Greg Mortenson is the co-founder of nonprofit
Central Asia Institute, Pennies For Peace, and co-author of New
York Times bestseller Three Cups of Tea which has
sold 3.6 million copies, been published in 41 countries, and a
New York Times bestseller for over three years since its
2007 release, and Time Magazine Asia Book of The Year.
Mortenson's new book, Stones Into Schools: Promoting Peace
with Books Not Bombs, In Afghanistan and Pakistan, was
released by Viking on December 1st, 2009 and debuted as #2 on the
New York Times bestseller lest.
As of 2010, Mortenson has established over 131 schools in rural
and often volatile regions of Pakistan and Afghanistan, which
provide education to over 58,000 children, including 48,000 girls,
where few education opportunities existed before.
In 2009, Mortenson received Pakistan's highest civil award,
Sitara-e-Pakistan ("Star of Pakistan") for his
humanitarian effort to promote girls education in rural areas for
fifteen years.
Several bi-partisan U.S. Congressional representatives have
nominated Mortenson twice for the Nobel Peace Prize in both 2009
and 2010.
Mortenson was born in 1957, and grew up on the slopes of Mt.
Kilimanjaro, Tanzania (1958 to 1973). His father, Dempsey, founded
Kilimanjaro Christian Medical Center (KCMC) a hospital, and mother,
Jerene, founded the International School Moshi.
He served in the U.S. Army in Germany (1977-1979), where he
received the Army Commendation Medal, and later graduated from the
University of South Dakota in 1983.
In July 1992, Mortenson's sister, Christa, died from a massive
seizure after a lifelong struggle with epilepsy on the eve of a
trip to visit Dysersville, Iowa, where the baseball movie, 'Field
of Dreams', was filmed in a cornfield.
To honor his sister's memory, in 1993, Mortenson climbed
Pakistan's K2, the world's second highest mountain in the Karakoram
range.
While recovering from the climb in a village called Korphe,
Mortenson met a group of children sitting in the dirt writing with
sticks in the sand, and made a promise to help them build a
school.
From that rash promise, grew a humanitarian campaign, in which
Mortenson has dedicated his life to promote education, especially
for girls, in remote regions of Pakistan and Afghanistan.
His work has not been without difficulty. In 1996, he survived
an eight day armed kidnapping by the Taliban in Pakistan' Northwest
Frontier Province tribal areas, escaped a 2003 firefight with
feuding Afghan warlords by hiding for eight hours under putrid
animal hides in a truck going to a leather-tanning factory. He has
overcome two fatwehs from enraged Islamic mullahs, endured CIA
investigations, and also received threats from fellow Americans
after 9/11, for helping Muslim children with education.
Mortenson is a living hero to rural communities of Afghanistan
and Pakistan, where he has gained the trust of Islamic leaders,
military and militia commanders, government officials and tribal
chiefs from his tireless effort to champion education, especially
for girls.
He is one of few foreigners who has worked for sixteen years
(over 74 months in the field) in rural villages where few
foreigners go, and considered the 'front lines' of the 'war on
terror'
TV newscaster, Tom Brokaw, calls Mortenson, "one ordinary
person, with the right combination of character and determination,
who is really changing the world".
Congresswoman Mary Bono (Rep - Cali.) says, "I've learned more
from Greg Mortenson about the root causes of terrorism than I did
during all our briefings on Capitol Hill. He is a true hero, who
exemplifies the true ideals of the American spirit."
In addition to his advocacy for female literacy and education,
Mortenson is an advocate for the global abolishment of the
manufacture and usage of land-mines, and actively campaigns for the
U.S. to join the 158 countries that have already signed an
anti-land mine pact.
While not overseas half the year, Mortenson, 52, lives in
Montana with his wife, Dr. Tara Bishop, a clinical psychologist,
and two young children.
MILITARY
Admiral Mullen has advised senior U.S. military commanders to
read Three Cups of Tea. It is mandatory reading for
officers in the Norwegian War College, Forsvarsnett, for
U.S. Special Forces deploying to Afghanistan, all U.S. Marines
training at MARSOC Camp Lejeune, officers in counter-insurgency
training, and Canadian Defense Ministry members.
Three Cups of Tea book has been read by General David
Petraeus - CENTCOM Commander, Admiral Mike Mullen - Chairman Joint
Chief of Staff, and Admiral Eric Olson - SOCOM Special Forces
commander, (ret) General McKiernan, and several other U.S. military
commanders who advocate for empowering elders and building
relationships as a part of an overall strategic plan.
