Canadian Publishing Awards for Japan

CANCELLATION OF THE UNDERSTANDING CANADA - CANADIAN STUDIES PROGRAM

Please note that further to the announcements in the 2012 budget, the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada (DFAIT) has decided to abolish the Understanding Canada-Canadian Studies Program. Therefore, there will be no further grants issued under this program.

Recipients who received a grant recently will have until January 31, 2013 to send to ICCS a final report in order to claim the second instalment of the award.

 

 

 

Objective

The program is designed to recognize quality scholarship about Canada or the Canada-Japan relationship and to increase the amount of published material related to Canada available in the Japanese language.

While the competition is open to all academic disciplines and subject matters, we are particularly interested in projects that have policy relevance for Canada and Canada’s foreign policy. Topics that are highly relevant to Canada’s foreign policy include Democracy & Rule of Law, Economic Development, Environment, Managing Diversity, North American Partnership, Peace and Security.

Manuscripts must be non-fiction but need not be originally authored by academics nor need they adhere to normal scholarly style with footnotes, etc. Applications must be submitted by a publisher. All applications will be judged by a jury of academics and/or editors of scholarly presses. The award will be given directly to the Japanese publisher undertaking to publish the book-length manuscript.

There are two categories of awards, namely:

  1. Best Manuscript written in Japanese.
  2. Best Manuscript in translation of a Canadian-authored book about Canada.

1) BEST MANUSCRIPT WRITTEN IN JAPANESE:

Eligibility

The book-length manuscript must be written originally in Japanese and be related to Canadian Studies by being about contemporary Canada or some aspect of it, including the Canada-Japan relationship.

Applications must include:

  1. an application form duly completed in English or French.
  2. a copy of the complete manuscript.
  3. a copy of the curriculum vitae of the author(s); (if submitted in Japanese, a summary is required in English or French);
  4. two letters of reference from scholars or practitioners in the field covered by the manuscript (with an English or French translation if submitted in Japanese).
  5. a commitment from the prospective publisher (attached to the application form):
    • undertaking to publish the manuscript within twelve months after receiving the Canadian Publishing Award.
    • undertaking to recognize on an acknowledgement page inside the publication and on the book jacket or belt, and in related publicity that the book is the recipient of the award.
    • undertaking to donate 7 copies of the book to the Embassy of Canada in Tokyo, upon publication.
    • providing an estimated publication budget that clearly indicates the proportion of the total cost that an award would constitute, the number of copies expected to be published in hard and/or soft cover, and the retail price per copy; and if applicable, enclosing copies of any outside evaluations the publisher might have commissioned.

Value of Award

The award, not to exceed 50% of the publishing costs or CDN$ 17,000, is meant to assist publishers with the cost of publishing in Japanese, within twelve months after receiving an award, of a work related to Canada that may otherwise not be published. It does not constitute a prize recognizing the excellence of a publication: therefore already published works are not eligible.

 

While no more than one Canadian Publishing Award in this category will be given in any year, ad hoc financial support, up to but not exceeding 50% of the publishing costs or CDN$ 13,000, may be offered by the Embassy to a runner up entry upon recommendation of the jury. They may be only one runner-up award in any given year, either in the Best Manuscript Written in Japanese or Best Manuscript in Translation category. No award will be given if the jury is dissatisfied with the quality or relevance of applicants. Documents and materials submitted in an application will not be returned to applicants, whether successful or not.

2) BEST MANUSCRIPT IN TRANSLATION OF A CANADIAN-AUTHORED BOOK ABOUT CANADA:

Eligibility

The original book must be Canadian-authored and related to Canadian Studies by focusing on contemporary Canada, or some aspect of it including the Canada-Japan relationship.

 

Applications must include:

  1. an application form duly completed in English or French.
  2. the title of the original book and the names of its author and publisher; (please enclose at least one copy of the original Canadian-authored book).
  3. a copy of three separate reviews in English, French, or Japanese of the original book.
  4. the curriculum vitae of the translator(s); (if submitted in Japanese, a summary is required in English or French).
  5. a letter of commitment from the translator(s), in English or French, undertaking to translate the book if the application is successful.
  6. a sample translation of the table of contents and of 1/4 to 1/3 of the proposed book.
  7. a Japanese synopsis of the original book.
  8. two letters of reference from scholars or practitioners in the field covered by the manuscript (with an English or French translation if submitted in Japanese).
  9. a commitment from the prospective publisher (attached to the application form):
    • undertaking to publish the translated work within twelve months after receiving the award, and after duly acquiring all the necessary rights to the manuscript.
    • undertaking to recognize on an acknowledgement page inside the publication and on the book jacket or belt, and in related publicity that the book is the recipient of the Canadian Publishing Award.
    • undertaking to donate 7 copies of the book to the Embassy of Canada in Tokyo, upon publication.
    • enclosing an estimated publication budget that clearly indicates the proportion of the total cost that an award would constitute, the number of copies expected to be published in hard and/or soft cover, and the retail price per copy.

Note: This award is intended as a publishing subsidy and not for the costs of translation itself. Support for translation costs may be requested from the Canada Council for the Arts, Writing and Publication Section. 

Value of Award

The award, not to exceed 50% of the publishing costs or CDN$ 17,000, is meant to assist publishers with the cost of publishing a Japanese translation, within twelve months after receiving an award, of Canadian-authored books related to Canada that may otherwise not be published. It does do not constitute a prize recognizing the excellence of a publication: therefore, already published Japanese translations of such books are not eligible.

 

While no more than one Canadian Publishing Award in this category will be given in any year, ad hoc financial support, up to but not exceeding 50% of the publishing costs or CDN$ 13,000, may be offered by the Embassy to a runner up entry upon recommendation of the jury. They may be only one runner-up award in any given year, either in the Best Manuscript Written in Japanese or Best Manuscript in Translation category. No award will be given if the jury is dissatisfied with the quality or relevance of applicants. Documents and materials submitted in an application will not be returned to applicants, whether successful or not.

Deadline

The deadline is December 7.

Application Procedure

Application guidelines and forms are available from the Embassy of Canada in Tokyo.

You may also print or download the forms:

CPA Application form: Adobe PDF Form format
CPA Application form: Microsoft Word format

Applications (five copies) must be submitted through the Embassy of Canada in Tokyo. Applications submitted directly to the ICCS cannot be accepted nor redirected.

Selection and Notification

All applications will be reviewed by a pre-selection jury established by the Embassy of Canada in Tokyo. The jury will include representatives of the academic community, and/or editors of scholarly presses, and when possible, Canadian academics.

After reviewing applications and the recommendations of the pre-selection jury, the International Council for Canadian Studies in Ottawa, will forward its recommendations to DFAIT, which will make the final decisions.

All applicants will be notified in writing of the results of their application, normally within 120 days of the deadline for submission of applications.

Payment Procedure

In respect of each successful application, a Grant Agreement will be sent directly to the publisher who has given a commitment to publish the work upon receipt of a Canadian Publishing Award for Publishing. It must be signed, dated, and returned to the Embassy of Canada within thirty (30) days. Upon receipt of the signed Grant Agreement, a first of two installments, representing 80% of the total award, will be forwarded to the recipient. The second and final payment (20% of the total award) will be made upon the publication of the related book.