THE GLOBAL GOOD AWARDS

A New Purpose-Driven Take on Awards Ceremonies, by founder Karen Sutton.

I founded the Global Good Awards in 2015 because I wanted there to be a truly independent, purpose-driven awards programme that rewarded businesses, NGOs, charities and social enterprises of all shapes and sizes around the world, that are making strides towards a better world for people, the planet and the global economy. We’re not tied to any large publishing or event company, which means that our decisions and actions are not influenced by any vested interests or operational restrictions, and we are free to develop the Global Good Awards in line with our ethos.

The GGAs recognise leaders who are achieving practical, real-world impact that is both scalable and replicable – and who have inspiring stories to tell. We are in the final decade to save our existence on this planet, so we only reward entrants for action – not aims and targets. Our independent and impartial panel of judges has considerable experience in all areas of purpose driven sustainable development and we match that experience to the most appropriate category, to ensure each entry gets the most thorough evaluation possible. Ten members of our panel have been judging the awards since 2016 and it’s really important to us to have that consistency throughout the judging process.

We have a strong and consistent team and we only work with partner companies that share our values. This approach has undoubtedly made the awards stronger year on year. We also draw upon the knowledge of a steering group of individuals with many years’ experience in sustainability, to ensure that the Global Good Awards remain effective, credible and keeps up with the latest trends in the sector. One such shift has been the growing B Corp movement, and we’re proud that our B Corp following is extensive, from past winners to suppliers, sponsors and partners.

The Awards have also led me to a personal epiphany and a much more sustainable lifestyle. Before the GGAs I rarely gave a second thought to where I bought things, how they were made and where my money was invested. Now, I am truly inspired by what organisations of all sizes are doing in their communities, for their people, for the planet and for their bottom line. I am fully committed to promoting change and so not only do I now run the Global Good Awards but also run a consultancy for other awards and event organisations to help them work in a more sustainable and ethical way.

Our Ethos

Our ethos is what makes us stand out from the crowd. I really believe that if we are to recognise and reward change across all aspects of purpose-driven sustainability and social impact, then we have to be walking that talk ourselves. That is why the Global Good Awards is leading the awards sector by being something of a disruptor in the overall events industry space. Each year, we continue to push the sustainability boundaries further. We question everything we do, and every penny we spend to ensure we’re as sustainable as possible. ; but most importantly our programme has a purpose.

We donate 1% of all turnover from sponsorship, entry fees and ticket sales to charity through 1% for the Planet, as well as donating either £5 or £10 per entry to protect a tree or plant an Inga Bean via CoolEarth. All our venues meet certain sustainable standards or have ethical or social values, our ceremony hosts often utilise 100% renewable energy and hold a Green Tourism accreditation. Since 2018 we are proud to have worked with BMA House (certified Green Tourism Gold) and their caterers CH&CO (certified 3 Star SRA) deliver a fully plant-based menu that demonstrates that you don’t have the ‘be’ vegan to ‘eat’ vegan. All our alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks are vegan too, as well as biodynamic and/or organic. Our printers, Seacourt are the highest-scoring B Corp printing company in the world, and with the help of Erjjio Studios, our website is not only hosted with 100% renewable energy, but also optimised to reduce carbon emissions on page loading.

We encourage a ‘freshly-eco’ dress code where people wear something sustainably made, something from a charity shop or dig something out from their wardrobe and ‘reuse’. I have worn some really fun sustainable outfits in the past, including my notorious ‘crisp packet dress’! This year, I have a new outfit in mind, suitable for a daytime event. You’ll have to wait a while longer to find out more, but it’ll be colourful and very stripy (which is a bit of a clue)!

Our trophies are true works of art, made by one of Britain’s leading contemporary fused glass artists, Siobhan Jones, they are all unique and Siobhan shares the ethos of our awards in her daily life and business. The awards are all made from offcuts and fragments of glass from her workshop with the bases made from reclaimed wood.

Finally, the sponsors we work with must be able to demonstrate their purpose-driven sustainability and good governance – we don’t allow brands to greenwash through our programme!

In 2018, we were the first scheme in the world to be accredited as ‘Outstanding’ by the Awards Trust Mark and we’ve held onto this every year since. The Awards Trust Mark scheme is a not-for-profit accreditation programme with the goal, as the name suggests, of enhancing trust between those entering awards schemes, and the organisations running them. Award schemes must prove that they are running their entry and judging process and their entire programme ethically, fairly and transparently. The rating reflected GGA’s commitment to running a scheme with the highest standards of ethical behaviour and transparency.

We strive to have the most ethical awards programme out there. We are open to all organisations with no restrictions; however, we will refuse entries if we feel they pose a risk to our ethical and responsible practices. We don’t take any fees until the final entry has been submitted, descriptions and criteria are on the website and, once registered with us, entrants have immediate access to the application form questions without payment being required. The judging process is fair, transparent and robust. Judging is scored online using a clear and effective system removing any possible bias or inconsistency. Although judges can enter their own organisation, they will not take part, be notified or consulted about a category in which they entered. They will also have no commercial interest in the decisions made.

We provide free feedback to all entrants, whether they were finalists or not, immediately after the awards ceremony, including scores and written feedback. If an entrant requests information about the score given to the winner of their category, they will be supplied with the percentage mark for the benefit of benchmarking. We don’t do long shortlists to sell more ceremony tickets and we don’t charge finalists and winners to use our logo or widgets, they are sent to all finalists straight after the ceremony. We also provide quotes for press releases, winners photos, the event video and we are one of very few award programmes to publish a fullpage promotion of each category winners on our website that will remain there indefinitely.

2023 Awards

Since 2015, I have been constantly working to make sure the Global Good Awards are as purpose driven as our entrants. This year I decided it was time to turn traditional awards ceremonies on their heads by introducing a more inclusive and purpose-led ‘Winners’ Showcase’ event in addition to a virtual winner’s ceremony.

I was becoming disillusioned by selling tickets to companies that I knew hadn’t won an award and having an environmental impact by encouraging people to travel to a ceremony that was really just about having a few drinks and doing some networking. Past participants had said to me that they would be really interested to learn more about the winners, their projects and how they had got there, so I thought it might be an idea to split the GGAs into two parts: a free virtual ceremony for all, which will be held on 12 July, followed by a jam-packed day of purpose-led content on 12 October; and event for any organisation to attend but with discounted tickets for those who have entered in 2023 We also have a very exciting partnership to announce on 12th April so watch this space!

The October date will be held at BMA House in London and will include practical, purpose-led workshops on trending topics, with insights and advice from sector experts and our very own judges. They’ll be joined by 2023 GOLD winners who will share their success stories and best practice, what worked, what didn’t and what were the biggest challenges they faced. They’ll also take part in a ‘What good looks like’ in-plenary session where a host will give each winner a quick and punchy, five-minute interview.

There will also be a Secrets from the C-Suite session where C-Suite leaders from some of GGA’s most successful winners share their insights in a special Q&A session.

The entry period is now open and the main deadline is 21t April (ext. 28th April), but we do offer a 20% early bird discount for entries in before 24th March. You can enter and find out everything you need to know at globalgoodawards.co.uk c