Deadline: September 4, 2020
Applications are open for the .ORG Impact Awards 2020. The OIAs recognize .ORGs that are exemplary—those that serve as shining examples of how people can achieve great things—often with little resources and against significant challenges.
These people and organizations work tirelessly in pursuit of their missions; not for recognition or reward, but to simply make the world a better place. The 2020 version of the .ORG Impact Awards is different by circumstance but not in intent. Amidst an unprecedented (in most of our lifetimes) global pandemic, the 2020 program has transformed into a 10-day digital experience —”The Ten Days of .ORG”—that will enable the organisers to put more focus on award finalists and provide greater assistance to winning .ORGs through substantially larger cash donations.
Categories
The .ORG Impact Awards seek to celebrate significant achievements by members of the .ORG community. There are nine award categories subject to the nomination and judging process.
- Combating Coronavirus – Recognizes an organization or individual whose efforts helped manage Covid-19 outbreaks, provided essential information, provided essential products or services, helped create policies to combat coronavirus, or created solutions to medical equipment shortages.
- Promoting Education – Recognizes an organization or individual for contributions in promoting education for all, without regard to race, gender or financial status.
- Outstanding Volunteer – Recognizes an individual in an unpaid role who performed above and beyond what is reasonably expected of a volunteer, made significant contributions to the programs and activities, and whose efforts positively affected the mission of the organization.
- Championing Equality, Equity and Inclusion – Recognizes an organization or individual for efforts toward furthering diversity, equality, equity and inclusion in society through creation of policies, procedures and practices, creation of programs or other activities that promote and foster diversity, equality, equity and inclusion.
- Innovation Award – Recognizes an organization or individual who has broken new ground for an organization by demonstrating new ways of thinking, approaching and/or solving issues or challenges.
- Advancing Environmental Sustainability – Recognizes an organization or individual whose efforts advanced or will advance a clean, healthy environment without damage to our environment or depletion of nonrenewable resources.
- ORG Newcomer of the Year – Recognizes a person or organization that started less than five years ago and demonstrated experience for exceptional contributions by demonstrating initiative and leadership around a specific task, project or campaign.
- Fighting Hunger and Poverty – Recognizes a person or organization who has made significant contributions and innovations in the fight to end hunger and poverty on a local, national or global scale.
- Promoting a Safer Internet – Recognizes a person or organization whose efforts promote online safety whether through education, working with policymakers or advocacy.
The tenth and final award is the OIA .ORG of the Year award and the winner will be selected by PIR from the nominations received in the other nine categories.
- OIA .ORG of the Year – This award recognizes an organization using the .ORG domain, and honors outstanding achievement as evidenced by results and/or contributions to its sector, constituents, community or society at large. The .ORG of the Year will be selected by PIR in its sole discretion from the .ORGs nominated in the other nine categories.
Awards
The winners in each category of The .ORG Impact Awards will have the opportunity to direct a monetary donation to the charitable organization of their choice, as follows:
- ORG IMPACT AWARDS .ORG of the year: $30,000 USD
- Combatting Coronavirus: $15,000 USD
- All other winners: $5,000 USD
In addition to a monetary donation, winners will also receive:
- A custom trophy;
- An invitation to speak at the 2021 symposium (this is currently scheduled for March 2021, subject to circumstances);
- Free advertising and promotion during this time and
- The opportunity to be included and honored at our 2021 in-person event. The 2020 OIA finalists will also have the opportunity to be included and honored at our 2021 in-person event.
Eligibility
- All organizations nominated to any category must have a website hosted on the .ORG domain.
- All individual nominees must have an established role at an organization with a website on the .ORG domain.
- All submissions must be in English.
- Activities highlighted in the submission must have occurred between June 1, 2019 and June 1, 2020. If the activity began before June 1, 2019 or extends beyond June 1, 2020 the entry is still eligible so long as meaningful activity occurred between the two dates.
- Organizations and individuals may submit to more than one category/subcategory, but each submission must be original (i.e., an entry for one award category may not be resubmitted verbatim for a different award category).
- The nominator must be at least 18 years old and have permission to nominate the individual or organization that uses or has a connection to .ORG domain
- Individuals or organizations who reside in Cuba, Burma/Myanmar, Iran, North Korea, Sudan or Syria, may not nominate or be identified as a “Nominee”
- Employees of Public Interest Registry and any of its parent and affiliate companies as well as the immediate family (spouse, parents, siblings and children) and household members of each such employee are not eligible to nominate individuals or organizations or be considered as a Nominee for any award.
Application
All .ORG Impact Awards submissions must be completed online. Each award category will require a response to prompting questions associated with that category, so all entrants are submitting and evaluated on the same criteria. Each entry should also include a minimum of one supporting document; up to five supporting materials will be accepted.
Examples of supporting materials could include, but are not limited to:
- Project plan(s)
- A letter to stakeholders
- Marketing video
- Link to a webpage with project or initiative information
- Annual report or project recap report
- Before and after photos
For more information, visit ORG Impact Awards.
