Americas Awards 2011

The Americas Award 2011 pays tribute to public officials from national and local governments which have implemented successful projects/best practices in the eight areas of the United Nations Millennium Development Goals

The UN Millennium Development Goals call for:

  1. Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger
  2. Achieve universal primary education
  3. Promote gender equality and empower women
  4. Reduce child mortality
  5. Improve maternal health
  6. Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases
  7. Ensure environmental sustainability
  8. Develop a global partnership for development

The 2011 Americas Award Ceremony will be held on October 6th at 8:00 pm at the Renassaince Jaragua Hotel in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic in the framework of the Americas Competitiveness forum 2011. More than 1,000 leaders from the 34 nations in the Americas, including Heads of State, cabinet members, business executives, trade delegates, academics, and representatives from the region’s public and private competitiveness councils, non-governmental and international organizations will be attending the 2011 Ceremony.

AWARD CATEGORIES

Based on the areas of action of the United Nations Millennium Development Goals, the Jury Committee will grant eight awards, using the following evaluation criteria:

  • achieved high levels of performance excellence/improvement,
  • demonstrated world class innovation, and
  • maintained the highest ethical standards

The Americas Award 2011 categories are described below:

  1. Poverty Reduction Leadership Award
    For reducing the poverty rate in a community
  2. Education Leadership Award
    For improving primary education coverage
  3. Gender Equality Leadership Award
    For supporting gender policies and budgeting in a tangible way
  4. Public Health Leadership Award: Child Mortality Reduction
    For public health campaigns to reduce child mortality rates
  5. Public Health Leadership Award: Maternal Health Improvement
    For public health campaigns to improve maternal health
  6. Public Health Leadership Award: HIV-AIDS Prevention and Reduction Campaigns
    For public health campaigns to fight and prevent the spread of HIV-AIDS
  7. Environmental Sustainability Leadership Award
    For preserving the environment and enhancing environmental awareness, in areas such as: landfills/methane projects, public green buildings, emission reduction, alternative energy
  8. Economic Development and Job Creation Leadership Award
    For developing successful public/private partnerships for economic development and job creation

Download the Entry Form

THE JURY COMMITTEE

  1. International Training Center for Authorities and Leaders, CIFAL
  2. United Nations Institute for Training and Research, UNITAR
  3. Organization of American States, OAS
  4. Andean Development Corporation, CAF
  5. The Carter Center

ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA

  • The Americas Award 2011 is open to officials from national and local governments from the Western Hemisphere.
  • National government officials must be representatives of ministries or national departments/agencies.
  • Local governments must belong to a city with a minimum of 500,000 inhabitants.
  • Officials who wish to be considered can be nominated by development organizations, other governments or can self-nominate as long as the eligibility criteria are fulfilled.
  • Government officials can be nominated for any of the eight identified MDG Award categories.

SUBMISSION GUIDELINES

  • Submissions should be made:
    • Electronically (via e-mail only)
    • In English OR Spanish languages
  • Applicants are encouraged to include the following supportive material:
    • Social / economic / health / environmental and other indicators (before and after) that demonstrate the positive impact of the program in a particular area and timeframe
    • Articles and other publications
    • PowerPoint (PPT) presentations
    • Digital standard format videos less than 10 minutes length that evidence activities and the impact of the program
    • Photographs and other relevant graphical material
    • Promotional material

SELECTION PROCESS

  1. The Jury receives the submissions electronically
  2. Point system valuation assessment
  3. After preliminary review, the Jury takes part in an electronic voting session
  4. The Jury only evaluates and compares projects/best practices that can show measurable outcomes and impact also based on a point system
  5. The Jury then convenes in for discussion, deliberation, and ultimate decision
  6. The Jury selects and announces the winners

TIMETABLE FOR THE AWARD 2011

  • July 29, 2011
    • Deadline to submit applications
  • August 5, 2011
    • Evaluation of submissions by the Jury Committee
  • August 8, 2011
    • Announcement of Award winners
  • October 6, 2011
    • Americas Award Ceremony in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic

SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES

Interested institutions, companies and corporations are invited to sponsor the Americas Award 2011.  Sponsors will benefit from exposure during the promotional campaign of the Americas Award at the local, national and international levels.  For further information, please contact awards@cifalatlanta.org