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Impact Public Affairs Wins the 2010 Griner Award for Business Excellence from the Canadian Society of Association Executives

September, 2010. Impact Public Affairs has received the 2010 Griner Award in recognition of superior business excellence. The Griner Award recognizes the significant contribution business members make to the association management field.  The recipient, through their actions over an extended period of time, has contributed in a manner beyond the expectations of daily business. 

The Griner Award is the top business recognition award from the Canadian Society of Association Executives (CSAE). In order to receive the award an organization must be nominated and recognized for business excellence by a minimum of three associations.  Given the prestigious nature of the award, it is not presented every year.  This year’s award marks the first time a public affairs firm has been recognized by the CSAE. 

Please click here to read more about Huw's Griner Award win!

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Impact Campaign Wins Best Government Relations

September, 2011 . The Canadian Society of Association Executives (CSAE) named Impact’s campaign for the National Allied Golf Associations (NAGA) as the winner for Best Government Relations. The CSAE’s esteemed annual Associations Make a Better Canada Awards honour positive and resourceful campaigns. NAGA was on hand to receive the award in Saskatoon in mid-September.

Impact developed a proactive advocacy strategy for NAGA, which, combined with its abiding relationships with Canada's key decision makers, set the association apart as the winner in the Public Affairs/Government Relations category.

To learn more about the specifics of NAGA's government relations strategy, click here.

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Impact President Huw Williams and NAGA Chair Jeff Calderwood at the CSAE award ceremony

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Impact Campaign Wins Best Government Relations

December, 2009. The Canadian Society of Association Executives (CSAE) named Impact’s campaign for the Canadian Automobile Dealers Association (CADA) as the winner for Best Government Relations. The CSAE’s esteemed annual Make a Better Canada Awards honour positive and resourceful campaigns.

During a year of unprecedented developments in the automotive industry, Impact helped CADA keep strong government relations initiatives at the forefront of the association's activity.

Impact developed a proactive advocacy strategy for CADA, which, combined with its abiding relationships with Canada's key decision makers, set the association apart as the winner in the Public Affairs/Government Relations category.

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Impact President Huw Williams and CADA President and CEO Richard Gauthier at the award ceremony

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Impact Campaign for CASLPA Wins Best Public Information and Education

December 2009. The Canadian Society of Association Executives’ (CSAE) esteemed annual awards honour positive and creative campaigns or coalitions. This year, the Concerned About Classrooms Campaign won the award for Best Public Information and Education campaign.

The Canadian Association of Speech-Language Pathologists and Audiologists (CASLPA) has been concerned about the impact of poor classroom acoustics on children’s learning and teachers’ vocal health for some time. To raise awareness of this important issue, Impact brought together interested organizations at the federal and provincial level to from the Concerned About Classrooms Coalition, which led the award winning campaign.

Impact raised the campaign’s profile with announcements from Parliament Hill as well as a strategy of Canada-wide public education and grassroots advocacy.

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Impact President Huw Williams and CASLPA Executive Director Ondina Loveat the awards cermony.

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Impact Press Release Recognized by PR News' Platinum PR Awards

September, 2011. Manhattan based publication PR News recognized Impact's work for the Insurance Brokers Association of Ontario (IBAO) as a finalist in the cateogry of outstanding press release. The Platinum PR Awards recognizes the year’s most outstanding communications initiatives and programs in the highly competitive and dynamic PR arena. The coveted awards set the industry benchmark for excellence across all areas of PR. The winners of the Platinum PR Awards are from corporations, agencies and nonprofits large and small who took chances, made tremendous strides and understand the power of public relations.

IBAO's press release, which helped to raise consumer awareness about the impact of credit scores on measuring an individual’s insured risk, was featured on over 20 outlets with an estimated reach that totaled over 500,000 Ontarians, an outstanding PR success!

Impact Director of Communications & Creative Services Emily Reid and IBAO CEO Randy Carroll at the Grand Hyatt NYC in Manhattan, NY.

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Impact Team Members Recognized for Outstanding Work in Public Relations

November, 2010. Manhattan based publication PR News has selected Alana Fontaine, Director of Public Affairs, as one of 2010's top 15-to-Watch. The award is in recognition of her oustanding contributions to the public relations field. This award is open to individuals under the age of 30 and honours the top 15 budding public relations leaders and creative practitioners worldwide. This year, Alana Fontaine was the only Canadian recognized with this prestigious award.

