The Japan Foundation Award 50th Anniversary Messages from Previous Awardees - The Fukuoka UNESCO Association

Congratulations on the 50th Anniversary of the Japan Foundation Awards.

In 1976, the Fukuoka UNESCO Association was awarded the Japan Foundation Special Prize in recognition of its initiatives in promoting mutual understanding through cultural exchange with foreign countries in accordance with the UNESCO spirit.

The Association was established in Fukuoka City in 1948, when Japan was not yet a member of UNESCO (the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization), as one of the "UNESCO Cooperative Associations" launched in various parts of Japan to promote Japan’s candidacy for UNESCO membership. Our activities have always emphasized cultural exchange with foreign countries and the promotion of local culture. In particular, the Association historically has held international conferences in Japanese, bringing researchers of Japanese culture from around the world to Fukuoka—no less, at a time when IT technology was not as advanced. We have also endeavored to provide information about Japanese cultural research institutions overseas by periodically creating a handbook, Overseas Japanese Studies Institutions. Being awarded the Prize for these activities was a great encouragement.

For a long time after its founding in 1948, the Association operated as a private organization. However, it gained legal status in 2013, which not only increased its social credibility, but also allowed it to engage in more public activities and start acting as a general incorporated foundation. We now carry out the following activities, building on the foundation of our previous work:

1. （1）Holding lectures in Fukuoka and Kitakyushu to both propose solutions to modern social problems and to bolster people’s understanding of local culture and Japanese culture.
2. （2）Together with Fukuoka City, inviting past recipients of the Fukuoka Prize to host lectures on the topic of Asia.
3. （3）Inviting experts and researchers from Japan and overseas to participate in seminars about themes they feel are important when considering the future of culture and society.
4. （4）Hosting lectures by researchers who are from Kyushu / Okinawa or are active in Kyushu / Okinawa.
5. （5） Publishing records of the above lectures as the FUKUOKA U Booklet series and providing cultural outreach from local areas.

We intend to continue our unique activities as a local international cultural organization, making the most of the Kyushu’s merits as a region located close to other parts of Asia.

We hope for the further development of the Japan Foundation, particularly at this time, when there is a strong need for international mutual understanding in the promotion of world peace.

UCHIMURA Yoshiro
President
The Fukuoka UNESCO Association

(Original text in Japanese)

Awards and Special Prizes: Recipients List