Jesse Scheckner
Prominent South Florida lobbyist, advocate and nonprofit leader Ron Book can add another title to his list: Nobel Peace Prize nominee.
Book was among thousands nominated for the 2024 Nobel Peace Prize, his in recognition of decades of advocacy and nonprofit work.
His nominator: U.S. Rep. Jared Moskowitz, a fellow Broward Democrat.
Book has served for more than 30 years as Chair of the Miami-Dade Homeless Trust, which helped to reduce the county’s homeless population from 8,000 in 1993 to just over 1,000 unsheltered people today.
He also is Chair and pro bono General Counsel of Lauren’s Kids, a nonprofit he co-founded in 2007 with his daughter, Senate Democratic Leader Lauren Book, to combat childhood sexual abuse. Lauren is a survivor.
Today, the organization provides national and international education to protect children and support survivors through a variety of programs and initiatives, including the “Safer Smarter Schools” curriculum now in more than 100,000 classrooms across 40 states. It also championed the passage of more than 35 laws aimed at safeguarding kids and victims.
“I’ve always believed that we have an obligation to leave the world better than we found it,” Ron Book said in a statement.
“My daughter’s bravery and strength in sharing her story has further inspired me to fight every day to protect others from experiencing the same pain. It’s my duty to use my platform to make a difference. To be recognized with such a prestigious nomination as the Nobel Peace Prize is a profound honor, and it deepens my resolve to continue this lifelong work.”
The Nobel Peace Prize is awarded yearly to individuals and organizations that have made significant contributions to the promotion of peace.
This year’s winner was Nihon Hidankyo, a Japanese movement that for decades has represented hundreds of thousands of survivors of the U.S. atomic bombings in Hiroshima and Nagasaki who work to prevent and raise awareness about the consequences of nuclear warfare.
