Jimmy Carter served as president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. Significant foreign policy accomplishments of his administration included the Panama Canal treaties, the Camp David Accords, the treaty of peace between Egypt and Israel, the SALT II treaty with the Soviet Union, and the establishment of U.S. diplomatic relations with the People's Republic of China. In 1982, he founded The Carter Center. He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2002.

Oscar Arias Sánchez was born in 1940. After studying in the United States, he read law and economics at the University of Costa Rica. Having completed his degree, he went on to take a doctorate in England. He served as President of Costa Rica between 1986 and 1990. He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1987 for his work for peace in Central America. On 8 May 2006, he was elected President of the Republic of Costa Rica for the second time.

Archbishop Desmond Tutu was born in 1931. From 1976 to 1978 he was Bishop of Lesotho, and in 1978 became the first black General Secretary of the South African Council of Churches. He played a significant role in the campaign to resolve the problem of apartheid in South Africa. When awarding him the Peace Prize in 1984, the Nobel Committee spoke of its ‘thankfulness and respectful joy, and this is because we feel ourselves united with him in the belief in the creative power of love.’