Hong Kong Prize is one of Asia’s premier high school contests, honoring academic achievements and extracurricular participation alike. Winners can earn scholarships, gain international recognition and develop a spirit of self-challenge. It also cultivates a spirit of teamwork among participants, and enables them to explore their potential and discover new interests.
This year, Hong Kong was represented by nine artists on the shortlist, a record for the art prize’s history. Pakistani artist Noormah Jamal’s work, Did the Seed Grow?, earned the Public Vote Prize. Her sculpture of a crumbling house suggests the loss of identity and home that many people feel as a result of rising globalisation.
The film Ten Years won the top prize at this year’s Hong Kong Film Awards, despite having a limited cinema release due to its political content. The vignettes in the film tap residents’ worst fears for the future of the semi-autonomous territory under Beijing’s tightening grip. The movie’s director, Sammo Hung, received a lifetime achievement award.
In June 2020, Beijing imposed controversial national security laws in Hong Kong in the wake of pro-democracy protests. The law criminalises subversion, secession and collusion with foreign forces and has led to hundreds of arrests in the city. It has also pushed the city’s freedom of speech and press freedom index to record lows. Ahead of the upcoming general election, the government has warned that it may take tougher measures to maintain stability.
A few weeks after their awards ceremony, a group of this year’s Future Science Prize laureates shared their discoveries with students at Hong Kong Palace Museum as part of the event. Laureates spoke on topics ranging from high-temperature superconductivity to neural networks. Gregory Winter, who won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2018, and Michael Levitt, who was awarded a Nobel in Physics in 2013, were keynote speakers.
To recognise excellence in customer service, the HK Prize has introduced the Customer Service Award. Companies in different business sectors, including retailing, banquet and wedding planning, catering, hotel, property management, telecommunication, travel agencies and various service providers, are invited to participate in this award.
In order to enhance the quality of this award, the HK Prize has appointed an independent jury. The members are selected on the basis of their expertise in the relevant field, and the judging process is rigorous and fair. If any judging panel member violates professional ethics, the award is subject to termination or withdrawal.
HK Prize is hosted by the Hong Kong Alliance of Technology and Innovation, with support from the Bank of China (Hong Kong) Limited.
Please see the official terms and conditions for more information about this competition.
The HK Prize is not affiliated with the HK Book Award, which is governed by the terms and conditions of the Hong Kong Book Publishing Association. The HK Book Award is a merit-based, non-governmental award for excellence in writing in the humanities and creative arts, and has been running since 2013. The HK Book Award’s objective is to recognize and reward outstanding scholars who have published excellent books in the field of humanities and creative arts, and to encourage the development of higher education research in Hong Kong.