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Core Values Awards

The IAP2 Australasia Core Values Awards build awareness, contribute to the practice and recognise excellence in public participation and community engagement.

2025 Core Values Awards

IAP2 Australasia’s Core Values Awards recognise outstanding projects and organisations that are at the forefront of community engagement.

The Awards were created to encourage excellence, quality and innovation in community engagement. Successful applicants demonstrate leading practice and evidence that IAP2’s seven Core Values are clearly embedded within their organisations.

Applications for the 2025 Core Values Awards are now open! Download a copy of the 2025 Core Values Awards Entry Kit.

Applications are open from Thursday, 27 February to Friday, 11 April 2025.

The 2025 Awards

In 2025, IAP2 Australasia is offering two major awards:

  • Project of the Year Award
  • Organisation of the Year Award

IAP2 Australasia will also award eleven Project Sub-Category Awards, from which the winner of Project of the Year will be chosen:

  • Planning
  • Infrastructure (Planning and Design)
  • Infrastructure (Construction)
  • Environment
  • Health
  • Disaster and Emergency Services
  • Community Development
  • Indigenous – Māori
  • Indigenous – Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander
  • Energy
  • Smart Budget

Applications for the 2025 Awards are open until 5:00pm (AEST) Friday, 11 April 2025.

How to Enter

  1. Download a copy of the 2025 Core Values Awards Entry Kit .
  2. Log in to the Awards Submission Portal. If this is your first time using the platform, you will need to create an account.
  3. Follow the prompts to complete your entry, make sure to hit submit by 5:00pm (AEST) Friday, 11 April 2025.

Refer to the “Helpful Information” section on page 24 of the Entry Kit for guidance on using the portal.

Credit card payment is required at the time of submitting and you will be re-directed to a payment portal upon submitting your application.

For further information contact us via, events@iap2.org.au

Make sure you sign up for the IAP2 Australasia mailing list for any future updates.

Important Changes for the 2025 Awards.

  • The Research Category Award has taken a temporary hiatus in 2025.
  • A new category has been included: Energy.
  • The ‘Smart Budget’ award is now a standalone category, rather than an option criteria.
  • References: You have two options to provide references in 2025, you can upload them or provide contact details.
  • All finalists will have their entry converted into our case study template by IAP2 Australasia and sent to you for review.

Frequently asked questions

When do entries for the Core Values Awards 2025 open?

Entries open in February 2025, and the Entry Kit will be available via the IAP2A website.

What are the Core Values Awards Categories?

There are two Major Awards: Project of the Year Award, and Organisation of the Year Award.

The Project of the Year Award is divided up into the following categories:

  • Planning
  • Infrastructure (Planning and Design)
  • Infrastructure (Construction)
  • Environment
  • Health
  • Disaster and Emergency Services
  • Community Development
  • Indigenous – Māori
  • Indigenous – Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander
  • Energy
  • Smart Budget
How do I submit an entry?

All entries are submitted via the Awards Submission Portal: https://acv.awardsplatform.com/ 

Important Changes for the 2025 Awards.

  • The Research Category Award has taken a temporary hiatus in 2025.
  • A new category has been included: Energy.
  • The ‘Smart Budget’ award is now a standalone category, rather than an option criteria.
  • References: You have two options to provide references in 2025, you can upload them or provide contact details.
  • All finalists will have their entry converted into our case study template by IAP2 Australasia and sent to you for review.
What countries can enter the IAP2 Australasia Awards?

Entries from Australia and New Zealand are most welcome. Entrants from other countries can enter their local IAP2 Affiliate Awards. Visit: iap2.org for more information.

How recent must the project to be to enter?

There is no time limit on when your project was started or completed to enter the 2025 Awards.

Is there a fee to enter?

An entry fee applies to each application: $175 plus GST for IAP2 members, $475 plus GST for non-members.

Organisations entering need to be a Corporate, Government, Industry Supplier, or Engagement Consultancy Member of IAP2 Australasia to access the member rate. If multiple organisations are entering, then at least one organisation must be a Corporate, Government, Industry Supplier, or Engagement Consultancy Member.

Credit card payment is required at the time of submitting and you will be re-directed to a payment portal upon submitting your application.

If your organisation would like to request exemption from the entry fee (such as due to charity status or organisational policies), please feel free to email events@iap2.org.au (attention Membership Manager) to explain your position.

We are not a member of IAP2 Australasia. Can we still enter?

Yes, you may – although note that there is a different entry fee for non-members.

When are the finalists and winners announced?

Finalists will be announced in August 2025. The winners will be announced the IAP2A Conference, to be held in Melbourne, October 2025.

I am not sure which Category to enter.

We recommend you enter the Category that best fits your project or organisation. The judges may move you to a different category if they feel there is a better fit for your entry.

I’m having problems accessing the IAP2 Awards Portal, or receiving my verification email.

We recommend you create your account in the Awards Force system at least 2 weeks prior to the deadline to ensure you are familiar with what is required and comfortable with the online submission system. This also gives you the opportunity to seek help if you are having any technical issues. You can save, edit and even re-submit your entry as required up until the deadline.

All entrants need to create an account in the Awards Force system and will receive a system generated email verification request before they can proceed. If you do not receive this email, please check your spam or junk folder, and check with your organisation’s IT if your firewall allow emails from Awards Force. For additional assistance, contact the events team via email events@iap2.org.au.

Some organisations may have difficulty accessing Awards Force, or receiving emails due to IT firewalls, policies or configuration. We suggest you speak to your IT department about granting access; or use an alternative email address (such as a Gmail or personal address) to receive validation emails.

For further information on how to use the Awards Force system, visit their FAQ page at: https://support.awardforce.com/hc/en-us 

Do you have any tips or tricks?

Ensure that your entry addresses all of the criteria. And definitely proofread it well.

How many entries do you typically receive per category?

Entry submissions do vary for each category, the range is typically between five to twenty. The Planning, Community Development and Infrastructure categories generally attract the most entries.

If I enter and win a sub-category, therefore go into the Project of the Year finalists, will I need to complete an entry again?

Your original entry will be used for all stages of the process.

So you only need to submit your entry once.

Are references or referees required or optional?

Referees or references are required. There are two different options to provide referees:

  1. Upload written references (ensure referee contact details are included), OR
  2. Provide the contact details of referees (name, how they were involved with the entry, email address and phone number).

 Useful tips

Comments and tips from Abbie Jeffs, 2018 and 2019 Core Values Judge, from the IAP2 Australasia Core Values Awards Breakfast, Sydney, 31 October 2019.

  • Entries which demonstrate a robust approach to making sense of the data and applying insights to the engagement process attract marks.
  • Those entries that pull multiple elements together tend to float to the top.
  • Well-constructed and tight submissions which are structured against the criteria score well.
  • Proofreading and editing is vital for judges to make sense of your entry, and find the “nuggets of gold” in your entry.
  • The benchmark is high, and entries that demonstrate alignment above and beyond the IAP2 Core Values score well.