People Programs have provided educational travel for students across the globe. With more than 20,000 students traveling annually, People to People Programs continue to play a significant role in increasing global awareness. In 1956, President Eisenhower proposed a peaceful solution for a war-ravaged world. That solution? Give everyday citizens of different countries the opportunity to meet and get to know each other, and the result will be understanding, friendship, and lasting peace. Out of this vision came the "People to People" movement. Starting with the first traveling delegation in the early 1960s, People to People Programs began to break down cultural barriers by providing short-term travel opportunities with the personal, behind-the-scenes access that Eisenhower envisioned. Today, more than 50 years later, Eisenhower's vision has transformed to match the needs of our modern world. With increased access to international travel and the Internet, the globe has become a much smaller place. People to People interactions are more important than ever as we learn to co-exist and thrive in a global society. The goal is simple: Provide students the international experiences to increase their global awareness in a truly global society.
In presenting the award to Mr. Cwerman, Ms. Eisenhower described the Humpty Dumpty Institute as a truly original and effective organization that helps disenfranchised people all over the world and said that "Mr. Cwerman serves as a great inspiration to us all." Mr. Cwerman thanked Mary Eisenhower and said that "it felt good to have the Humpty Dumpty Institute recognized and honored for all the hard work that it has accomplished over the years." Cwerman added that "The Humpty Dumpty Institute is a small organization with a very small staff. But we have been able to stay focused on a number of projects about which we are very passionate. The results have been truly magnificent."
"Mary Eisenhower is my friend," Mr. Cwerman said, "as well as a long time supporter of the Humpty Dumpty institute. I am thrilled to receive this award from someone who I admire so much and who, in her own capacity, has accomplished so much around the world with her own organization. The Humpty Dumpty Institute and People-to-People International will begin to explore new opportunities about working together in the future." Cwerman said that "the two organizations do very similar things, especially with the Institute’s new emphasis on international education and providing new sources of global awareness to those universities in the United States that have little or no opportunities to understand the world in which we live."
