THE CICAK.com

Swarthmore Foundation’s US$2,500 grant willl fund theCICAK’s next competition

theCICAK’s special projects manager, Andrew Loh, received a US$2,500 grant from the Swarthmore Foundation at Swarthmore College in Pennsylvania. Loh applied for the grant in mid-March.

This grant will fund theCICAK’s second annual writing competition. This year’s theme is “50 Years, 50 Heroes: Young Malaysians You Need to Know.” Read the entries and watch the video award annoucement of last year’s competition.

theCICAK is on a global search for 50 young Malaysians heroes in conjunction with the country’s 50th Independence Day. The organization is looking for articles and photographs of heroes who have not been covered in mainstream media. Selected entries will published in a book.

theCICAK will also be giving out RM1,000 worth of cash prizes.

By launching this competition, theCICAK hopes to provide the country with fresh youth perspectives on what it means to be Malaysian. There is a need to document young Malaysian voices due to the lack of proper youth, ethnic, religious, gender and sexual minority representation in mainstream media.

Participants will interview their chosen heroes and write about how they are contributing to the country. They will need to write about their heroes’ goals, passion, ambition, hardships and obstacles.

“We chose the theme ‘Heroes’ because we wanted young Malaysians to do a little reporting. This theme will force them to step out of their comfort zones and talk to ‘real’ people. They will learn more about their sources, themselves and the importance of diversity,” said Poh Si Teng, director and co-founder of theCICAK.

theCICAK will collaborate with Inkyhands, an online Malaysian literary magazine, and Pusat Komunikasi Masyarakat (KOMAS), an organization that promotes community and public education through documentary film-making.

“We look forward to reading creative submissions that highlight Malaysian diversity,” said Joe Liew, editor and co-founder of Inkyhands. “This is more than just a collection of articles – this is a literary effort that aims to shape our nation’s identity.”

Pat James, chair of the Swarthmore Foundation, said that the foundation “was excited about (the) project because it is being done by young (people) to encourage engagement by other young adults through the stories of how they have worked oh behalf of their own communities. These personal stories can transmit important ideas and values, and they will inspire countless others to find ways to serve.”

Young Malaysian Heroes will be launched in the coming weeks. theCICAK invites interested participants to watch this site for more updates.