MANILA, Philippines – Japanese filmmaker and Studio Ghibli founder Miyazaki Hayao is among the five Ramon Magsaysay awardees for 2024, the Ramon Magsaysay Award Foundation (RMAF) announced on Saturday, August 31.
In awarding Miyazaki, the RMAF noted how behind his creative genius was a core of “humanity.”
Miyazaki was recognized for “his lifelong commitment to the use of art, specifically animation, to illuminate the human condition, especially lauding his devotion to children as the torchbearers of the imagination, to whom he has passed the light and spark of his own.”
“With every stroke of his pen, whether to draw his characters, or to write their words, we feel the passion that drives Miyazaki’s heart, and that permeates the greatness of his spirit,” said RMAF trustee and former Cultural Center of the Philippines chair Emily Abrera in the announcement video.
Miyazaki is known for internationally acclaimed animated films like My Neighbor Totoro, Spirited Away, Howl’s Moving Castle, and Princess Mononoke.
The RMAF noted how Studio Ghibli films touch on complicated subjects, like environmental destruction, the horrors of war, and fear of the unknown, but were handled with enough nuance and care to provoke redefined ideas about pacifism, environmentalism, and self-empowerment.
“For four decades, Miyazaki Hayao has not only delighted the global audience, both young and old alike, but has taught all of us through the magic of animation to dream of peace and better societies, and to view the world with wonder and awe,” said Abrera.
The other four awardees included champions in conserving culture and the environment, and making healthcare available to all, especially amid social injustice.
Champions in environmental, cultural preservation
Farwiza Farhan of Indonesia was awarded the foundation’s Emergent Leadership award for “her profound understanding of the vital connection between nature and humanity, her commitment to social justice and responsible citizenship through her work with forest communities, and her promotion of greater awareness of the need to protect the beating heart and lungs of her country’s and Asia’s rich but endangered natural resources.”
Farhan was a member of the Leuser Ecosystem Management Authority or Badan Pengelola Kawasan Ekosistem Leuser (BPKEL), which managed the protection of Unesco World Heritage Site the Leuser Ecosystem, a 2.6-million-hectare expanse in Indonesian province Aceh, howe to some of the world’s highly endangered species.
Despite continued deforestation, infrastructure, and commercialization in the Leuser Ecosystem, BPKEL was abolished by the Aceh government in 2013.
But Farhan, together with other ex-BPKEL employees, chose to form a new organization called the Forest Nature and Environment of Aceh Foundation or Yayasan Hutan Alam dan Lingkungan Aceh (HAkA), dedicated to protecting, preserving, and restoring the expanse.
Over in Bhutan, scholar and former Buddhist monk Karma Phuntsho was recognized for his “invaluable and enduring contributions towards harmonizing the richness of his country’s past with the diverse predicaments and prospects of its present, inspiring young Bhutanese to be proud of their heritage and confident in their future.”
Phuntsho bridges Bhutan’s past and future by documenting and digitizing oral and written heritage. His work has led to over 3,000 hours of recordings of intangible culture, 4.55 million pages of digital texts from 76 libraries, 150,000 pictures of old art and artifacts, and 61 culture projects.
Phuntsho has written various academic publications on history, religion, and culture, including his “groundbreaking” History of Bhutan.
In 1999, he established the Loden Foundation, an educational charity “committed to promoting education, nurturing social entrepreneurship, and documenting Bhutan’s cultural heritage and traditions.”
Health advocates
The 2024 awards also recognized health advocates: Vietnam’s Dr. Nguyen Thi Ngoc Phuong, and Thailand’s Rural Doctors Movement.
Phuong was recognized for her spirit of public service and the message of hope she brings to the people she serves.
“At the same time, her work serves as a dire warning for the world to avoid war at all costs as its tragic repercussions can reach far into the future. She offers proof that it can never be too late to right the wrongs of war, and gain justice and relief for its hapless victims,” the RMAF said.
Phuong, born 1944, grew up and became a doctor over the course of the Vietnam War, which lasted from 1955 to 1975. At the time, Americans used a toxic chemical called tetrachlorodibenzodioxin, and a component of “Agent Orange” to clear forests and expose their enemies, as well as destroy the crops that fed them.
Phuong witnessed horrific birth defects and mothers’ sufferings, which led her to undertake her life’s mission: to expose the truth about Agent Orange, to seek justice for victims, and assist all who were afflicted.
As the Ramon Magsaysay Awards also recognizes organizations, the Rural Doctors Movement from Thailand was recognized this year for “their historic and continuing contribution to their people’s health — and perhaps just as importantly, to their recognition and fulfillment as citizens with basic rights.”
Like other developing countries in the 1960s, many Thai medical professionals left the country for work abroad. This prompted the Thai government in 1967 to impose compulsory service for medical professionals in rural areas in return for their subsidized education.
While deployed, the health workers were exposed to “harsh realities” in the countryside, which made them see the need for corrective policies.
The Rural Doctors Movement, a combination of the Rural Doctor Society and the Rural Doctor Foundation, emerged in the 1970s, and has since transformed Thailand’s healthcare landscape.
Apart from direct patient care, they have worked to propose changes in healthcare policies, such as opposing the commercialization of medicine.
“These doctors, this group of thoughtful people, envision reforms in rural communities, and have put their visions into action, reshaping the national landscape,” RMAF trustee and Philippine Disaster Resilience Foundation chief resilience officer Guillermo Luz said during the awarding announcement.
The Ramon Magsaysay Award, since its establishment in 1957, recognizes and honors individuals and organizations in Asia who “demonstrate indomitable greatness of spirit, thus transforming the lives of millions,” RMAF president Susan Afan said.
“Our Ramon Magsaysay awardees over the past six decades epitomize what it means to have visions unbound, reimagining the world, creating innovative solutions, and daring to confront the most pressing challenges of our time,” said Afan.
The Ramon Magsaysay Award is considered as Asia’s premier’s prize and highest honor, the region’s equivalent of the Nobel Prize. The award is named after Ramon Magsaysay, the 7th Philippine president. – Rappler.com