"In our increasingly diverse societies, it is essential to ensure harmonious interaction among people and groups with plural, varied and dynamic cultural identities as well as their willingness to live together" (UNESCO Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity, 2 November 2001)

But how does technology shape cultural identity and how has it changed the way we live together? Can digital technology promote dialogue between people from different cultures, creating a better, fairer and more peaceful world where cultural diversity and tolerance prevail? And how can an artist's vision and sensibility reflect and contribute to cultural diversity and digital pluralism?

These are the questions we want to address through the "Digital Pluralism - UNESCO Digital Arts Award 2003 at IAMAS".

The award aims to promote digital art as an innovative and artistic reflection on our information society. It forms a special category of the UNESCO Prize for the Promotion of the Arts, rewarding young emerging artists for outstanding creative achievements that answer to the ideals of master painter Kaii Higashiyama who ten years ago created this Prize within UNESCO.

We encourage artists to reflect on the theme of cultural diversity, digital pluralism and social interaction, and to send project proposals for a media artwork that considers these topics and that can be realised during a 6-month artist-in-residence period at the Institute of Advanced Media Arts and Sciences (IAMAS) in Gifu, Japan.