Applications for the 11th Presidential Culture Awards opened yesterday, with this year’s theme being “Shine the World, Light of Freedom,” the General Association of Chinese Culture said.
The awards’ five categories are arts and culture, community building, humanitarian dedication, creativity and innovation, and public advocacy, the association said.
Taiwan’s culture has continued to be passed down and innovated on based on the foundation of its democracy and freedom, Vice President William Lai (賴清德) told a news conference in Taipei yesterday.
Photo: CNA
Lai, who is the general convener of the awards, described the creativity and openness of the nation’s culture as the greatest advantages of the nation’s values.
Hopefully, the awards would enable cultural development to continue to progress and make Taiwan the “light of freedom” in the world, he said.
As this year is the 100th anniversary of the Taiwanese Cultural Association’s founding, it is also time to review the nation’s culture over the past 100 years and consider the possibilities for its development over the next century, Lai said.
Entries for the awards are to be accepted through July 2, with the winners expected to be announced in early September, the association said.
An awards ceremony is set to take place in October, it said, adding that each prize winner would be awarded NT$1 million (US$35,741).
While people are eligible to apply regardless of nationality, gender or age, the Creativity and Innovation Award is limited to candidates who were born on or after Jan. 1, 1981, it said.
Individuals and groups may only apply for one category, it added.
Previous honorees have been deeply involved in the cultures of ordinary people and worked to expand arts and cultural education in the international community, thereby demonstrating the strength of the nation’s arts and culture, said Ju Percussion Group founder Ju Tzong-ching (朱宗慶), convener of the Arts and Culture Award.
There are many hardworking creators and advocates in fields such as literature, music, architecture and the performing arts, he said, urging people to apply or recommend others for the distinction.
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