New York Festivals Advertising Awards reveals 2022 DE&I winners

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The six-person DE&I advisory board, chaired by Destiny K. Chambers, VP, head of marketing and Lippe Taylor selected the 2022 DE&I award-winning entries. The advisory board said they ensured that all entries were judged fairly and thoughtfully using the 4R framework created by P&G.

The New York Festivals DE&I Awards honour work, individuals and organisations that are taking meaningful steps to create a more diverse, equitable and inclusive society. They said the awards celebrate work that supports, protects, represents and uplifts historically underrepresented groups.

The 2022 New York Festivals Advertising Awards DE&I winners include:

• Gold - “Tough Turban” Zulu Alpha Kilo for Pfaff Harley-Davidson
• Silver- “Degree Inclusive” Wunderman Thompson Argentina for Unilever
• Bronze – “Micropedia of Microaggressions” Zulu Alpha Kilo for Black Business and Professional Association, et al.

Alpha Zulu Kilo’s gold-winning “Tough Turban” used innovative thinking to solve a unique problem, by developing an alternative to a motorcycle helmet. With its ground-breaking use of material science and empathy towards the wearer’s freedom of cultural expression Tough Turban made sure that Sikh motorcyclists no longer had to choose between their beliefs and their safety.

The agency also earned a bronze for “Micropedia of Microaggressions,” a judgment-free online tool providing easy-to-digest information where people can unlearn their unconscious bias and make immediate changes in their daily interactions with others.

“We’re honoured to have our creative efforts in DEI recognized for their impact. Hopefully the work in this category inspires other marketers to make more strides in their DEI initiatives,” said Zak Mroueh, chief creative officer and founder, Zulu Alpha Kilo.

Wunderman Thompson Argentina earned the silver DE&I Award for their innovative “Degree Inclusive” campaign to launch Unilever's first adaptive deodorant. “Degree Inclusive” revolutionized deodorant design to include everyone, however, they can move. The product was co-created with the disabled community to design a deodorant that’s easier to handle, easier to identify, easier to open and close, and easier to apply.

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“This an honour for Wunderman Thompson (WT), especially for WT Argentina. Diversity, equity, inclusion are central values for us which makes this award even more special. Lots of people from around the globe from WT and Unilever worked on this campaign that took more than two years to bring to life. Today we’re glad to say that it was just a beginning since we are still working to make this idea grow. It was wonderful to see how the development of this project managed to connect different people with different capabilities, from diverse regions and time zones, working alongside disabled communities. All this to keep on pushing for making the world a more inclusive place to live. From that perspective, having this effort recognised by the DE&I Advisory Board demonstrates that this effort is going in the right direction. Thank you so much,” said Victoria Cole CEO Argentina and Chile.

For 2022 VMLY&R earned the title of DE&I Agency of the Year for their commitment to celebrating diversity, equity, and inclusion in both their hiring and promotion practices and their innovative creative campaigns.

“We are so honoured to receive this award recognizing VMLY&R as DE&I Network of the Year. Our people are always our first priority, and awards like this acknowledge the impact of our DE&I work as well as our continued commitment to drive progress across the industry,” said Tasha Gilroy, chief equity inclusion and belonging officer at VMLY&R.

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Person of the Year Award

New York Festivals Advertising Awards and the NYF DE&I advisory board honoured Archana Mahadevan, VP, strategy director for DDB Chicago with the 2022 DE&I Person of the Year Award.

Mahadevan is in the midst of a 15-year career that has spanned two continents, India, and the US. An award-winning strategist, she has worked with prominent brands including Google, State Farm, La Quinta, and the US Army. As a passionate advocate for DE&I initiatives, Mahadevan believes in leading with empathy and making deep connections with people.

Within her work, she strives to bring the underrepresented “immigrant gaze” and POV to the world – to create more awareness about immigrants in advertising and their unique plight and challenges.

Through the recognition she will gain from the three DE&I awards, Mahadevan expects to develop the toolkits, intelligence, network, and strategies to be able to impact worldwide talent in advertising including immigrants.

“I am so excited to be awarded the three DE&I person of the year. Inclusion and representation in advertising, specifically for the immigrant community, is a cause very close to my heart and I hope to be able to continue to pay it forward in every way possible and pave the way for peers and next generations,” said Mahadevan, VP, strategy director, DDB Chicago.

View the inspiring DE&I winners here.