Voices Against Indifference Initiative

The Bernard Kouchner Project: Compassion Without Borders

September 2003 - February 2004

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Fifth Annual Echo Award Dinner
Founders Hall, Bank of America, 100 N. Tryon St.
February 24, 2004, 7:00 PM

Keynote Speaker: Dr. Bernard Kouchner was the founder and organizer of the Nobel Prize winning humanitarian organization "Doctors Without Borders". He has served as France’s Minister of Health, as Special Appointee of UN Sec. General, Kofi Annan for peacekeeping in Kosovo and authored many books and articles on humanitarian intervention. His international acclaim stems from his tireless commitment and personal effort to creating a more humane and just world.

Echo Award Recipient: Dr. Dean W. Colvard was former President of Mississippi State University and UNC-Charlotte’s first Chancellor, a post he held for 13 years. Dr. Colvard is known nationally for his courage and leadership in integrating intercollegiate sports while at Old Miss.

5:45 PM                Patrons’ Reception

6:00 PM                All Guest Reception.

7:00 PM                Dinner Begins. Founders Hall

                                Welcome by The Echo Foundation

Keynote Address by Dr. Bernard Kouchner: "Compassion Without Borders"

Echo Award Against Indifference Presentation to Dr. Dean W. Colvard

ABOUT OUR KEYNOTE SPEAKER  Dr. Bernard Kouchner is a Humanitarian, a Politician, an Author, an Administrator and more. He is best known as the founder of the medical and humanitarian charity "Medecins Sains Frontieres" (MSF- Doctors Without Borders), creating the concept of "Humanitarian Intervention" and for helping countries devastated by war, starvation, illness, poverty, and natural disasters (Biafra, Jordan, Lebanon, Cambodia, Thailand, Uruguay, Peru, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, etc.). He has also created three other volunteer humanitarian organizations ("Medecins du Monde", "European Volunteers for Development", "Globus") around the world and many other organized humanitarian campaigns ("A boat for Vietnam", "A boat for Lebanon" and "A plane for the refugees from El Salvador"). For 10 years Kouchner served as the French Minister of State, Minister of Health and Humanitarian Action and Minister Delegate at the Ministry for Employment. In 1999 he served as the Special Representative of Secretary General of the United Nations as Head of the UN Mission in Kosovo. Dr. Kouchner is the recipient of several human rights awards including the Dag Hammarskjold Prize (1979) and the Prix Europa (1984).

ABOUT OUR AWARD RECIPIENT  Dr. Dean W. Colvard, a native of NC’s Ashe County, has had a distinguished 43 year career in higher education, including service as the top administrator at two state universities. Colvard served for 13 years as the first chancellor of the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. Prior to that he was president of Mississippi State University, and is the author of the book "Mixed Emotions," about racial integration at MSU under his leadership. In 1965 under Colvard’s presidency, MSU accepted its first black student. Colvard was a member of the first educational delegations to the People’s Republic of China after it was reopened for visitation and has visited more than 40 countries. Colvard is considered a political and racial moderate. Since his retirement in 1978, he has led in the establishment of The North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics, the creation of Discovery Place in Charlotte and in the work of the Southern Growth Policies Board.