The Prince of Asturias Foundation has awarded the 2014 Prize for International Cooperation to the Fulbright Program. The prestigious honor is given to an individual, institution, group of individuals or institutions whose work is outstanding in such areas as public health, the universality of education, the protection of the environment, and social and economic development, among others, and represents internationally a relevant contribution.
The award presentation ceremony is considered to be one of the most important cultural events on the international agenda. Throughout their history, these awards have been honored with different recognitions, such as UNESCO’s declaration in 2004 acknowledging the extraordinary contribution of these awards to mankind’s cultural heritage.
The Prince of Asturias Awards are divided into eight categories: Arts, Social Sciences, Communication and Humanities, International Cooperation, Technical and Scientific Research, Literature, Sport and Harmony. H.R.H. the Prince of Asturias, D. Felipe de Borbón, presents these awards each autumn in Oviedo, capital of the Principality of Asturias.
The nominees’ proposals must be of the highest caliber and the work or contribution of the candidates should have recognized international significance in each of the categories included in the awards.
Since its inception in 1946, the Fulbright Program is a world reference and leader in promoting educational and cultural exchange as well as scientific and technical cooperation. Its original objectives were understanding, cooperation and peace among nations. In the words of the Program’s creator Senator J.W. Fulbright: The Fulbright Program aims to bring a little more knowledge, a little more reason, and a little more compassion into world affairs and thereby to increase the chance that nations will learn at last to live in peace and friendship.
With a dynamic and growth-oriented character, the program now manages academic exchange in the U.S. and over 150 countries. Today, it is seen as an international benchmark thanks to the over 300,000 participants who have bestowed recognition and prestige in the entire world. Having been chosen based on their academic and professional merit, not only do they have the opportunity to study, teach and research but, above all, also to exchange ideas and contribute to finding solutions to challenges and issues with global reach.
The overall excellence and academic, professional and human quality of the Fulbright community are reflected in the 44 Nobel laureates and 86 Pulitzer prizes that grantees have been awarded.
Each year 8,000 Fulbright scholars worldwide experience what they themselves define as a “life changing” immersion in another culture. Although the world has changed since Sen. Fulbright conceived the program, the basic principles of striving for understanding and harmony among nations through the mutual understanding of their citizens still lives at the core of the Fulbright Program.