Mortenson has spoken and has had discussions at
SOCOM, MARSOC, NORAD the CSF at the Naval War College, Naval
Postgraduate School, Naval Air Command, NORAD, and been to the Air
Force, Naval and West Point Academies. Annually he voluntarily
visits about one to two dozen military bases, without charge or
honorarium to help troops deploying to Afghanistan understand
cultural issues, tribal etiquette and the nuances of tribal
warfare.
He has also met several times with most senior military U.S.
commanders to help advice and brief them on Afghanistan and
Pakistan with issues related to cultural understanding, tribal
etiquette. These include General David Petraeus (CENTCOM
commander), Admiral Eric Olson (SOCOM -Special Forces) Commander,
Admiral Mike Mullen (Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff), General
Conway (U.S. Marine Corps Commander), General Stanley McChrystal,
ISAF / U.S. Commander Afghanistan, Major General John Macdonald,
Deputy commander - Afghanistan, Secretary Gate (DOD Secretary) and
several other military commanders.
AWARDS
1975 US Army Commendation medal
1998 American Alpine Club David Brower Conservation Award
2002 Peacemaker Award from Montana Community Mediation Center
2003 Climbing Magazine "Golden Piton Award" for humanitarian
effort
2003 Vincent Lombardi Champion Award for humanitarian service
2003 Peacemaker of the Year" Benedictine Monks, Santa Fe, NM
2003 Outdoor Person of the Year - Outdoor Magazine
2003 Salzburg Seminar fellow, sponsored by Microsoft
2004 Freedom Forum "Free Spirit Award" - National Press Club,
D.C.
2004 Jeanette Rankin Peace Award - Institute for Peace
2005 Men's Journal 'Anti-Terror' Award by Senator John McCain
2005 Red Cross "Humanitarian of The Year" Montana
2006 Golden Fleur-de-lis Award from Comune Firenze, Italy
2007 Medical Education Hall of Fame Award, Toledo, OH
2007 Rotary International Paul Harris Award for Promoting Friendly
Relations Among People
2007 Mountain Institute Award for Excellence in Mountain Community
Service
2007 Dayton Literary Peace Prize - Book Award, Dayton, OH
2008 Citizen Center for Diplomacy - National Award for Citizen
Diplomacy
2008 Courage of Conscience Award - The Peace Abbey, Sherborn,
MA
2008 Graven Award - Wartburg College, IA
2008 National Award for Citizen Diplomacy - Citizen Center for
Diplomacy
2008 Academy of Achievement Award
2008 Sword of Loyola - St. Louis University
2009 Sitara-e-Pakistan "Star of Pakistan" (Pakistan' highest
civilian award)
2008 Mary Lockwood Founders Medal For Education - Daughters of The
American Revolution
2009 Archon Award - Sigma Theta Tau International (Nursing
Award)
2009 National Education Association NEA - Human Rights Award
2009 Austin College Leadership Award - Sherman TX - Promoting
education issues for peace
2009 City College San Francisco Amicus Collegii Award - Promoting
peace through education
2009 Jefferson Award for Community Service: Harvard Kennedy School
of Business
2009 US News & World Report: America's Best Twenty
Leaders
2009 Gambrinus Giuseppe Mazzotti Literary Prize (Italy)
2010 Toronto School District (Canada): Peace Award
HONORARY DOCTORATE DEGREES
- Concordia College , Moorhead , MN 2007
- University of South Dakota, Vermillion, SD 2007
- Montana State University, MT 2008
- Villanova University, PA 2008
- University of San Francisco, CA 2008
- University of Washington - Bothell, WA 2008
- Lewis & Clark College, OR 2008
- Seattle University, WA 2008
- Colby College, ME 2009
- Simmons College, MA 2009
- St. Louis University, MO 2009
- University of Pennsylvania, PA 2010
- Brookdale College, Lincroft, NJ 2010
THREE CUPS OF TEA BOOK - AWARDS AND MENTIONS
2006 Time Magazine Asia Book of The Year
2006 People Magazine - Critics Choice
2006 Publisher's Weekly - Starred Review
2006 Kirkus Review - Starred Review
2006 Borders Bookstore Original Voices Selection
2007 Banff Mountain Festival Book Award Finalist
2007 Kiriyama Prize Nonfiction Award
2007 Pacific Northwest Booksellers Association - Nonfiction
Award
2008 Montana Honor Book Award
2008 Dayton Literary Prize Nonfiction Award - Runner up
2009 Mom's Choice Award - Author of the Year
2009 Gambrinus Giuseppe Mazzotti Literary Prize (Italy)