Salisbury, MD — Salisbury University (SU), an institution ranked among US News' "Best Colleges" announced that it will present Sikyong Dr Lobsang Sangay with the prestigious Presidential Medal, at a lecture series event, presented by SU's Bosserman Center for Conflict Resolution.
"The Presidential Medal is the highest honor" that the University bestows on an individual for community leadership and forward thinking, Tibetan administration media reported.
The decision to bestow the medal on Sikyong Dr Lobsang Sangay was announced after the University System of Maryland Board of Regents met and recommended Sikyong for the "President's Distinguished Community Leadership Award". Dr Janet Dudley-Eshbach, President of the University, will present the medal to Sikyong on October 13.
"Dr Lobsang Sangay, Sikyong (prime minister) of Tibet and political successor to His Holiness the Dalai Lama, delivers the message "Democracy and the Third Way" on October 13," the university said in an official statement published to its website.
"In his role as the nation's leader, he has emphasized the importance of seeking a peaceful, non-violent solution to regaining national autonomy of Tibet within the Chinese constitution, similar to systems in place in Hong Kong and Macau," the statement said.
"He [Sikyong] has said he would like to see such a solution become a model for other struggles for freedom and serve as a catalyst for the moderation of China," it added.
Sikyong will be at the Salisbury University in October to speak at the invitation of the University's Bosserman Centre for Conflict Resolution. The speech is part of a lecture series 'One Person Can Make a Difference' organised by the Centre.
Sangay's visit is sponsored by the SU President's, Provost's, Student Affairs, and Graduate Studies and Research offices; Charles R. and Martha N. Fulton School of Liberal Arts; Bellavance Honors Program; Conflict Analysis and Dispute Resolution Department; and Student Appropriations Board.
Past speakers at the lecture series include several former Heads of State and many Nobel Peace Prize Laureates.
Dr Sangay was also awarded the Gold Medal of the College Historical Society of Trinity College, Dublin, for Outstanding Contribution to Public Discourse in 2012.
Earlier in September this year, Sikyong was appointed as a member of the governing council of the the Indian Student Parliament (Hindi: Bharatiya Chaatra Sansad), along with other notable individuals and educationists.
According to media report, the Student Parliament is one of the largest student organisations in the world with annual participation of over 10,000 students.
