As with so many in-person events, this year we had to go back to the drawing board with our Evening of Recognition, which honours the amazing accomplishments of our members. This annual celebration is our largest event of the year and is not only an opportunity to connect with our members and partners but our community. So we felt compelled to look at the restrictions as a chance to reinvent how we connect.  Our team took up this challenge with gusto and created new ways we could share all of these sustainability stories within the region. 

We kicked things off by taking the Evening of Recognition to the airwaves with Mike Farwell of 570 News. During the week of June 15th, Mike and our Executive Director, Tova Davidson, had an opportunity to chat with program winners and also about how we can move towards a green recovery. If you missed that opportunity to listen in, check out this blog post to hear and learn more. 

After Tova safely delivered the beautifully designed awards to our winners it looked as though we would have an opportunity to highlight our winner’s at THEMUSEUM as part of the ALARM exhibit. An installment of both the handcrafted awards, made by Conestoga College’s Wood Working Centre of Ontario and the Studio Locale produced posters was in progress as restrictions once again increased. But we continued undeterred! 

Once again, a partner in our community offered us a chance to showcase our 2019 winners one last time by including them in The Record’s “A Look Back: Farewell to 2020” on December 31st. The article highlighted how our community’s commitment to reduce energy waste, provide accessible and sustainable transportation, pollution reduction and taxation are just a few of the steps that we can take together.

So although we were not able to hold our Evening of Recognition, we were able to accomplish something even more meaningful. A year of partnering with amazing organizations in our community like Conestoga College, The Mike Farwell Show, The Record, and Studio Locale, to share our member’s success stories to a wider audience in hopes of inspiring other local organizations to convert their sustainability interest into action. Thank you to each one for helping to make the recognition of our winners memorable throughout the challenges of 2020. 

Read more about our winners, and see Tova’s Regional Road Trip on our website!