Instituto Cervantes opens SPCC Grant Year 2011

MANILA, Philippines - In an effort to further strengthen the cultural bond between Spain and the Philippines, Instituto Cervantes de Manila, the Spanish cultural center in the Philippines, is launching the Spanish Program for Cultural Cooperation (SPCC) Grant Year 2011, a financial support and grants program for universities in the Philippines and the former territories of Spain in the Pacific Islands for the organization of cultural events, publications and researches that are related to contemporary Spain or the Spanish culture.

Themed “Toward a Common Future,” the program considers projects in the Humanities and the Social Sciences which study and articulate the shared heritage and common future of Spain, the Philippines and the Pacific Islands (Guam, Palau, Northern Mariana Islands, and the Federal States of Micronesia). Studies on Spain, contemporary or historical, fall within the mandate of the program.

“We should embrace the past but also look into the future,” says Instituto Cervantes director José Rodriguez, adding that the Spanish cultural center currently has more than 6,000 students enrolled in its language classes. “We should take advantage of the close ties that we share and turn that into opportunities for our progress.”

Financial support, through the program, is awarded to projects that study and promote their shared heritage and future, including grants for research, publication projects, cultural activities, as well as conferences, symposia and seminars involving collaborative and interdisciplinary research.

To qualify for the grant, an applicant must send a proposal for an activity, or research that will revolve around the shared culture of Spain and the Philippines. All proposals will then be evaluated by a 14-man team of esteemed scholars and historians from various universities and academic institutions in the Philippines and Asia Pacific.

Deadline for the submission of proposals is on May 31, 2011. Application forms on the program are available through http://www.spcc.ph/.

For information, call 526-1482 (local 110) and look for LV. Instituto Cervantes is at 855 T.M. Kalaw St., Ermita, Manila.