December 4, 2022

2022 Competition Winners Announced

The International Churchill Society today announces the winners of the 2022 “Inspire Like Churchill” competition. Students around the globe were asked to rework Winston Churchill’s “Blood, Toil, Tears, and Sweat” speech, which he delivered in the House of Commons soon after becoming Prime Minister in May 1940. Entrants used this speech as an example to record a one-minute video addressing the issues facing the global community in the present.

The three winners, Daniel Gillis, Alex Berman, and James Tan have been awarded $1,000 each to support their education. They were chosen by a judging team that consisted of author Candice Millard, Churchill granddaughter Emma Soames, Director of the Churchill Archives Centre Allen Packwood, and Churchill’s great-grandson Jack Churchill. “All of the final round entries were submitted by impressive and insightful young people,” Millard observed.

Daniel Gillis said of his entering the contest: “As a third generation American Jew of Eastern European origin, I believe that my family’s survival—and in fact my very existence—can be attributed to Sir Winston Churchill’s courageous leadership during World War II. His example has been a tremendous inspiration in my life, shaping my standards for personal integrity and actions, along with my love of language, history and reading.”

Alex Berman said: “I applied to this competition after taking a class on European politics between World War One and World War Two, which of course heavily featured Churchill. When brainstorming topics for my speech, I found that a lot of the issues I identified were amplified by or even stemmed from the spread of misinformation. In recent weeks, what constitutes a healthy balance between free speech and curbing misinformation has become a hotter topic. I hope people in my generation can learn to think critically about the media we consume, and thoroughly research the media we create.”

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James Tan said: “I chose to write about climate change because in the status quo, there is unfortunately still a lack of awareness but also a lack of concrete action from international leaders. Sir Winston Churchill was able to unite the country through his ‘Blood, Toil, Tears and Sweat’ speech, urging everyone to put their differences aside to fight for a common cause. I believe the same kind of unity is necessary if we want to find a coordinated and effective solution to the climate crisis and was therefore inspired to enter the Inspire Like Churchill competition.”

You can find the videos of the three winners here: