Inaugurated in 1973, the year following the Japan Foundation’s establishment, the Japan Foundation Awards will mark the 51st anniversary in 2024. The awards are presented to individuals or organizations that have significantly contributed and are expected to contribute further to the promotion of international mutual understanding and friendship through their academic, artistic, or cultural activities. We look forward to receiving your nominations.

• The Japan Foundation Awards 2024 Nomination Guidelines (PDF:1.3MB)
• Nomination Form (WORD: 60KB)

Deadline: All nominations must be received by Wednesday, February 28, 2024.

FAQs

Eligible Candidates

Candidates must be an individual person or an organization established inside or outside of Japan.
Self-nominations, including nominations of an organization or head of an organization to which the nominator belongs, will not be considered.

Ineligible individuals and/or organizations

1. (1)Individuals who are currently employed by their national or local governments, as well as those employed by similar organizations (e.g. governmental corporations) and whose main occupation pertains to international activities (excluding those in research-related positions). However, individuals who currently fall under the conditions stated above may be nominated if they made contributions conforming to the award criteria with a different affiliation or position in the past.
2. (2)Domestic or overseas organizations that are national or local governmental agencies as well as similar bodies.
3. (3)Domestic organizations with a strong public character, such as organizations that are mostly publicly-funded or were established directly by law.
4. (4)Organizations supported by the Japanese government or the Japan Foundation that receive an amount of subsidies representing more than half of their annual budget.
5. (5)Organizations that are closely related, organizationally or financially, to their nominator.
6. (6)Individuals and organizations whose main activities are profit-making, religious, political, or electoral.
7. (7)Individuals and organizations whose main field of activity is different than the Japan Foundation's, such as scientific or technological fields.
8. (8)Individuals and organizations whose main purposes are recreational activities or nurturing friendship through exchange between sister cities or sister schools, as well as those who perform activities that benefit to a restricted specific group or association.
9. (9)Joint activities by two or more organizations may by nominated as a single nomination only if their engagements are justifiably regarded as an inseparable whole.

Eligible fields of activities

Candidates must be thoroughly involved in the following fields of activities that represent the core activities of the Japan Foundation: “Arts and Cultural Exchange,” “Japanese-Language Education Overseas,” and “Japanese Studies and Global Partnerships" or in an interdisciplinary manner.

• Arts and Cultural Exchange
  Individuals or organizations that have significantly contributed to international cultural exchange and the enhancement of mutual understanding between Japan and other countries through the introduction or promotion of Japanese arts and culture abroad, or creative activities such as joint research or coproduction projects.
• Japanese-Language Education Overseas
  Individuals or organizations that have significantly contributed to the progress of Japanese-language education and research, the improvement of the international status of Japanese-language as well as the enhancement of mutual understanding between Japan and other countries through remarkable commitment to Japanese-language education and research as well as continued efforts to train and organize Japanese-language teachers, or through translations, writings in Japanese or other activities strongly connected to the Japanese language.
• Japanese Studies and Global Partnerships
  Individuals or organizations that have significantly contributed to foster better understanding of Japan through education and research and strengthen intellectual networks between Japan and foreign countries through original and authoritative accomplishments and the development of Japanese studies abroad.

Selection Process

After primary screening by panels of specialists, a selection committee consisting of experts commissioned by the Japan Foundation will select the recipients. The results will be officially announced in July, 2024.

Selection Criteria

Recipients will be selected based on the following criteria:

1. (1)Achievement
   Recipients must have made outstanding contributions to the promotion of international mutual understanding and friendship inside or outside of Japan over the years.
2. (2)Continuity and Potential
   Recipients are expected to continue their activities and further promote and contribute to international cultural exchange.
3. (3)Pervasiveness
   Results of the recipient's activities must benefit many people, not only a specific region or organization.

Nomination Process

1. (1)Number of nominations: up to five by each nominator.
2. (2)Please download the electronic form of the nomination on this page above.
   The form can also be obtained by sending a request email to kikinsho＠jpf.go.jp.
   (When sending an e-mail, please replace the full-width "@" character with a half-width character.)
3. (3)Please submit the completed nomination form (as electronic data, in the form of Microsoft Word file) to kikinsho＠jpf.go.jp by e-mail (If you cannot submit it by e-mail, please send it to us by fax or post). Please note that submitted materials will not be returned.
   • E-mail
     kikinsho＠jpf.go.jp
     (When sending an e-mail, please replace the full-width "@" character with a half-width character.)
   • Fax
     +81-(0) 3-5369-6044
   • Address
     The Japan Foundation Awards Secretariat
     c/o Public Relations Dept., The Japan Foundation
     YOTSUYA CRUCE, 1-6-4 Yotsuya, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 160-0004, Japan
4. (4)Fill in the nomination form completely. Please attach supporting documentation to your nomination form, if any.
   The names of the nominators will not be published.

Number of Recipients

Three (in principle). Each recipient of the Japan Foundation Award will receive a certificate and a prize money.

Presentation Ceremony

Individual recipients or the representative of a recipient organization will be invited and requested to attend the presentation ceremony, which will be held in Tokyo Autumn 2024, as well as the commemorative events specified by the Japan Foundation.

Commemorative lectures by the recipients are also to be held.

FAQs on Nominations for The Japan Foundation Awards 2024

Q1: How many nominations does the Japan Foundation receive per year?

A1: We receive about 70 to 80 eligible nominations per year. All candidates are rigorously reviewed.

Q2: Please describe the award selection process.

A2: After primary screening by panels of specialists, a selection committee consisting of experts commissioned by the Japan Foundation will select the final candidates, in accordance with the Nomination Guidelines. The Japan Foundation makes a final decision on the recipients of the Awards based on the recommendations of the Selection Committee. Recipients will be selected based on the following criteria:

1. (1) Achievement
   Recipients must have made outstanding contributions to the promotion of international mutual understanding and friendship inside or outside of Japan over the years.
2. (2) Continuity and Potential
   Recipients are expected to continue their activities and further promote and contribute to international cultural exchange.
3. (3) Pervasiveness
   Results of the recipient's activities must benefit many people, not only a specific region or organization. Recipients are expected to continue their activities and further promote and contribute to international cultural exchange.

Q3: Will the candidate with the most nominations win the award?

A3: The selection criteria are as stated in A2 above, and the award recipients are not determined by the number of nominations.

Q4: The candidate I recommended last year was not selected. Is it possible to nominate the same candidate again?

A4: If the candidate you had recommended did not win the award, you may nominate the same candidate again.

Q5: In order to consider recommending candidates, I would like to know about past recipients of the Japan Foundation Award.

A5: Past recipients of the Japan Foundation Award are listed on our following website:
The Japan Foundation Awards Recipients, Presentation ceremony and Commemorative events in previous years