Nominations for the Hilton Humanitarian Prize
Every year, we receive hundreds of nominations from around the world for the Conrad N. Hilton Humanitarian Prize.
Nominations are carefully vetted and reviewed which leads to a shortlist of finalists. The final selection is made by an independent international panel of distinguished jurors.
Submission dates:
2025 Prize: January 2024 – April 30, 2024
2026 Prize: May 1, 2024 – April 30, 2025
2027 Prize: May 1, 2025 – April 30, 2026
Nominee eligibility
Please note: We are unable to provide any exceptions to nominees on the below criteria.
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Nominees must be organizations, not individuals.
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Nominees must be established, nongovernmental, publicly supported charitable organizations. U.S. Internal Revenue Service tax-exempt status—or the equivalent for international organizations—will determine eligibility. (International nominees will be contacted by the Foundation for appropriate documentation.)
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Nominees must be legally established for at least five years in order to be considered.
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Nominees must have their own audited financial statements for at least five consecutive years.
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Nominees must have expenditures greater than U.S. $750,000 in their most recent audited fiscal year of operation.
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Nominees may not be a Hilton Humanitarian Prize Laureate or a local office or member organization of a Prize Laureate.
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Nominees may not be local offices or member organizations of parent organizations or fiscally sponsored organizations.
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Nominees may not be specific programs within organizations or university-based projects.
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Nominees may not be academic institutions, such as colleges or universities that provide educational degrees, however, nominees may be an affiliate of academic institutions so long as they maintain an independent tax-exempt status, or equivalent for international organizations, and produce their own audited financials.
Nominations for the Hilton Humanitarian Prize are open year-round.
The Prize year for which the organization will be considered is determined by when we receive the organization’s nomination.
Nominator requirements and guidelines
- The nominator should have direct knowledge of the nominated organization’s work.
- The nominator may not be an officer or employee, or any individual receiving remuneration for his or her services from the nominated organization. Board members may nominate providing they receive no payment for their service.
- The nominator may not be a family member of an officer or employee of the nominated organization.
- The nominator may not be the founder of the nominated organization.
- The nominator may not be a Conrad N. Hilton Foundation employee, board member, Prize Juror or a family member of a Foundation employee, board member, or Prize Juror.
- The nominator may not be a Hilton family member.
The nominator must submit a signed nomination letter in English through the nominations portal.
The letter should:
- Not exceed four typed pages in 12-point font.
- Emphasize the organization’s accomplishments rather than future goals. Both historic and recent performance should be addressed.
- Highlight the points outlined under evaluation considerations.
A nominator may only nominate one organization per nomination cycle. If more than one nomination is received for an organization, the first one received will be the nomination of record, unless otherwise directed by the nominee. All other nominations will be registered as letters of support; however, no more than four letters of support will be recorded.
Please note that any attempted contact with the Hilton Humanitarian Prize Jurors about the nomination could disqualify a nominee.
Evaluation considerations
The following are considered when evaluating the work of the nominee:
- Extraordinary contributions toward alleviating human suffering.
- Significance of the issue(s) the organization is addressing.
- Established record of achievement in significantly contributing to solutions.
- Demonstration of a compelling programmatic approach to make a lasting impact.
- Organizational capacity and administrative efficiency to address the issue(s) at hand.
- Prioritization of diversity, equity and inclusion in strategies, programs and operation.
- Demonstration of effective partnerships to leverage further impact.
- Prioritization of evaluating programmatic approach for continual improvement.
- Impact the Prize would have on the organization and the issue(s) on which the organization focuses.
Nomination Process and Timeline
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Nominator nominates an organization by completing the nomination form and uploading a signed nomination letter on the Hilton Humanitarian Prize nominations portal.
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The Foundation notifies the nominee of their nomination through email with a request to submit additional information online.
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Nominee completes Phase 1 application. The nominee will have approximately five business days to complete and submit their application through our online portal.
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Application review. After the nominee submits their application, it undergoes an internal review process.
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Select nominees invited to complete Phase 2 application. Select nominees will be notified via email to submit additional information through the online portal. The nominee will have approximately ten business days to complete and submit their second application through our online portal.
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Finalist selected. After the nominee submits their second application, it undergoes an internal review process which leads to a shortlist of finalists.