When she was a student, Rosita Milesi wanted to become a math teacher — she was always good at the subject, she remembers.
It didn't turn out that way — for which refugees are eternally grateful. At age 19, she became a Catholic nun. Now, at age 79, she is being recognized as one of Brazil's most influential refugee advocates.
This week, she was honored with the U.N. Refugee Agency's Nansen Refugee Award for 40 years of activism. The U.N. calls her a "formidable refugee champion." Venezuelan refugee Elizabeth Tanare described her to the U.N. as the "piece of the puzzle that brings everything together."
The award is a testament to her life's work. In 1999, Sister Rosita — who is also a lawyer — founded Brazil's Migration and Human Rights Institute (IMDH), which she still oversees. According to the U.N., over the last 40 years she and her team have helped nearly 800,000 refugees from 168 countries access legal services, health care, housing and work opportunities in Brazil. And she says part of the reason for her success has to do with her early love of math!
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