The Outstanding Youth in Intangible Cultural Heritage Award

The Outstanding Youth in Intangible Cultural Heritage Award aims to recognise youth practitioners of 35 years old and below, who demonstrates commitment, passion, and leadership in the practice and promotion of intangible cultural heritage (ICH) in Singapore.

This award is conferred by the National Heritage Board (NHB) and is one of NHB’s broader efforts under Our SG Heritage Plan 2.0 to foster greater youth engagement and participation in promoting and safeguarding our living heritage.

ICH elements practised by the nominated practitioners need to be part of NHB's National ICH Inventory, which consists of six categories:

* Social Practices, Rituals and Festival Events

Knowledge and Practices concerning Nature and Universe

Oral Traditions and Expressions

Performing Arts

Traditional Craftsmanship

Food Heritage

* The scheme excludes practices that are overtly religious or spreads the teachings or beliefs of any one religion.

How and when to apply?

To apply, please download the Nomination Form and prepare the necessary supporting documents for submission through the online submission portal by 15 August 2025, 2359 hours. More details for submission can be found under Application Process and Deadline below.

Prize

Each recipient will be presented with a trophy and certificate of award.

Each recipient will also be eligible to apply for grant funding of up to $20,000 to pursue learning, training, or capability development opportunities. This is subject to the approval of the proposed project.

Award Eligibility

The Award is open to individuals only. To be eligible for the Award, the nominee must meet the following criteria:-

be a Singapore Citizen or Permanent Resident who is 35 years old and below, as of 31 December 2025.
be practising one or more intangible cultural heritage (ICH) element(s) which is/are listed on the National ICH inventory.

The Award will only be conferred upon individuals who are ICH practitioners – researchers, advocates, and/or managers of ICH organisations who do not themselves possess ICH knowledge and practice ICH skills are not eligible for the Award. The Award will not be conferred posthumously.

Nomination Methods

Self-nomination and nomination by others.

Evaluation Criteria

Nominees are evaluated according to how they have demonstrated the following criteria:

Commitment, Passion, and Resilience

Regular engagement with youths and wider community to raise awareness of the ICH practice.
Displays strong and consistent commitment to sustaining and furthering the ICH practice.
Passion for learning and resilience in overcoming difficulties in sustaining the ICH practice.

Positive Influence, Innovation, and Leadership Potential

Innovation and creativity in enabling ICH practice to evolve while maintaining its relevance.
Exhibits potential for leadership within ICH field, such as driving efforts in promotion, documentation, or exchange of knowledge and skills of the ICH practice.
Serves as a positive example to other youths, such as efforts to serve the wider community through the ICH practice.

Ability in Skills and Knowledge

Displays ability and potential for excellence in applying both knowledge and skills of the ICH practice.

Evaluation Panel

Nominations will be reviewed and assessed by an Evaluation Panel, which comprises ICH practitioners, academics, representatives of community organisations, government agencies and experts in areas related to heritage, culture, and youth development.

For the 2025 Award cycle, the members of the Evaluation Panel are:

Chair	Ms Yeoh Chee Yan Chairman, National Heritage Board
Deputy Chair	Ms Chang Hwee Nee CE, National Heritage Board
Members	Mr Alvin Tan CEO, Singapore Chinese Cultural Centre
	Mr David Tay Director (Youth Leadership and Engagement), NYC
	Ms Dawn Lim Executive Director, Design Singapore Council
	Ms Ivy Tse CEO, Halogen Foundation
	Ms Kamini Ramachandran Executive Committee Member, Singapore Heritage Society
	Mr Kenneth Lee Tee Chong Director (Character and Citizen Education), MOE
	Dr Koh Keng We Assistant Professor, Department of History, NTU
	Ms May Tan Director (Education and Manpower Development), NAC
	Mr Michael Ker Business Owner, Kway Guan Huat Joo Chiat Popiah
	Mr Neo Kah Kiat Council Member, Singapore Federation of Chinese Clan Associations
	Mr Ng Kai Yuan Co-founder, Our Grandfather Story
	Dr Norshahril Saat Chairman, Malay Heritage Foundation
	Mr Percival Shepherdson Head (Heritage and Culture), Eurasian Association
	Mr Rajakumar Chandra Senior Advisor, Little India Shopkeepers Association
	Dr Rajesh Rai Associate Professor and Head, South Asian Studies Programme, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, NUS
	Ms Serene Lim Director, Sector Development (Performing Arts and Incentive Policy), NAC
	Mdm Som Said Artistic Director, Sri Warisan Som Said Performing Arts
	Ms Sunitha Janamohanan Lecturer, LASALLE College of the Arts

Application Process and Deadline

Complete the Nomination Form and prepare all supporting documents for submission.

Submit the Nomination Form and supporting documents through the online submission portal by 15 August 2025, 2359 hours.

Note: Supporting documents that are large in file size should be uploaded via file sharing platforms. Please include any web link(s) inside the nomination documents.

Please note that only photocopies of supporting documents are required. All submitted documents are non-returnable and you may be required to produce the original documents for verification.

Frequently Asked Questions

For any queries or questions regarding the nomination process, please refer to the FAQs below. For any further clarifications, please reach out to NHB via the contact details provided at the end of this page.

Frequently Asked Questions

Notification of Outcome

NHB aims to inform all nominators and nominees of the nomination outcomes by November 2025.

Contact

nhb_stewards@nhb.gov.sg OR 6982 1173.

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Outstanding Youth in ICH Award