Goi Peace Foundation/UNESCO International Essay Contest for Young People 2017

Application Deadline: 15th June, 2017

Offered Annually: Yes

About the Award: This annual essay contest is organized in an effort to harness the energy, imagination and initiative of the world’s youth in promoting a culture of peace and sustainable development. It also aims to inspire society to learn from the young minds and to think about how each of us can make a difference in the world.

Essay Theme:

“Learning from Nature”

Modern civilization has developed through controlling nature and exploiting its resources. At the same time, we human beings are part of the natural world, and nature has many things to teach us. Scientists, philosophers, poets, and artists have all found inspiration in nature. What can we learn from nature, and how can we make use of that learning for the future? Please describe your ideas, including your own observations and experiences.

Essay Guidelines

1. Essays may be submitted by anyone up to 25 years old (as of June 15, 2017) in one of the following age categories:
a) Children (ages up to 14)
b) Youth (ages 15 – 25)

2. Essays must be 700 words or less in English, French, Spanish or German, or 1600 characters or less in Japanese, excluding essay title. Essays may be typed or printed.

3. Essays must have a cover page indicating:

(1) category (Children or Youth) (2) essay title (3) your name (4) address (5) phone number (6) e-mail (7) nationality (8) age as of June 15, 2016 (9) gender (10) school name (if applicable) (11) word count.
Teachers and youth directors may submit a collection of essays from their class or group.
Please enclose a list of participants’ names, ages and the name and contact information of the submitting teacher or director.
* Entries missing any of the above information will not be considered.
* Please note that the organizer is unable to confirm receipt of essays or answer individual inquiries concerning contest results.

4. Entries may be submitted by postal mail or online.
* IMPORTANT: To send your essay online, you must go to the online registration page at www.goipeace.or.jp and follow the required steps.

5. Essays must be original and unpublished.

6. Essays must be written by one person. Co-authored essays are not accepted.

7. Copyright of the essays entered will be assigned to the organizer

Award

The following awards will be given in the Children’s category and Youth category respectively:

1st Prize:		Certificate and prize of 100,000 Yen (approx. US$870 as of February 2017)	… 1 entrant
2nd Prize:		Certificate and prize of 50,000 Yen (approx. US$435 as of February 2017)	… 2 entrants
3rd Prize:		Certificate and gift	… 5 entrants
Honorable Mention:		Certificate and gift	… 25 entrants

* 1st prize winners will be invited to the award ceremony to be held in Tokyo, Japan on November 25, 2017 and will receive the Minister of Education Award. (Travel expenses will be covered by the organizer.)
* Additional awards (Recognition for Effort, Best School Award, School Incentive Award) will be given if applicable.
* All prize winners will be announced on October 31, 2017 on this website. Certificates and gifts will be mailed to the winners in December 2017.

How to Submit Essay

Please send your entries to:

International Essay Contest c/o The Goi Peace Foundation

1-4-5 Hirakawacho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 102-0093, Japan

OR

Send online through www.goipeace.or.jp

For inquiries, please contact essay@goipeace.or.jp

Visit contest webpage for details

Sponsors for International Contest

The contest is endorsed by the:

• Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology of Japan;
• Japanese National Commission for UNESCO;
• Japan Private High School Federation;
• Japan Broadcasting Corporation;
• Nikkei Inc.;
• Tokyo Metropolitan Board of Education

And supported by FELISSIMO Corporation