The City of St. John’s recognizes outstanding contributions in arts and culture from both organizations and individuals. We encourage nominations of individuals and organizations representing communities that are typically underrepresented, including BIPOC (Black, Indigenous and People of Colour), LGBTQIA2S+ individuals, Deaf persons, and persons with disabilities.

Artist of the Year

This award recognizes an individual artist at any stage of their career and working in any artistic discipline, who has demonstrated significant artistic activity, growth, and/or innovation over the previous calendar year. Nominees should show a positive impact on the community and have contributed meaningfully to the cultural vitality of St. John’s.

Eligibility: Nominees must be residents of St. John’s.

Arts Organization/Group of the Year

This Award recognizes an arts organization or group that, over the previous calendar year, has made a significant contribution to the cultural vitality of St. John’s through the creation and/or fostering of artistic endeavours.

Eligibility: Nominees must be organizations or groups based in St. John’s whose primary focus is arts-related programming. Eligible organizations may include non-profits, collectives, musical groups, performing arts companies, arts-focused venues, etc.

Contact Us

For more information, please contact arts@stjohns.ca.

Submit a Nomination

Each year, the City of St. John's recognizes athletic excellence within the City of St. John's by selecting the finalists and winners in the following three categories:

• Tom “Dynamite” Dunne Award for Male Athlete of the Year
• Marg Davis Award for Female Athlete of the Year
• Team of the Year
  

Eligibility

View the nomination forms for eligibility for each award. 

Contact Us

For more information, please contact recreation@stjohns.ca.

Submit a Nomination - Athletes of the Year

Submit a Nomination - Team of the Year

The Climate Change Leadership Award recognizes community members that have demonstrated exemplary leadership in climate change action. Climate action includes adaptation to risks from climate change, improving energy resilience through energy efficiency, and actions that reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Climate change leaders achieved this through the implementation of initiatives and/or creation of awareness.

Who can submit a nomination?

Eligible residents and/or organizations can submit nominee(s).

Eligibility 

Nominee(s) can be individual residents of the City of St. John’s or an organization that is St. John’s based or a local branch. Organizations include but are not limited to: non-for-profit organizations, educational institutions, St. John’s located businesses or corporations with local operations, industry associations, etc. 

Two categories are awarded:

• Corporate Climate Change Leadership Award: to recognize an organization that has advanced climate action in its operations through switching energy sources, improving energy and or water efficiency, reducing waste, creating awareness, and/or implementing other improvements.
• Community Climate Change Leadership Award: to recognize an organization or individual that has advanced climate action in the wider community through the implementation of initiatives and/or creation of awareness.

Achievement for nomination must contribute to the actions reflected in the Resilient St. John’s Community Climate Plan:  

• Affordable, efficient buildings for all: Making buildings affordable and energy efficient (i.e., retrofits or reuses of an existing building or outstanding effort in new development, which increases energy efficiency and reduce greenhouse gas emissions)
• Thriving natural environment and agriculture: Implementing nature-based solutions to climate change that enhance or secure ecological assets to improve their long-term resilience and health in a changing climate, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and/or improving local food security.
• Transportation transformation: Reducing our need for personal vehicles through active transportation, and/or supporting the electrification of the remaining personal and commercial vehicles (e.g., EV chargers, and adoption of zero-emission vehicles).
• A low-waste future: Efforts to improve waste diversion, and efforts to develop a local circular economy.
• Disaster resilience and emergency preparedness: Preparing for the storms, by improving resident’s and/or businesses’ preparedness to extreme weather events thru engineered and/or nature-based solutions.
• Clean energy for resilience: Efforts to apply localized renewable energy technologies or utilize clean fuels to increase resilience and/or achieve greenhouse gas reductions.

Selection information 

The Climate Leadership Award selection based solely on the information provided in the nomination form Nominations will be reviewed by a staff committee that will provide a recommendation to the Environment and Sustainability Experts Panel who will provide its final vote on the final award winner(s).

Submit a Nomination

The City of St. John’s recognizes a senior citizen aged 60+ who has demonstrated outstanding, well-rounded community service. This honour celebrates seniors whose accomplishment, achievements, work experience and volunteerism have had a meaningful and positive impact on the city. Recipients are recognized for significant contributions that enhance the quality of life for residents through community involvement, including:

• Music
• Sports
• Recreation
• Arts
• Other service to the community

In 2025, the award was renamed in honour of Councillor Debbie Hanlon, who had a special place in her heart for seniors—often championing their voices, celebrating their stories, and ensuring they always felt seen, heard, and valued. We are proud to continue celebrating her legacy.

