Japanese director, animator, and cartoonist/Studio Ghibli founder Miyazaki Hayao is among the 2024 Ramon Magsaysay awardees!
Photos: Studio Ghibli / Ramon Magsaysay Award Foundation
According to the Ramon Magsaysay Award Foundation (RMAF), Miyazaki Hayao 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.”
Some of the influential Japanese creator’s popular anime films are “My Neighbor Totoro,” “Spirited Away,” “Howl’s Moving Castle,” “Princess Mononoke,” and “Grave of the Fireflies.”
“Reflecting his respect for his young audience, Miyazaki does not simplify his plots or stories. He tackles complicated issues, using his art to make them comprehensible to children, whether it be about protecting the environment, advocating for peace, or championing the rights and roles of women in society,” RMAF said.
Japanese filmmaker Miyazaki Hayao is joined by Indonesian forest conservationist Farwiza Farhan, Vietnam’s Tu Du Obstetric Hospital director Nguyen Thi Ngoc Phuong, and Bhutanese thought leader Karma Phuntsho. Thailand’s universal health coverage Rural Doctors Movement completes the list of five Ramon Magsaysay awardees this year.
The Ramon Magsaysay Award Foundation honors “individuals and organizations whose selfless service has offered their societies, Asia, and the world successful solutions to some of the most intractable problems of human development.”
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