2024 Innovation in Equity Award

Check back for more details about the 2025 NRPA Awards.
Get A Reminder about the 2025 Nomination Period

The Innovation in Equity Award recognizes a park and recreation agency leading an innovative project or program that improves access to the benefits of local parks and recreation experience for everyone in the community, including racial/ethnic minorities, LGBTQ community, New Americans, individuals with physical/cognitive disabilities, older adults, among others.

The nomination deadline is March 29, 2024.

Eligibility Criteria:

• Must be a current member of NRPA (Membership can be as an agency member, the agency director, or program director)
• The agency:
  • Exhibits leadership in best practices for equity
  • Demonstrates success in achieving social equity in their communities
  • Develops and implements successful innovative practices in creating more equitable communities
  • Demonstrates a commitment to encourage, welcome, and support all people through parks and recreation
• All programs or projects submitted with this application must have been implemented since January 1, 2023 -- i.e. between January 1, 2023 and the submission deadline of March 29, 2024.

Required Materials:

• Completed application form
• Testimonial from a community member (non-staff) about impact of project/program.

Optional Materials:

• One additional supplemental item which highlights the effects and achievements of the project/program.
• Relating photograph(s)

Submission Instructions:

• All submissions must be received by NRPA no later than 11:59 p.m. EST on March 29, 2024. NRPA will not return any materials submitted with the application.
• The official NRPA application form must be used in submissions.
• Applicants must have or create an NRPA login account to complete an application.
• All materials must be submitted electronically using this survey format.
• Supplemental material file types include .pdf, .doc, .docx, .jpg or .jpeg as noted on form.
• Each project or program can only be submitted for one of the four innovation awards.
• Submission is automatically disqualified if it does not meet criteria, submission instructions, or if the responses are over the word limit.
• This format has a save and continue feature that is located in the banner at the bottom of the question pages.

Terms and Conditions:

• NRPA reserves the right to disqualify an application if in NRPA’s sole discretion it determines that the application does not contain truthful information, is contrary to the standards or policies of NRPA, or violates applicable laws, or if the nominee acted contrary to the standards or policies of NRPA, or violated applicable law or could reflect negatively on NRPA.
• NRPA reserves the right to revoke any award or prize if in NRPA’s sole discretion it determines that the awardee acted contrary to the standards or policies of NRPA or acted in violation of applicable laws or could reflect negatively on NRPA.

For more information, contact the NRPA Awards Program at awards@nrpa.org.

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