By Jorge Mercado Monday, March 3rd, 2025

Santa Barbara-based Direct Relief recently announced it has been awarded the 2025 Seoul Peace Prize, another award for the nonprofit, but more importantly, a sign that the organization will be fine as it enters a new era following the departure of longtime CEO Thomas Tighe.

“This award, like all others, is a reflection of the work our teams and our staff do day to day,” Interim CEO Byron Scott told the Business Times.

“It’s an acknowledgment of what we do as an organization. The work we do and our mission statement, our focus, our global reach is just about trying to help everybody regardless of their situation.”

Scott stepped into the interim CEO role on Jan. 1, the same day Tighe officially stepped down from the executive spot after more than two decades in the role.

Scott is no stranger to Direct Relief. Before taking on the interim CEO spot, he served as the organization’s interim COO in 2024 as well as the co-chair of the organization’s Health Equity Fund, where he has played a pivotal role in advancing initiatives to address health disparities.

He also sat on the board of directors for about seven years before 2024.

“For me, it’s just about continuing my passion to support the mission that we do as an organization and so far this has been really exciting,” Scott said.

Regarding the organization’s CEO hiring process, Scott said his whole intent in stepping in, as both interim COO and CEO, was to “support the organization during the transition.”

He added that he does not have an interest in being the full-time CEO, but rather helping them find the next person who will fill the position permanently.

“The plan for me is to go back on the board at some point in the future,” Scott said.

While he is the interim CEO, however, Scott noted that 2025 could be a busier year for a large humanitarian organization like Direct Relief.

Recent cuts by the newly created Department of Government Efficiency under the Trump Administration to the federal government include agencies like USAID, whose mission was to “provide economic and humanitarian aid to countries around the world.”

Direct Relief does not take any government money, but the cuts to those agencies could indirectly impact the nonprofit as demand for their help could be higher.

“Some of the partners we help internationally receive some of that funding so now they may need more support and so we anticipate some of that,” Scott said.

“One of the things we focus on is being apolitical. We just try to navigate these cuts and for us, we look at it as an opportunity for us to do more. That really is what we are focused on.”

The other big thing Direct Relief is focused on this year is already in the works.

Scott said the organization is going to be launching a new German subsidiary of Direct Relief. 

This will allow the nonprofit to “do more with our pharmaceutical partners in Europe.”

“Because of the way some of the donations and tax laws are there, they are not incentivized to give here in the U.S. so hopefully once that launches, it will enable us to potentially get more product donations and scale even more,” Scott said.

As for the recognition, Direct Relief is only the third organization to win the award since it was established in 1990.

The Seoul Peace Prize, which is given out once every two years, honors individuals and organizations that have made significant contributions to world peace and cooperation.

The rigorous selection process involves approximately 1,300 nominators from South Korea and around the world, including internationally renowned figures from various fields. 

As the 17th recipient of the award, Direct Relief joins a distinguished group of laureates including former Czech President and human rights champion Václav Havel, former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, renowned economist Muhammad Yunus and Doctors Without Borders.

The nonprofit was given the award for its humanitarian work in delivering medical resources to advance global health and aid communities impacted by disasters and conflicts.

“If you look at the history of the award, there haven’t been a whole lot of organizations that have focused on disaster relief and healthcare relief, so it is such an honor to be recognized with the type of past winners,” Scott said.

“It really reflects our focus on being a humanitarian medical aid organization that helps everyone across the world, regardless of race, ethnicity, religion. So for us to be recognized, it is amazing and an honor.”

Before Scott joined Direct Relief, his career also spanned leadership roles at some of the most prominent healthcare organizations. 

That adds an extra layer for him on why the award means so much to him.

“For me, being a part of this organization every day has been one of the most rewarding experiences for me,” he said.

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