Singapore Prize Winners Announced
A solar-powered dryer to combat food waste, a program to end illegal fishing and a technology to make electric car batteries cleaner are among the five winners of this year’s singapore prize, unveiled on Tuesday. The environmental awards, launched in 2020 by Britain’s Prince William, celebrate companies that tackle the world’s most urgent challenges including climate change. Each winner receives PS1 million ($1.7 million) to help them scale their solutions.
The prizes were awarded at a ceremony at the state-owned Mediacorp Theatre. In keeping with the sustainability theme, the presenters wore green outfits. The prince wore a 10-year-old dark green Alexander McQueen suit, while Donnie Yen donned an old shirt and South African actress Nomzano Mbatha chose a navy blue gown from Stella McCartney, known for her eco-friendly designs.
At the ceremony, the prince said that the companies were proof that “hope does remain” in an era when “we are facing unprecedented crises”. He added: “In this moment of global uncertainty, it is inspiring to see these five heroes, and the many other remarkable winners who have been named today, working tirelessly around the globe to protect and restore our natural environment.”
The Lee Kuan Yew World City Prize has been awarded to Vienna. The award is given every two years for outstanding achievements and contributions that create liveable, sustainable, vibrant urban communities. This year, the prize is also being awarded to the United Kingdom, for its efforts to address a range of key global challenges such as climate change and rising inequality. Read about the reasons for choosing this year’s winners here.
A new translation category has been added to the Singapore Book Prize, which celebrates Singapore’s best literature. Established in 1992, the competition has now expanded to include four languages. The prize panel says the addition of a translation section allows writers to broaden definitions of what counts as Singapore history. Other changes this year include the introduction of a Readers’ Favourite exercise in which people vote online for their favorite shortlisted titles.
In 2024, a new prize will be introduced to recognise writers whose books explore themes in Singapore’s history. This will have a different selection process and be open to both established and emerging authors.
The prize is supported by the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth, and the National Museum of Singapore. This is in line with the government’s goal to encourage people to understand more about Singapore, and to build a nation that is confident and proud of its identity. It is hoped that the prize will also inspire and motivate Singaporeans to continue to write about their heritage in a variety of forms. The winning entries will be published in the year 2024. In 2024, it will be awarded by the NUS Singapore History Prize Committee. The prize is a part of the NUS Singapore History Prize programme and is not to be confused with the NUS History Prize, which was suspended in 2022 due to the coronavirus pandemic.