The center seeks to honor advocates, government officials, journalists and citizens who worked in 2019 to make or keep North Carolina transparent.
The Sunshine Center of the North Carolina Open Government Coalition is accepting nominations for its annual Sunshine Awards program. The center seeks to honor advocates, government officials, journalists and citizens who worked in 2019 to make or keep North Carolina transparent.
The categories are as follows:
Advocacy: The purpose of the N.C. Open Government Coalition’s Advocacy Award is to recognize individuals whose outstanding advocacy on behalf of government transparency, whether in the halls of government, the statehouse, the courtroom or the public, has led to greater access and greater understanding of public information.
Government: The purpose of the N.C. Open Government Coalition’s Government Award is to recognize individuals, and occasionally agencies, within government who have provided outstanding access to public information. That outstanding access may be exemplified by such things as excellence in communication with records seekers, innovation in delivery, and internal training programs.
Journalism: The purpose of the N.C. Open Government Coalition’s Journalism Award is to recognize individual journalists, and occasionally news organizations, that have effectively utilized public records to tell stories of significant importance in their communities. Judges may consider such things as persistence required to obtain the information, innovative analysis of public records, and impact on the community.
Citizen: The purpose of the N.C. Open Government Coalition’s Citizen Award is to recognize individual North Carolinians whose persistence in seeking access to government information has improved transparency within their communities.
Submit a nomination here or e-mail your nomination to ncopengov@elon.edu with an explanation in 300 words or less of why you think your nominee should win the award.
Winners will be announced at Sunshine Day 2020, which will be held March 9 at N.C. A&T State University.