( ENSPIRE Community Spotlight ) Rewarding and Celebrating Innovators for Important Social Causes
ENSPIRE Contributor: Daniel Garritson
Launched in 2021 by The Webby Awards, this year marks the 2nd Annual Anthem Awards, an awards ceremony created to celebrate and champion work across seven core causes: Diversity, Equity & Inclusion; Education, Art & Culture; Health; Human & Civil Rights; Humanitarian Action & Services; Responsible Technology; and Sustainability, Environment & Climate.
By amplifying the voices that spark global change, the Anthem Awards are defining a new benchmark for impactful work that inspires others to take action in their own communities. The Anthem Fund was created to support emerging individuals and organizations actively working to advance the causes that are being recognized in the Anthem Awards. This year alone, the fund donated $25,000 to the Anita Borg Institute for Women and Technology, and Institute for Women in Technology.
Besides the earlier mentioned seven core causes, the Anthem Awards also present Special Achievement Awards to a group of individuals who have dedicated their lives, platform, or work to bring attention to some of the most important issues of our time. Some of those awarded include:
Gloria Steinem, is a writer, activist, and feminist who has been organizing and supporting equality in race and gender, as well as advocating for nonviolent conflict resolution.
Billy Porter, for his career-long commitment to breaking barriers for LGBTQ folks, destigmatizing HIV, and empowering marginalized people everywhere.
Quannah Chasinghorse, for her steady and determined activism to address issues such as climate activism and environmental protection while also redefining traditional beauty standards in the modeling industry.
Hamdi Ulukaya, for his employee-first approach to business, which also includes helping the communities in which the business operates, and being extremely accountable to consumers whilst taking courageous positions on social issues.
Additional winners include change-making nonprofits and foundations like Planned Parenthood, It Gets Better Project, Doctors Without Borders, Sesame Street, The Asian American Foundation, UNHCR, Gates Foundation, Change.org, Global Giving, Walton Family Foundation, Caring Across Generations, Alzheimer’s Association, and Movilizatorio; cultural icons including Tracee Ellis Ross, Lil Nas X, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Stephen Colbert, Ciara, Last Week Tonight, Killer Mike, Dr. Henry Louis Gates, Jr., Selma Blair, the Cast of This is Us – Mandy Moore, Chrissy Metz, Jon Huertas, and Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum; and industry and brand leaders like Google, AT&T, Samsung, theSkimm, Morgan Stanley, Sephora, Adobe, CNN, IBM, Bank of America, ITVS, Vaseline, Economist, and Participant.
The Anthem Awards reward and celebrate innovation in many of the most important causes of today’s world. The International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences, creators of the Webby Awards, have found a way to not only reward those who carry out mission-driven work but also to draw attention to these causes. Though the awards are still in their early years of being distributed, they are already highlighting and encouraging work on incredibly important causes, and will surely continue to do so in the years to come.
You can find more information on the winners of the 2023 Anthem Awards here.
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