At the same event, Huw Williams, President of Impact Public Affairs, was named a finalist of PR News' PR People Awards in the category of Public Affairs Professional of the Year.

Impact President Huw Williams and Director of Public Affairs Alana Fontaine at National Press Club in Washington, D.C.

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Impact President Recognized for Outstanding Contribution to the Community

March 2011. Impact President Huw Williams was recognized with the United Way's prestigious Community Builder Award recognizing individuals that work tirelessly, passionately and collaboratively to make Ottawa a better place in which to live, work and raise a family. His name was inscribed on the Wall of Inspiration located in Ottawa City Hall. The Wall of Inspiration is a visible reminder to residents and visitors of the enduring commitment award winners have made to Ottawa. The United Way Community Builder of the Year award honours those who are working to help make change happen in the Ottawa community, and celebrates philanthropic leadership in the city.

Click here to read more about Huw's United Way Community Builder Award.

Impact President Huw Williams shakes the hand of Mayor Jim Watson alongside Senior Communications Consultant Barb Barrett.

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Impact Campaigns Deemed Finalists In Prestigious International Awards

November, 2010. Impact Public Affairs is thrilled to announce that three recent campaigns have been recognized among thousands of top PR professionals and executives in the non-profit sector at the PR News Non-Profit Awards ceremony in Washington, D.C. on Thursday, November 3rd, 2010. Impact received three honourable mentions in Washington for their work on various campaigns including:

• Advocacy Campaign & Lobbying: "Maintaining Canada's Library Book Rate" - Canadian Library Association (CLA);
• Press Release: "RVing Great Alternative to Expensive Hotel Lodging at Olympics" - Go RVing Canada;
• Fundraising Campaign: "Amethyst Track Challenge" - Amethyst Women's Addiction Centre.

Impact could not be more pleased with the award recognition their clients have received!

CLA President Keith Walker and Impact Public Affairs President Huw Williams at the award ceremony.

Impact Director of Communications & Creative Services Emily Reid accepts an award on behalf of Go RVing Canada.

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Impact Client's Newsletter Wins Honourable Mention for Best Internal Publication

December 2009, Washington D.C. A PRNews Award is not easy to win - it is the highest accolade in the public relations industry, given each year to the best corporate, non-profit, agency, and education teams, and the work that they produce.

Thanks to regular contributions by Impact, the Canadian Automobile Dealers Association’s newsletter, Newsline/Écho-CADA, won an Honourable Mention for Best Internal Publication. The newsletter competed against the publications of big-budget organizations such as the US Postal Service and the San Diego Zoo.

Over the years, Impact has helped develop Newsline/Écho-CADA into a primary communications tool used to relay current information on the association’s initiatives and important industry updates to Canada’s dealer network.

A PRNews Award is a prestigious symbol of achievement and leadership that sets the winner apart.

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Impact President Huw Williams and CADA President and CEO Richard Gauthier at the award ceremony.

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Impact Public Affairs’ Campaigns Honoured in Washington

Impact Public Affairs is pleased to announce that three recent campaigns have been recognized among thousands of top PR professionals and executives in the non-profit sector at the PR News Non-Profit Awards ceremony in Washington, D.C. on Thursday, December 4th, 2008. 

Now in its 61st year, PR News is the most trusted, executive level, reader-supported publication that helps enhance the business impact of PR.  Other organizations recognized at this event included the American Heart Association, HGTV, American Cancer Society, and the United Way of America. 

Impact’s campaigns stood out among huge organizations with multi-million dollar campaigns.  Taking home the win in the PR on a Shoestring category, Impact Public Affairs’ campaign for local charity, the Amethyst Women’s Addiction Centre, also provided a venue to draw attention to the client’s cause: addiction awareness.  This creative PR event that took home the gold consisted of a 50-yard dash down busy Sparks Street in order to raise awareness for Amethyst and to publicize the upcoming Amethyst Track Challenge. 

“We are very excited about what these awards mean to our clients,” explained Huw Williams, President of Impact Public Affairs.  “We are proud that our creative ideas and hard work have been recognized among top PR professionals in the non-profit sector, and that the success of our clients has had the opportunity to be profiled on this prestigious scale.” 

