Awards, Sep 18, 2008

The following awards have been presented for work in advocacy, fund raising, nonprofit leadership, philanthropy, and other areas:

Humanitarianism. The Conrad N. Hilton Foundation (Reno, Nev.) has presented its 2008 Humanitarian Prize to Brac (Dhaka, Bangladesh). This organization, which operates in Bangladesh and eight other Asian and African countries, was recognized for its success in relieving poverty by issuing microloans, improving access to education and basic health care, and creating new jobs. The Hilton Foundation awards $1.5-million annually to a nonprofit group that has contributed significantly to alleviating human suffering.

Leadership. The Heinz Family Foundation (Pittsburgh) has announced the recipients of the 2008 Heinz Awards, which recognize exceptional leadership and accomplishments in five areas and honor the late Sen. H. John Heinz III, Republican of Pennsylvania. The winners, who each receive $250,000:

— Arts and humanities. Ann Hamilton, a visual artist and a professor of art at Ohio State U. (Columbus), for her work, which often uses sound, found objects, and the spoken word.

— Environment. Thomas J. FitzGerald, founder and director of the Kentucky Resources Council (Frankfort), for his work to improve environmental health.

— Human condition. Brenda Krause Eheart, founder of Generations of Hope and Hope Meadows (Rantoul, Ill.), for her innovative approach to adoption and foster care.

— Public policy. Robert Greenstein, founder of the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (Washington), for his work to ensure that the interests of low-income people are considered in public discussions of proposed budget and tax policies.

— Technology, the economy, and employment. Joseph DeRisi, a professor of biochemistry at the U. of California at San Francisco, for his breakthroughs in detecting both new and existing viruses.

Public service. The Smithsonian Institution’s Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars has recognized Ruth Sharp Altshuler with its Award for Public Service, and T. Boone Pickens with its Award for Corporate Citizenship. Ms. Altshuler Sharp, who was the first female board chair of the Communities Foundation of Texas, in Dallas, and the first female chair of the Board of Trustees at Southern Methodist U., also in Dallas, was recognized for her major gifts to the university, including an endowment for a learning center. Mr. Pickens, the Texas oil billionaire, was recognized for his wide-ranging gifts, including those to the U. of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas, the U. of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, in Houston, and his alma mater, Oklahoma State U.