Studio Ghibli founder and Bhutan’s first awardee among recipients of RMA

In the 66th year of the Ramon Magsaysay Awards, five recipients were announced, including the founder of Japan’s Studio Ghibli and Bhutan’s first-ever awardee. 

The 2024 Ramon Magsaysay Awardees are Karma Phuntsho (Bhutan), Miyazaki Hayao (Japan), the Rural Doctors Movement (Thailand), Nguyen Thi Ngoc Phuong (Vietnam), and in the category of Emergent Leadership, Farwiza Farhan (Indonesia). 

“These transformative leaders are molding norms, stoking pathways, painting virtues, transforming systems, weaving peace, and reimagining the world born from countless dreams,” Cecilia L. Lazaro, Chairperson of the Ramon Magsaysay Award Foundation (RMAF) said during the global announcement of awardees on Saturday. 

Mr. Hayao, a Japanese master filmmaker and founder of Studio Ghibli, was recognized for more than 40 years of 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 imagination,” RMAFs said in a statement. 

Some of his notable works are My Neighbor Totoro, Howl’s Moving Castle, Princess Mononoke, and Spirited Away, which have “teased our minds and enchanted our imaginations,” RMAF said. 

According to Susanna B. Afan, President of RMAF, Mr. Hayao’s recognition is both an inspiration to young artists and a source of pride for the Asian community.  

“We want to encourage artists to use art not just for money and self-promotion but to be a vehicle to teach young people about difficult things in life,” Ms. Afan said in an interview.  

“This is truly an Asian art form, what they are able to do is totally accepted and loved by so many. It is a big achievement, and we Asians should be very proud that it happened.” 

Meanwhile, Mr. Phuntsho was recognized as the first Bhutanese Magsaysay awardee for “his invaluable and enduring contributions towards harmonizing the richness of his country’s past with the diverse predicaments and prospects of its present,” RMAF said.  

Mr. Phuntsho founded the Loden Foundation, which has been at the forefront of supporting Bhutanese children in meeting their educational needs. 

The recognition of Bhutan’s first Magsaysay awardee indicates the foundation’s admiration for the country, Ms. Afan said.  

“I hope that they realize although they are a small country, they’re part of the Asian community, we admire their culture, and we admire their history,” Ms. Afan said.  

Other recipients include the Rural Doctors Movement, which was recognized for its historic contributions to the country’s public health as part of fulfilling and acknowledging citizens’ basic rights. 

Ms. Phuong, an obstetrician was also recognized for using her abilities to aid the victims of Agent Orange, the toxic chemical sprayed by the US Army during the heights of the Vietnam War.  

“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,” RMAF said.  

Ms. Farhan, founder of Hutan, Alam dan Lingkungan Aceh (HaKa), was recognized for being the leading figure in strengthening the protection, conservation, and restoration of the Leuser ecosystem.  

An Indonesian biodiversity hotspot and one of Asia’s largest carbon sinks. 

The five newly announced Magsaysay Award recipients join a group of over 300 past awardees, continuing to inspire people, especially in Asia, with their transformative leadership. 

“I think what makes its (Ramon Magsaysay Award) significant, (and) what makes it relevant are the awardees themselves… The work that they have done before still resonates today and is still relevant in today’s day” Ms. Afan said. – Edg Adrian A. Eva