YOUTH FOR HERITAGE. Some of the participants of the Youth Forum on Heritage organized by the Filipino Heritage Festival Inc. and the Office of Negros Occidental Third District Rep. Jose Francisco Benitez during the National Heritage Month in May last year. This 2024, the Gawad Kabataan Para sa Pamana (Youth for Heritage Award) will honor the works in heritage conservation, promotion, and advocacy of participating youth groups. (File photo from Cong. Kiko Benitez Facebook page)
BACOLOD CITY – The 2024 Gawad Kabataan Para sa Pamana (Youth for Heritage Award) will honor the works in heritage conservation, promotion, and advocacy of youth groups from the Third District of Negros Occidental and Bacolod City this coming July.
The initiative marks the 20th anniversary of Filipino Heritage Festival Inc. (FHFI), the partner of the Office of Negros Occidental Third District Rep. Jose Francisco Benitez, and the observance of the National Heritage Month in May.
“The award aims to recognize and celebrate the contributions of the youth in heritage conservation and seeks to inspire and motivate young individuals and groups by highlighting exemplary youth-led initiatives in preserving and promoting cultural heritage,” Benitez said in a statement on Monday.
Youth groups joining the 2023 and 2024 Youth Heritage Forum qualify for the award.
The award will recognize the projects and activities initiated by the participants from May 20, 2023 to May 31, 2024, in the respective cities and municipalities.
Entries will be evaluated based on impact, which considers tangible outcomes and the influence of the initiatives on heritage conservation or promotion; innovation, assessing the level of creativity, including the use of technologies or innovative solutions to address heritage conservation challenges; sustainability, focusing on the long-term sustainability of projects or activities; and collaboration, evaluating the extent to which the group has collaborated with other stakeholders.
Benitez authored Republic Act 11961, also known as the New Heritage Law, which mandates cultural mapping for local government units.
The law requires an inventory of cultural practices, artistic traditions, local cuisine, historical sites, structures, artifacts, and handicrafts as a crucial step to strengthening tangible and intangible heritage conservation, cultural education and tourism.
For the past 20 years, FHFI has also been dedicated to preserving and promoting Filipino cultural heritage through various programs and initiatives, and continues to advocate for the protection and celebration of the Philippines’ rich cultural history. (PNA)
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