The Japan Foundation Awards

Robert Anthony Scalapino
Robson Research Professor of Government Emeritus,University of California at Berkeley

As a scholar of international political science and one of the foremost scholars of Japan and East Asian studies in the United States, Dr. Scalapino has made a great contribution toward a better understanding of Japan and Asia in the U.S., and toward the nurturing of young scholars for many years, through his superior research, publications, and various lectures to students and the public. He is highly respected, not only in Japan, but around the world.

Ikuma Dan (Japan)
Composer, Member of the Art Academy of Japan

Maestro Dan's great achievements as a composer and conductor in delivering Japanese aesthetic values in a Western musical style has provided an outstanding contribution to the introduction of Japanese culture around the world. His creation of truly Japanese grand operas, including Yuzuru (The Twilight Heron), merits great praise. Also deserving of special recognition is his long standing contribution to cultural exchange between Japan and China.

The Japan Foundation Special Prizes

Thomas Erdos (France), Artistic Counselor

Since the early 1960s, Mr. Erdos has devoted great efforts to the introduction of Japanese traditional and contemporary performing arts in France and other European countries, where his work has contributed to a better understanding of Japan. He was a major planner in the performing arts department of "Japan in France Year 1997-98" and organized the successful performances of Kabuki, Bunraku, Noh, and Jiuta-mai.

Pusan Korea-Japan Cultural Exchange Association (Korea)

This Association has promoted cultural exchange and mutual friendship between Korea and Japan through grassroots activities such as youth exchange and Korean-language classes for Japanese people in Pusan. The Association has also contributed to many of the Japan Foundation programs in Korea, including traveling exhibitions, Japanese speech contests, and the conducting of the Japanese-Language Proficiency Test.

Suntory Foundation (Japan)

The Suntory Foundation has contributed toward a better understanding of Japanese society and culture in foreign countries, and toward the development of an international intellectual community through its support of research and intellectual exchange. The Foundation has continued to sponsor various kinds of symposiums and lectures, as well as translations of research publications, since its founding, all of which have played a great role in the distribution of information about Japan and the Japanese perspective to the world.