Panasonic honors winners of Kid Witness News Global Contest 2009

As part of its global initiatives to educate and support children, the leaders of tomorrow, Panasonic supports KWN, a hands-on video education program, lending video cameras and other equipment to elementary and junior high schools for video productions. KWN is now entering its 20th year since it was first introduced in a school in the United States in 1989. It has since been developed into a global program involving approximately 8,000 children from over 600 schools in 25 countries and region around the world each year. To date, more than 120,000 students participated in the program.

For the 2009 contest, the best videos from local contests held in participating countries and region advanced to the global contest. The five-minute videos, focused on either "Ecology" or "Communication," were reviewed and voted fair and square by local judges of KWN offices around the world to nominate six best works. In the final review, a panel of international judges including experts in film-making, education, and journalism screened the works to determine the Grand Prix and category awards.

The Grand Prix winner, "Dirty Work – The World Seen through Garbage Collecting," is a documentary that follows a veteran garbage truck driver. Depicting a modern consumption lifestyle by showing a variety of wastes produced every day, the Polish film urges the viewers to review their lifestyles and and their environmental impact.

The six finalist videos were also reviewed by the public on the Internet during the month of June. "Listen – Love" by Kowloon Tong School from Hong Kong won the Web Award, receiving the most votes on the web.