As the Jury‘s decision to select the 2026 Right Livelihood Laureates gets closer, Ben Lyons, the latest addition to the Research Team, reveals how the case for a Laureate is built: from getting proposals to analysing profiles and contexts in an individualised manner to compile a Jury Report with almost a hundred nominations. The complexity and responsibility this investigation demands are present from day one in the role.
By Ben Lyons, Junior Research Officer*
Within a few short weeks of starting my traineeship at Right Livelihood, I was handed a task which felt surprisingly significant for a newcomer: conducting strategic outreach with the aim of identifying potential nominations for the 2026 Right Livelihood Award working on themes which had been identified as significant. In many organisations, a trainee might spend their first month shadowing colleagues or handling routine administration. Instead, I was immediately entrusted with building the case for a potential future Laureate. This early responsibility set the tone for my entire experience. It signalled to me a culture where impact is not determined by seniority but is open to anyone willing to engage. Receiving such a task so early made me feel like a genuine part of the team rather than just an observer.
As my work progressed, my primary focus was on nominations working at the intersection of land sovereignty, women’s rights, and extractivism in Southern Africa. While I had conducted interviews before in academic settings, the pace and diversity of this role presented a distinct challenge. I was no longer analysing a single case study in isolation, I was concurrently managing several nominations, each operating with their own specific structures in unique political and cultural contexts. The difficulty lay in balancing these parallel narratives without conflating their specific struggles. One day I would be speaking with academics about legal frameworks, the next consulting civil society actors and Laureates about the on-the-ground realities faced by nominations, and then discussing the effects of these activities with beneficiaries. Moving from a singular academic focus to this multi-layered work required a new approach. To navigate this, our team relies on rigorous documentation. By organising every interview note and data point, we ensured that the nuances of each nomination’s context was preserved, allowing us to switch between nominations without losing the red thread of their story and their work.
This process has fundamentally reshaped my understanding of what research can achieve. In an academic setting, the end goal of research is often publication or contribution to theoretical debate, whereas at Right Livelihood, I have learned that thorough research is the bedrock of tangible impact. Our work directly informs the Jury Report, which guides the selection of each year’s Laureates. Realising that my analysis could directly influence this decision was a profound moment. It highlighted that our team’s commitment to independence and collaboration served not just as abstract concepts but as daily operational necessities. The trust placed in me to handle sensitive nomination materials was not just a gesture of confidence, it felt like an invitation to participate in the vital work of growing a community of changemakers.
My time as a trainee has taught me that meaningful professional growth comes from being treated as a capable contributor from day one. The freedom to explore topics that interested me, combined with the trust of my manager, allowed me to develop skills far beyond what I expected from a traineeship. My major takeaway is that your perspective matters, regardless of your experience level. Being trusted from the outset gave me the confidence to contribute meaningfully and reinforced the knowledge that research is more than just an academic exercise, it is a vital tool for recognising and amplifying the voices and work of those striving for change.
* Having completed the Global Campus EMA Master’s programme in Human Rights and Democratisation in 2024/25, Ben began his Traineeship with Right Livelihood in January 2026 for a period of 6 months. He will continue with us as a Junior Research Officer following the end of his Traineeship period.
