COMMUNITY IMPACT AWARD
VOICE COMMUNITY IMPACT PAST WINNERS
2024: Dee Adekugbe & Shreekanta Aryal
DEE ADEKUGBE aka “Mama Dee” is the Founder and Executive Director of Ruth’s House, a safe haven for families of African descent who are experiencing domestic violence. Mama Dee is a highly respected community leader and collaborator who is committed to breaking the cycle of abuse in her community from a cultural and Afrocentric lens.
SHREEKANTA ARYAL is a dedicated social activist and community leader. He serves as a council member on the Alberta Anti-Racism Advisory Council (AARAC) and was recognized as a Star Volunteer of Alberta in 2023 for his outstanding contributions. As the former President and now an advisor for the Nepalese Community Society of Calgary (NCSC), Shreekanta played a key role in transforming the organization into a service provider for vulnerable groups.
2023: Dr. Turin Chowdhury
At our Immigrants in Leadership event, we announced the VOICE Community Impact Award for the first time to recognize individuals for their exceptional contributions to community empowerment and capacity building through research, teaching, mentorship and volunteering.
Dr. Turin Chowdhury of Department of Family Medicine, University of Calgary received the award for the year 2023. Big applause to Dr. Chowdhury!
MORE ABOUT THE VOICE COMMUNITY IMPACT AWARD
Award Description
The VOICE Community Impact Award recognizes and honors outstanding contributions of individuals who have demonstrated exceptional contributions to the empowerment of immigrant/racialized communities. Special emphasis will be placed on the activities that involve outreach to the community and community capacity building. In this context, activities may include volunteer work, mentorship, leadership, knowledge creation, or the application of research and other scholarly endeavors through community organizing.
Nominee Criteria:
The nominee must fulfill all the following criteria:
An individual must be an immigrant or a refugee who was born outside Canada OR who was born in Canada, but had at least one parent born outside Canada
A permanent resident or Canadian citizen
Current resident of the province of Alberta
An individual who does not currently hold an elected political office
Selection Criteria:
The nominee’s work must be focused on issues of the immigrant/racialized communities. The nominee demonstrates excellence in their area of work. The nominee pursues excellence through actions of integrity and dedication toward empowering other immigrants, makes remarkable efforts to bridge the immigrant community with the broader community by enhancing connection and understanding, advocates for knowledge creation and professional development, demonstrates significant advancement in policy and practice improvements, and/or demonstrates outstanding accomplishments that serve to inspire others within the immigrant communities.
Nomination Process:
The following should be included in the nomination package
Signed letter of nomination, outlining the nominee(s), their significant contributions, achievements, and how their work impacts the immigrant/racialized communities.
Nominee’s curriculum vitae.
One letter of reference supporting this nomination.
The nomination package must be submitted to “ed@voiceofimmigrants.ca” with the subject: “The VOICE Community Impact Award 2024”.
Nominations deadline: To Be Announced