Call for Nominations: Japan Foundation Awards 2025

Deadline: 28-Feb-25

Nominations are now open for the Japan Foundation Awards, which 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.

Eligible 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. They particularly welcome nominations from fields that have not seen many awardees in the past, such as pop culture, architecture, design, and sports.
• 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.

Eligibility Criteria

• Candidates must be an individual person or an organization established inside or outside of Japan.

Ineligibility Criteria

• 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.
• Domestic or overseas organizations that are national or local governmental agencies as well as similar bodies.
• Domestic organizations with a strong public character, such as organizations that are mostly publicly-funded or were established directly by law.
• Organizations supported by the Japanese government or the Japan Foundation that receive an amount of subsidies representing more than half of their annual budget.
• Individuals and organizations whose main activities are religious, political, or electoral.
• Individuals and organizations whose main field of activity is different than the Japan Foundation’s.
• 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.
• 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.

Selection Criteria

• Recipients will be selected based on the following criteria:
  • Achievement: Recipients must have made outstanding contributions to the promotion of international mutual understanding and friendship inside or outside of Japan over the years.
  • Continuity and Potential: Recipients are expected to continue their activities and further promote and contribute to international cultural exchange.
  • Pervasiveness: Results of the recipient’s activities must benefit many people, not only a specific region or organization.

For more information, visit Japan Foundation.