UNESCO Headquarters, Paris has invited nominations for the Wenhui Prize to recognize and reward individuals or institutions that have made outstanding contributions to educational innovation in the Asia-Pacific region. Relevant details are on the next page.
Inviting applications for the UNESCO Bangkok‘s Wenhui Award 2020, to be conferred upon catalysts for #innovation in the educational domain during these testing times.
Send in your applications before 25th October!
Innovation is vital for the survival and progress of almost all industries and fields, and education is not an exception. Innovative approaches
are indispensable for achieving equity and quality of education in all contexts, particularly in emergencies and crises. COVID-19 has
In particular, innovative technologies and techniques have been widely utilized in different educational systems and at all levels during the
become a catalyst for innovations in different sectors, including education, in a very short period of time. In the Asia-Pacific region in the pandemic outbreak; new platforms and creative measures have been employed to deliver distance learning, conduct assessments,
institutions, educators and learners more adaptable and resilient to crises and exerts far-reaching impacts on future education. support teachers and families, and work towards the safe return to schools. Many such innovative solutions involve diverse stakeholders
such as governments, education professionals, technology providers, and communities. This emerging trend makes educational Against the background of the COVID-19 pandemic and in view of the crucial importance of innovation for education in emergencies and
20,000 each. Apart from the winners, honorable commendations may be granted to individuals or institutions that have demonstrated crises, this year’s Wenhui Award is themed “Educational Innovation in Response to Pandemic and Other Emergencies”.
The Award shall be conferred on two individuals or institutions in the Asia-Pacific region for their outstanding efforts and achievements in educational innovation with regard to this year’s theme. The two winners will receive a Certificate of Excellence and a prize of US$ commendable innovative educational practices. encompasses the meaning of culture, knowledge, wisdom, morals and ethics, and the desire for learning. Hui (晖) symbolizes the creative
The Wenhui (文晖) Award was jointly created by the UNESCO Asia-Pacific Programme of Educational Innovation for Development (APEID) and the National Commission of the People’s Republic of China for UNESCO in 2010, to recognize and reward individuals or
institutions that have made outstanding contributions to educational innovation in the Asia-Pacific region. Wen (文) in Chinese and radiant force of education that enables civilization and culture to flourish. Taken together, the name of the Award personifies the power Have demonstrated their ability to initiate innovative practices that help to increase access to information, promote learning and of educational innovation in enabling individuals, institutions, societies and cultures to thrive. Over the past decade, 51 Awards and
Honourable Commendations have been granted to individuals and institutions from 17 countries.
Individuals or institutions from UNESCO Member States in the Asia-Pacific region (https://bangkok.unesco.org/content/asia-and-pacific) that meet the following conditions are eligible to apply for the Wenhui Award:
generate new knowledge in the education sector; Relevance (to Sustainable Development Goal 4 aiming to ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong
Have verified the positive impact of their contributions to improving the access to education and the quality of teaching and learning processes;
Have proven their commitment to enhancing the popularity and quality of education, and promoting the concept of inclusive and equitable quality education and lifelong learning; AND
Have confirmed that their innovative practices are current and relevant to the key trends of education in the 21st century.
All applications for the Wenhui Award will be assessed equally against the following criteria:Sustainability (i.e. the benefits and impacts can be sustained beyond the completion of the innovation project) and replicability (to other learning opportunities for all; to the key trends of education in the 21st century; to the Asia-Pacific region; AND to the specific theme of
this year’s Award)
Timeliness (initiated within the last 3 years, completed or ongoing by the time of application)
Scale of benefit and impact (evidenced on the basis of specific indicators such as number of beneficiary countries in the Asia-Pacific region, number of beneficiary schools, number of beneficiary students, teachers, school leaders, and community members)
Originality (how unique the innovation is) Engagement of partners from different sectors (public and private), if applicable
Step 1: Express interest by submitting the online registration form by 11 October 2020; the registered countries, educational institutions, and/or relevant stakeholder groups)
Application Procedure and Supporting Documents
Applications for the Wenhui Award are open to governments, educational institutions, international organizations (IOs), non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and individuals in the Asia-Pacific region. All applicants need to follow the procedures stated below:
applicants will receive a link to the online application form (if the link above is not accessible, please use https:
1) Summary of the Innovation Project
Step 2: Complete the online application form and submit all the required supporting documents as listed below by 25 October 2020: Template (/sites/default/files/assets/article/Wenhui%20Award/files/Template%20for%20Summary_Wenhui%20Award%202020.docx)
The Summary should use the template provided below:
2) CV (for individual applicants) or organizational profile (for institutional applicants)
Step 3: Nomination
information. The letter should be provided by the Nominator directly to the Wenhui Award Secretariat no later than 30 October 2020.
All applications need to be supported by a Nomination Letter commenting on the applicant’s eligibility for the Award and other relevant
The Nominator must be one of the following three types: 1) the National Commission for UNESCO and particularly active in the field of education. Applicants need to choose their preferred type of Nominator in the online (https://en.unesco.org/countries/national-commissions) in the applicant’s country; 2) UNESCO Field Office
(https://en.unesco.org/countries/field-offices) operating in the applicant’s country; OR 3) other international organizations relevant to automatically send the applicant’s application package to the selected National Commission or Field Office, who will review and decide
registration form (Step 1) and indicate the specific Nominator in the online application form (Step 2).
If an applicant opts for a National Commission for UNESCO or UNESCO Field Office as the Nominator, the online application system will https://en.unesco.org/countries/field-offices (https://en.unesco.org/countries/field-offices). whether to nominate the applicant for further selection. The Nominator will directly upload the Nomination Letter for the Nominees to the
online system.
Information on National Commissions for UNESCO:
https://en.unesco.org/countries/national-commissions (https://en.unesco.org/countries/national-commissions).
Information on UNESCO Field Offices:
which is to be sent by the Nominator directly to the email address of the Wenhui Award Secretariat: [email protected]
Applicants who choose another international organization (IO) as the Nominator need to provide the contact details of the IO in the online application form. After the form is completed and submitted, the system will automatically send the IO an email about the nomination letter,
(mailto:[email protected]). It is the applicants’ responsibility to make sure that their selected IO Nominator submits the letter before the deadline. winners will be invited to the Award Ceremony in due course. Kindly note that applications sent by email will NOT be accepted.
Assessment of Applications
The final assessment of nominated applications is conducted by a Jury of multiple members who come from different countries in the AsiaPacific region and have extensive expertise and experience in the education sector. The winners of the Award and the recipients of the Honourable Commendations will be announced by the end of November 2020, and the
Contact Information
Concept Note (/sites/default/files/assets/article/Wenhui%20Award/files/Conc
For inquiries about Wenhui Award and/or the application, please contact the Secretariat at [email protected]
(mailto:[email protected]).
