The Japan Foundation Award 50th Anniversary Messages from Previous Awardees
This year marks the 50th anniversary of the Japan Foundation Awards, which were launched in 1973, the year after the establishment of the Japan Foundation.
During this period, the Japan Foundation has been promoting international cultural exchange and enhancing understanding of international cultural exchange through the recognition of individuals and organizations that have made significant contributions and are expected to contribute further to the promotion of international mutual understanding and friendship through their academic, artistic, and other cultural pursuits, in the fields of the Arts and Cultural Exchange, Japanese-Language Education Overseas, and Japanese Studies and Global Partnerships.
In celebrating this milestone year of the 50th anniversary, we have received valuable messages from a great number of past awardees who have made outstanding achievements and played a significant role in international cultural exchange in their respective fields.
These messages, written from the rich perspectives of each awardee's footprints, tell us about the award's historical background, dating back to the 1970s, the initiatives and efforts of international cultural exchange during these 50 years, the latest activities, and expectations for the future, which we believe will be very useful and encouraging for those who are involved or aspire to be involved in international cultural exchange in this day and age.
We hope that by posting these messages received from awardees around the world on the official website of the Japan Foundation in both Japanese and English for everyone to read, and to disseminate them widely to the people of the world today, this occasion can become a valuable opportunity to foster and to convey once again the meaning of international cultural exchange and its attraction to a wide range of people in Japan and abroad.
Finally, we would like to express our sincere gratitude to all the awardees who have cooperated with us and contributed on this project with their valuable messages.
October 2023
The Japan Foundation
* The awardees’ messages are listed in alphabetical order.
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Africa Society of Japan
[Japan]Awarded 1980Read messege -
AFS International / Intercultural Programs, Inc.
[U.S.A.]Awarded 1984Read messege -
American Association of Teachers of Japanese (AATJ)
[U.S.A]Awarded 2009Read messege -
The Asian Students Cultural Association
[Japan]Awarded 1975Read messege -
The Asiatic Society of Japan
[in Tokyo]Awarded 1982Read messege -
Association for Japanese Language Education
[Japan]Awarded 1980Read messege -
The Association for Japanese-Language Teaching
[Japan]Awarded 1992Read messege -
Association of Indonesian Alumni From Japan (PERSADA)
[Indonesia]Awarded 2019Read messege -
Australia-Japan Research Centre, The Australian National University
[Australia]Awarded 1979Read messege -
Andrej BekešProfessor Emiritus of Japanese Studies, University of Ljubljana
[Slovenia]Awarded 2017Read messege -
The Berliner Festspiele
[Germany]Awarded 2001Read messege -
(c) Francine AdamAugustin BerqueRetired Professor, School of Advanced Studies in the Social Sciences
[France]Awarded 2011Read messege -
Busan Korea-Japan Cultural Exchange Association
[Korea]Awarded 1998Read messege -
Department of Japanese and Japanese Literature, Faculty of Arts, Cairo University
[Egypt]Awarded 2011Read messege -
Centro Brasileiro de Língua Japonesa (CBLJ)
[Brazil]Awarded 2016Read messege -
(c) Nirmala SharmaLokesh ChandraDirector, International Academy of Indian Culture / Buddhist studies
[India]Awarded 1987Read messege -
China Japanese Education Association
[China]Awarded 2005Read messege -
Gerald L. CurtisBurgess Professor Emeritus, Columbia University and Chairman of the Board, Maureen and Mike Mansfield Foundation
[U.S.A.]Awarded 2002Read messege -
Deutsche Gesellschaft für Natur- und Völkerkunde Ostasiens
[in Tokyo]Awarded 1976Read messege -
(c) The Australian National UniversityPeter DrysdaleEmeritus Professor, Australian National University
[Australia]Awarded 2014Read messege -
Ayşe Selçuk ESENBELEmeritus Professor, Bogazici (Bosphorus) University / President, Japanese Studies Association
[Turkey]Awarded 2007Read messege -
The European Association for Japanese Studies
[Europe]Awarded 1975Read messege -
The Fukuoka UNESCO Association
[Japan]Awarded 1976Read messege -
(c) AryatamaGoenawan MohamadPoet, Writer and Painter
[Indonesia]Awarded 2022Read messege -
HAYASHI NozomuEx-associate professor of The Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music / Japanese Bibliography and Classic Literature
[Japan]Awarded 1992Read messege -
Angela HONDRUHonorary Professor of Hyperion University / Translator
[Romania]Awarded 2008Read messege -
HOSOKAWA ToshioComposer
[Japan]Awarded 2018Read messege -
Bina Antarbudaya - The Indonesian Foundation for Intercultural Learning
[Indonesia]Awarded 1990Read messege -
The Inter-University Center for Japanese Language Studies
[in Yokohama]Awarded 1982Read messege -
Japan Center for International Exchange
[Japan]Awarded 1974Read messege -
Japan Society
[U.S.A.]Awarded 1973Read messege -
The Japan Society of Northern California
[U.S.A.]Awarded 1986Read messege -
Japan-China Cultural Exchange Association
[Japan]Awarded 1985Read messege -
Japanese American National Museum
[U.S.A]Awarded 1999Read messege -
Japanese Canadian Cultural Centre (Toronto)
[Canada]Awarded 1988Read messege -
The Japanese Cultural Society, Singapore
[Singapore]Awarded 1974Read messege -
"Japanese Mothers for International Students" Movement of the Tokyo YWCA
[Japan]Awarded 2002Read messege -
Japanese Philology Department, Institute of Asian and African Studies, Lomonosov Moscow State University
[Russia]Awarded 2014Read messege -
Kim YongdeokProfessor Emeritus, Department of History, Seoul National University
[R.O.K.]Awarded 2006Read messege -
(c) Mao YamamotoKITAGAWA FramArt Director / Chairman, Art Front Gallery Co.