Also receiving an honourable mention in Washington were Impact’s campaigns for best Advocacy Campaign, prepared for the Canadian Urban Transit Association (CUTA) and top Press Release for the Canadian Library Association (CLA); a campaign entitled “Concerned about Copyright.”

 

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Impact Campaigns Win Best Government Relations Awards

Two campaigns win CSAE's Top Honour

The Canadian Society of Association Executives (CSAE) has honored Impact Public Affairs with two esteemed awards in the Public Affairs/Government Relations section of their ‘Associations Make A Better Canada Awards 2008’. The award winning campaigns were titled Transportation in Canada: From $0 to over $4B in 8 years, a project for the Canadian Urban Transit Association (CUTA) and Noisy Toys, a campaign developed with the Canadian Association of Speech-Language Pathologists and Audiologists (CASLPA) .

The CSAE awards were designed to honour inventive and resourceful campaigns. These esteemed awards represent the association’s dedication to rewarding positive and creative campaigns or coalitions.

“I commend Impact Public Affairs for their creativity and dedication throughout this initiative” said Michael Roschlau, President and CEO of CUTA. “Their thorough knowledge of government affairs was primary to the success of this campaign.”

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Award Winning Press Release

Impact Press Release Ranked Top 10 by CNW Group

and Honoured Among Finalists for PR News Platinum Award

Impact Public Affairs recent press release prepared for the Canadian Library Association, was recognized with the Top 10 Accessed News Release award. This recognition underscores the huge reach of the CLA campaign that led to major coverage in newspapers, magazines, radio and television media across Canada.  Highlights included front page coverage in the Globe and Mail, special coverage on Macleans.ca, and coverage on CBC Radio news and on CTV.ca

The press release, entitled Concerned About Copyright, was also recognized at the PR News Platinum Awards in New York City.

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“This award is a real boost for our copyright campaign,” said CLA Executive Director Don Butcher as he accepted the award from Huw Williams, President of Impact Public Affairs. “To know ours was one of the most accessed press releases by journalists shows we made a real impact.  This, combined with feature coverage, means the public, the media and politicians are aware of our cause.”

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Impact Public Affairs' Campaigns Win Two International Awards

Ottawa-based Agency's Public Relations Campaigns Recognized Among Best in International Contest

Impact Public Affairs was recently recognized internationally for two of its public relations campaigns as they were awarded the 2008 Summit International Award medal in the Community Relations Category.

Among the thousands of creative entries received this year by the Summit International Awards judging committee, Impact’s Addiction over the holidays and National Health Food Month campaigns scored among the very best, taking home the Silver and Bronze awards respectively. Entries came from 25 countries, including Canada, South Africa, China, Australia, England, and the United States and were judged by a group of well-respected marketing and advertising executives from such internationally recognized companies as Ogilvy & Mather, SAATCHI & SAATCHI and Velocity Design Works.

“CHFA is extremely grateful to Impact for their creativity, guidance and expertise and we are thrilled that this campaign has won an international award,” commented CHFA President and CEO, Penelope Marrett.  “We look forward to working with Impact in the future to increase awareness for our industry and promoting among Canadians the necessary tools which will enable them to achieve optimal health and well being.”

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Impact recognized at client Annual General Meeting

Ottawa charity client, the Amethyst Women's Addiction Centre, recently recognized Impact Public Affairs at their AGM and presented the organization an award for outstanding service.

Impact recently implemented a strategic communications plan for Amethyst which included a complete re-design of the centre's website, rebranding of their materials, an extensive fundraising initiative, and various media awareness campaigns.

The Amethyst Women's Addiction Centre is a non-profit charitable organization which provides community-based treatment services to address the unique issues affecting women coping with substance abuse.

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Three Impact PR and GR Projects Honoured by PR News

TIAC, CASLPA and CLA Initiatives are Finalists Among

Best North American Campaigns

(OTTAWA) December 4, 2007, PR News, a well-respected American publication, nominated three Impact Public Affairs campaigns among their 2007 nominees.

