Last week I wrote about the Filipino non-profit CANVAS and its Romeo Forbes Story Writing Competition. This week I’ll focus on their “Elias Dakila Competition for Children’s Story Writing on Environment and Culture.”

First, let’s give the contest some context. In 1953, French author Jean Giono was commissioned to write a short story about his most unforgettable character. What resulted was the classic eco-fable The Man Who Planted Trees, about a man named Elias Dakila who, through sheer persistence and diligence, brings hope to a once desolate and devastated province (and doesn’t that remind you of Wangari Mathaai’s work?)

“Elias and His Trees,” the very first book published by CANVAS, is an adaptation of Giono’s fable (now in public domain) to Filipino settings by award-winning author Augie Rivera and late artist Romeo Forbes. Its publication, in 2005, inspired Canvas to start  the Elias Dakila Competition. Timely and timeless environmental stories have been brought to life by Filipino talents as a result of it. The first three, The Hummingbird, The King and the Royal Trees and The Star Thrower, have been published as one volume titled Earth Tales: 3 Ecofables for Children; others, such as The Boy Who Touched Heaven and Message in the Sand, are available for sale and/or as downloadable files through CANVAS’ website (make sure you click on the links to see/read/listen to the stories. The flash files may be a little heavy, but the wait is more than worth it).

For more on the topic of environmental stories for children, check out Carmelita C. Ballesteros’ essay for PaperTigers, Helping Children Make Sense of Climate Change, in which she focus on her book, Annie D. Ant.

Our focus on Filipino children’s book authors and illustrators wouldn’t be complete without a mention of the Romeo Forbes Story Writing Competition. Established in 2005 by CANVAS, a non-stock, non-profit organization committed to promoting awareness of and appreciation for Philippine art, culture and the environment, the competition was named after the young and highly accomplished illustrator of CANVAS’ first book project, who passed away in 2006 at the age of 24.

The idea behind the contest is simple: a Filipino artist, officially designated as CANVAS Fellow of the Year, is commissioned by CANVAS to create an original, large scale painting. The painting then becomes the “inspiration piece” of a writing competition (in English or Filipino) open to Filipino writers anywhere. The selected winning entry is illustrated as a series of large scale paintings by the same artist and published as a full color children’s book, with the original paintings showcased as a major solo exhibition for the artist.

This year’s winner, announced in April, was (more…)