[Japan]Awarded 2007Read messege -
Korean Japanese Association
[Korea]Awarded 2022Read messege -
Peter KornickiEmeritus Professor of Japanese Studies, University of Cambridge
[U.K.]Awarded 1992Read messege -
Josef KreinerProfessor Emeritus, University of Bonn, Germany and Visiting Researcher, Hosei University Research Center for International Japanese Studies / Japanese Ethnology
[Austria]Awarded 1987, 2003Read messege -
KURONUMA YurikoViolinist, Former President of Academia Yuriko Kuronuma
[Japan / Mexico]Awarded 1992Read messege -
(c) Hélène BouffardRobert LEPAGEActor / Playwright / Theatre and Movie Director
[Canada]Awarded 2022Read messege -
Manggha Museum of Japanese Art and Technology (Krakow)
[Poland]Awarded 1997Read messege -
Meiji Shinbun Zasshi Bunko, Center for Modern Japanese Legal and Political Documents, Graduate Schools for Law and Politics, The University of Tokyo
[Japan]Awarded 1977Read messege -
(c) Timothy Greenfield-SandersMidoriViolinist / Founder and President of the Non-Profit Organization MUSIC SHARING
[Japan]Awarded 1996Read messege -
photo: Yuhka MiuraMIURA NaoyukiPresident, Artistic Director of Music From Japan, Inc.
[Japan / U.S.A]Awarded 2001Read messege -
photo by futaishi tomokiMIYATA MayumiShō (Japanese wind instrument) performer
[Japan]Awarded 2021Read messege -
Marco MÜLLERArtistic Director of the Film Art Research Centre at Shanghai University and Distinguished Professor of Film Curating and Programming at Shanghai Film Academy
[Italy]Awarded 2008Read messege -
(c) David HealdAlexandra MunroeSenior Curator at Large, Global Arts, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum and Foundation / Former Director, Japan Society Gallery and Vice-President, Arts and Culture, Japan Society
[U.S.A.]Awarded 2017Read messege -
(c) Office MurakamiMURAKAMI HarukiWriter / Translator
[Japan]Awarded 2012Read messege -
Japanese Studies Department, National Institute of Oriental Languages and Civilizations (INALCO)
[France]Awarded 2012Read messege -
photo by Kirsi Stubb, 2023Kai NieminenTranslator of Japanese Literature, Japanologist, Writer
[Finland]Awarded 1997Read messege -
The Old Japan Students' Association, Thailand (OJSAT)
[Thailand]Awarded 2002Read messege -
Ewa Pałasz-RutkowskaProfessor, Chair of Japanese Studies, University of Warsaw
[Poland]Awarded 2019Read messege -
Philippine Educational Theater Association
[Philippines]Awarded 2005Read messege -
Phaisith PhipatanakulMember of the Council of State
[Thailand]Awarded 1994Read messege -
Etsuko PriceDirector, The Shin’enKan Foundation
[U.S.A.]Awarded 2006Read messege -
Kenneth B. PYLEHenry M. Jackson Professor of History and International Studies, University of Washington
[U.S.A.]Awarded 2008Read messege -
Saint-Petersburg State University, Faculty of Asian and African Studies
[Russia]Awarded 2006Read messege -
SANKAI JUKU
[Japan]Awarded 2013Read messege -
Frederik L. SchodtWriter / Translator / Interpreter
[U.S.A.]Awarded 2017Read messege -
SEN GenshitsuGrand Master XV, Urasenke Tradition of Tea
[Japan]Awarded 1995Read messege -
Sibiu International Theatre Festival
[Romania]Awarded 2015Read messege -
Simul International, Inc.[Japan]Awarded 1977Read messege -
Tatiana Lvovna Sokolova-DelusinaTranslator
[Russia]Awarded 1993Read messege -
Sophia University
[Japan]Awarded 1973Read messege -
Suntory Foundation
[Japan]Awarded 1998Read messege -
TAKARA KurayoshiProfessor Emeritus of the University of the Ryukyus /
Doctor of Literature, History of the Ryukyus
[Japan]Awarded 2004Read messege -
Tambuco Percussion Ensemble
[Mexico]Awarded 2011Read messege -
TAWADA YokoPoet and Writer
[Japan]Awarded 2018Read messege -
Technology Promotion Association (Thailand-Japan)
[Thailand]Awarded 2013Read messege -
The Tikotin Museum of Japanese Art, Haifa Museums
[Israel]Awarded 2000Read messege -
Ahmet Mete TuncokuProfessor Emeritus, Canakkale Onsekiz Mart University
[Turkey]Awarded 1999Read messege -
Turkish Japanese Foundation
[Turkey]Awarded 2003Read messege -
ULIS / FTU / HANU
[Vietnam]Awarded 2021Read messege -
Spanish-Japanese Cultural Center of the University of Salamanca
[Spain]Awarded 2018Read messege -
The Chair of Japanese Studies, Faculty of Oriental Studies, University of Warsaw
[Poland]Awarded 2002Read messege -
Wang YongDeputy Director, Institute of Asian Civilizations, Zhejiang University / Director, Japanese Culture Research Institute, Zhejiang University
[China]Awarded 2015Read messege -
YANAGIYA SankyoRakugo Performer
[Japan]Awarded 2014Read messege
* The Japan Foundation Special Prizes have been integrated into The Japan Foundation Awards since 2008.
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