The following campaigns were honored at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C.:

• The Canadian Association of Speech-Language Pathologists and Audiologists (CASLPA)'s Noisy Toys Campaign--Finalist in the Public Service category.
• The Tourism Industry Association of Canada (TIAC)'s Opposing the VRP Campaign--Finalist in the Advocacy Campaign and Lobbying Efforts category.
• The Canadian Library Association (CLA)'s Launch Your Future with Reading Campaign--Finalist in the PR on a Shoestring category.

 

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Two Impact Public Affairs Projects Win 2007 CSAE National Award

 CADA Magazine and CLA Campaign Recognized for

Public Relations Excellence

(OTTAWA) October 24, 2007, During the Canadian Society of Association Executives’ (CSAE) Annual Convention last weekend in Hamilton, public relations initiatives coordinated by Impact Public Affairs for two of its clients, the Canadian Automobile Dealers Association (CADA) and the Canadian Library Association (CLA), were respectively honoured as CSAE award recipients. Click here to read more.

 

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2008 CSAE Marketing & Communications

Networking Group Presentation

For the second year in a row, Impact Public Affairs' Catherine Fortin LeFaivre joined forces with SEVEC to give a government relations presentation on the topic of  planning a successful lobby day and the importance of effective messaging. The presentation, held on January 8, 2008 at the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada in Ottawa, was part of CSAE's Marketing & Communications Networking Group session.

Please click here to view the Power Point slides used during the presentation. For more information on these types of presentations, contact Alana at alana@impactcanada.com

 

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The 2006 Ottawa Business Journal (OBJ)
Forty Under 40 Awards Gala

Impact Public Affairs President, Huw Williams, was recently recognized with the 2006 Forty Under 40 Award. Every year, the OBJ picks 40 of the top young businesspeople from the national capital region. Nominees are judged on business accomplishments, expertise and community involvement.

For a link to the OBJ's profile on Huw Willliams, click here.

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Government Relations Leadership Institute (GRLI) Courses

Impact Public Affairs' Huw Williams and Scott Thurlow led a government relations course, as part of a series of national award-winning courses on March 29th, 2007. In a program designed to provide consultant, corporate and association practitioners with the tools to enhance their advocacy and government relations, Scott and Huw led a course entitled Advocacy Election Strategy.  Participants learned from their expertise on how to deliver an effective advocacy message – before, during and after an election campaign.  Huw Williams was the GRLI first instructor in 2005 and lectured on the core components of effective lobbying. 

For more information on these types of presentations, contact Alana at alana@impactcanada.com

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The 2005-2006 Canadian Society of Association Executives (CSAE)'s
Associations Make A Better Canada Award for
Public Affairs and Government Relations

The CSAE's Make A Better Canada Awards celebrate the added value not-for-profit organizations bring to Canadian society.  This year, the Public Affairs and Government Relations Award went to the Canadian Automobile Dealers Association (CADA).  CADA President Rick Gauthier and Impact President Huw Williams were on hand at the CSAE 2005-2006 Leadership Awards in Edmonton to accept the award this fall.

As CSAE described, "This organization [CADA] embarked on a successful grassroots campaign to expand tax deductibility for tools used by over 30,000 senior Canadian technicians. CADA also launched its Laureate Dealer Recognition Program designed to raise standards of ethical and professional conduct among Canada’s auto dealers.  A key program component, the National Dealer Code of Ethics, established benchmarks for the conduct of future award winners. "

Over the past decade, Impact Public Affairs has been in charge of developing and implementing every facet of CADA's government relations strategy.

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The 2004-2005 Canadian Society of Association Executives (CSAE)
Chapter Program-of-the-Year Award

The Government Relations Leadership Institute (GRLI), which Impact President Huw Williams co-founded, recently received the Chapter Program-of-the Year Award in recognition of its outstanding Government Relations Program.

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We Wrote the Book on Government Relations

"This publication's excellent case studies illustrate how a wide variety of organizations have succeeded with government at all levels," says CSAE President and CEO Michael Anderson, CAE. "This guidebook will serve as an invaluable tool for associations looking at effective government relations, whether it's at a federal, provincial or local level."

To obtain a copy of "A Guide to Government Relations for Directors of Not-For-Profit Organizations" co-written by Impact Public Affairs President Huw Williams, contact Alana at alana@impactcanada.com.