The John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation has awarded 35 Fellowships to artists, scholars, and scientists from Latin America and the Caribbean with a total grant allocation of $1,200,000 according to Edward Hirsch, Foundation president. There were 395 applicants. Countries represented by the new fellows this year include Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Cuba, Mexico, Peru, and Venezuela. The Foundation grants Fellowships through two annual competitions: one for citizens and permanent residents of the United States and Canada; the other for citizens and permanent residents of Latin America and the Caribbean. The Fellowships are awarded to persons who have demonstrated exceptional capacity for productive scholarship or exceptional creative ability in the arts. Decisions are based on recommendations from hundreds of expert advisors and are approved by the Foundation¿s Board of Trustees, which includes six members who are themselves past Fellows of the Foundation. The new Fellows range in age from 33 years old to 62 years old. The 35 new Fellows are diverse not only in age, but also in their interests as the following samples show: Saurabh Dube¿s study of Christianity, colonialism, and conversion, 1860-2005; Jorge Durand¿s research on Latin American migration and the creation of new identity in the United States; new works of fiction by the writer Antonio López-Ortega; Patricia Majluf¿s study of sustainable alternatives to restore marine ecosystems; Marcos Novaro¿s research on human rights and democratization in Argentina, 1979-2007; Ana María Ochoa-Gautier¿s study of music, sound, and modernity in Colombia; new works by the painter Patrick Hamilton; films by Gregorio Carlos Rocha; Marco Romano-Silva¿s research on the clinical and molecular aspects of bipolar disorder; Ruth Rosenstein¿s research on a cure for glaucoma; new works by the composer Oscar Strasnoy; works by the choreographer Alexey Puig Taran; and new poems by Lila Zemborain. The due date for applications in the competition for Latin America and the Caribbean is December 1st of each year. Persons interested in applying should visit the website listed below or write to the Foundation at 90 Park Avenue, New York, NY 10016, for information and forms. The full list of 2007 Fellows may be viewed at
http://www.gf.org