All Entrants had to be members of the RIA for at least one year as of January 1, 2020. Entrants must be RIA members in good standing on the date they enter their submission and when the Awards are presented. Submissions are welcomed from all RIA Membership categories.
Award Categories
The RIA Leadership Awards are an opportunity to earn national recognition for your contributions to responsible investment in Canada. Each award will recognize the leadership and excellence of an RIA member for their work in one of the following four categories: Market Education, Integration, Advocacy or Individual Leadership. Drawn from the RIA’s Strategic Priorities, these categories represent the critical work being done to advance responsible investment in Canada. Last year, an award was granted in each category, for a total of 4 Awards. Meet last year’s winners here.

Recognizing RIA members who seek to bridge the gap between knowledge about and demand for RI by engaging and educating market participants, raising awareness of responsible investment and developing and promoting tools, resources and research related to RI.

Recognizing RIA members who further the adoption and development of responsible investment practices among investment professionals by enabling the development of RI literacy and expertise, and implementing and enhancing RI policies, processes and principles.

Recognizing RIA members who seek to shift public policy and regulation through proactive engagement with regulators, responding to RI related policy consultations, and participating collaboratively with other market participants to advance the widespread implementation of policies that support RI.
Award Eligibility

Collaborative Projects may be submitted, so long as at least 50% of the project’s participants are RIA members, or RIA members actively contributed at least 50% of the effort for the project.
- Simply sponsoring a project will not be eligible.
- All participants must agree to take part in the Awards
before sending in their submission. - Multiple submissions for one collaborative project will not
be permitted; if multiple submissions are received, the
RIA will encourage the participants to submit a single
Collaborative submission.
The activities described in the submission must have taken place or been implemented during the calendar year 2019. The Awards are open to both ongoing and completed projects. While activities might have been initiated prior to 2019, or may conclude after 2019, the submission will be evaluated on the basis of its reported results during calendar year 2019.
Submission Timeline

Enter a Submission or Nomination
The submission and nomination period for the 2020 RIA Leadership awards has closed.
Meet the 2020 Judges
The Judges’ Panel was made up of 12 Volunteers with expertise in responsible investment in Canada. The Panel’s composition considered factors such as geography, gender, and racial diversity, consistent with the RIA Board’s Diversity Policy, and balanced representation from the following sectors:
- Academics
- Advisors
- Asset Managers
- Asset Owners
- Business/Consulting/Service Provider
- Financial Institutions (Banks & Credit Unions)
- Media
- RI Organizations
Learn more about the individual Judges below.
Learn more about the judging process in the RIA Leadership Awards Guide.
Awards Guidelines