Contact Us

For more information, please contact adultandseniors@stjohns.ca. 

Submit a Nomination

The City of St. John's Heritage Awards recognize commercial and residential property owners for their work in rehabilitating, restoring and celebrating our rich built heritage.

Who can submit a nomination?

Residents can nominate a designated Heritage Building or a building in a Heritage Area. Property owners can nominate their own property.

Award categories

Nominations are accepted in the following categories:

• Preserving or restoring the original character of a designated Heritage Building or any building in a Heritage Area.
• Rehabilitating an older building, including successfully integrating modern elements.
• Respecting the character of a modern building in a Heritage Area.
• Infill developments that blend into a neighborhood in a Heritage Area.
• Stewardship and long-term preservation of a designated Heritage Building or any building in a Heritage Area.

Contact Us

For more information, please contact planning@stjohns.ca.

Submit a Nomination

The City of St. John’s Innovative Housing Design Award recognizes residential property owners and/or designers for their work in building innovative, accessible, energy efficient, and/or affordable housing in St. John's.

Who can submit a nomination?

Residents and housing design professionals can nominate properties. Property owners can nominate their own properties.

Eligibility

Property must be located in the City of St. John's, completed with occupancy permitted.

Nominators should demonstrate how the nominated property achieves at least one of the following criteria: 

• Innovative design/construction: This can include using innovative materials or building practices (e.g., modular), emerging housing forms such as (but not limited to) microunits and tiny homes, or conversion from non-residential to residential use.

• Accessibility: Accessible homes could include accessible features, incorporate the principles of Universal Design, and/or exceed local accessibility requirements.

• Sustainability & Energy Efficiency: The nominated property demonstrates the use of technologies and/or best practices to minimize energy use (ideally showing over 50% reduction in energy use from baseline), and/or demonstrating design that promotes densification, mixed use, and active/mass transportation.

• Affordability: The nominated property can include innovative financing models for affordable home ownership/rental and/or is a property which falls under national affordability definitions, designed as rent geared to income/low end of market rentals, and/or intended to serve a population experiencing barriers to housing affordability.

While it is not required, nominators may include a letter of support from an individual/organization knowledgeable of the eligibility criteria to strengthen their application.

Selection Information

Selection of the Housing Design Award is based solely on the information provided in the nomination form. Nominations will be reviewed by a staff committee.

Contact Us

For more information, please contact affordablehousing@stjohns.ca. 

Submit a Nomination

The City of St. John's honours the very best in the tourism industry every year through a variety of award categories.

City of St. John’s Tourism Award of Excellence

Presented to the individual, organization or business who has made significant contributions to the tourism industry over the previous calendar year. The nominee will have achieved this through one or more of the following:

• Provide visitors to St. John’s with a unique and/or superior experience through a new product, business, event, service, or activity.
• Celebrated traditions, culture or heritage that is unique to the city.
• Contributed to the profile of St. John’s through effective marketing and promotional activities at a provincial, regional, national or international level.
• Made significant contributions to the evolution and sustainability of the cruise ship industry in St. John’s

Legend Award

This pinnacle award recognizes the individual or group who has made significant contributions to the enhancement of tourism in St. John’s. The nominee will have achieved this through one or more of the following:

• Increasing the profile of the City provincially, regionally, nationally, or internationally.
• Advancing the unique cultural, historical and natural heritage of the City.
• Contributing to the long-term sustainability, growth and development of the St. John’s Tourism industry.
• Commitment to excellence through their work or volunteer efforts.

Destination St. John’s Award of Distinction

Presented by Destination St. John’s, this award recognizes the work of a local planning committee or individual who was instrumental in bringing a meeting/conference/event to St. John’s.

Contact Us

For more information, please contact specialevents@stjohns.ca. 

Submit a Nomination

The City of St. John’s Volunteer Awards recognize residents and community groups who generously give their time and talents to strengthen our community and make St. John’s a better place for all to live, work, learn and play. There are two categories:

• Individual
• Community Group

Eligibility

• The award is open to all ages.
• Nominee(s) must be residents of the City of St. John's.
• All achievements reflected in the nomination must be voluntary/unpaid in nature.

Contact Us

For more information, please contact volunteer@stjohns.ca. 

Submit a Nomination

The City of St. John's Junior and Senior Youth of the Year Awards are open to St. John's residents between the ages of 12 and 18. They are designed to honour young people in the community, who through their volunteer contributions, extracurricular activities and community involvement have helped make St. John's a better place to live.

In addition to the recognition award, each winner also receives an honorarium sponsored by the Ellsworth family.

Contact Us

For more information, please contact youth@stjohns.ca. 

Submit a Nomination