MEPRA announces recipients of the Visionary Award

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Members of the Middle East Public Relations Association (MEPRA) have voted for and chosen the top executives from the communications industry, as well as the corporate and government sectors, as recipients of its Visionary Award. Tara Rogers, Managing Partner, Mojo PR, won the communications agency executive Visionary Award, while Ala’A Eraiqat, Group CEO, Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank was chosen as the corporate Visionary Award winner. Maijida Ali Rashide, Assistant Directory General of Dubai Land Department & Head of Dubai Real Estate Promotion Centre was the recipient of the award in the government/not-for-profit sector.

The winners of the Visionary Award have been recognised for their impact and thought leadership over the previous years. The Visionary Awards were organised as part of the MEPRA Leadership Majlis, which was supported by destination partner Abu Dhabi Convention Bureau, as well as event sponsors Weber Shandwick MENA and MCG Associates.

“I’m delighted to have three remarkable communicators winning our first visionary awards,” says Brian Lott, Chairman of MEPRA. “Ala’a, Majida and Tara have all shown exemplary leadership in terms of their respective areas of business and enterprise, and they’ve ensured that effective communications are at the forefront of the work being done by their respective organisations.”

For further information, contact Carine Duvignaud at carine@mepra.org / +971 (0)55 948 7491

Al Jazeera English wins at Online Media Awards

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Al Jazeera English online won three awards at the Online Media Awards in London on Thursday, June 11, 2015. The awards were for Best Technical Innovation, Best Use of Photography and Outstanding Digital Team of the Year, and they were judged by an independent panel from the British Journalism Review.

The Best Technical Innovation and Outstanding Digital Team of the Year titles were awarded for the Palestine Remix project, which was a network-wide initiative allowing users to access some of Al Jazeera’s documentaries on Palestine. The project also included interactive maps and timelines to help users understand and contextualise the Palestine issue. The Best Use of Photography award was given for Al Jazeera’s Portrait of a yogi, which was a photographic exploration into the power of yoga to unite people across cultural and physical divides.

“This recognition by our peers is a testament to Al Jazeera’s efforts to find new ways of storytelling, and to explain complex issues to a global audience,” says Imad Musa, Head of Online, Al Jazeera English.”Our team is small but incredibly passionate about what they can create, and it’s great that our peers agree that they are the best digital team in the world. We will continue to push the boundaries of original journalism and innovative design.”

For further information, contact pressoffice@aljazeera.net

Secret Squirrel wins Ultimate Blogger Award

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Karen McLean, aka The Secret Squirrel, won the Ultimate Blogger Award at the Cosmopolitan Middle East 2015 Fabulous Female Awards, held on June, 9, 2015, for her blog, www.secretsquirrelfood.com. The Awards were presented at a ceremony held at The Act, in the Shangri-La hotel, Dubai.

The blog, which launched in July, 2013, is based on Karen’s love for simple, natural and healthy food, and her philosophy that healthy food can be made fun. Karen acts as the creative mind, photographer and chef behind the blog and is currently based in Dubai.

“I’m super excited and so honoured to win the Cosmopolitan 2015 Fabulous Female Award for the Ultimate Blogger,” says Karen. “It always puts a smile on my face that I can inspire people to live a happier and healthier life every day. It feels so nice to be recognised for all my hard work and to be surrounded by such an inspiring group of women. I’m so happy to be given this amazing opportunity and I will continue to do what I love.”

For further information, contact Karen McLean at info@secretsquirrelfood.com / +971 (0)56 614 8840

InsideOut Awards 2015 winners announced

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InsideOut magazine revealed the winners of its first reader awards at a gala dinner on Sunday, June 7, 2015, at the Sofitel The Palm, Dubai. After three months of voting and with over 15, 000 individual votes casted, InsideOut revealed the UAE’s favourite brands, as voted for by readers.

Winners on the night included The White Company, Maison D’Art, ID Design and Marina Home Interiors. The Editor’s Choice Award was presented to Jotun.

“After 12 years in the market, last summer saw a major new direction for InsideOut magazine, and since then the title has gone from strength to strength,” says Sharon Parsons, Editor, InsideOut. “These developments have allowed us to forge strong relationships with our readership and as part of that commitment we launched The InsideOut Awards to recognise just how passionate our readers are about their homes. The response has been amazing and the voting has surpassed all our expectations.”

For further information, contact Katie Heskett at kheskett@gulfnews.com / +971 (0)4 406 7361

 

MEPRA announces Visionary Award shortlist

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The Middle East Public Relations Association (MEPRA) has named the nominees for its 2015 Visionary Award. Winners of the award, which recognises leaders for their impact and thought leadership over the previous year, will be announced on Wednesday, June 10, 2015 at the MEPRA Leadership Majlis in Abu Dhabi.

Nominees have been split across three categories – Government/Not-For-Profit, Communications Agency and Corporate – and include Ibrahim Al-Zu’bi, Executive Director, Emirates Driving Association, Atul Dhawan, CEO, Sakshi Advertising & PR and Ala’a Eraiqat, Group CEO, Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank.

For further information, visit www.mepra.org

Transform Awards MENA 2015 winners announced

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The winners of the second Transform Awards MENA 2015 were announced last night in a ceremony held at The Address Hotel, Dubai Marina. The awards were marked by a diverse group of winners that reflect the versatility of the region’s branding community and the recognition among business within the region of the importance of branding.

“All of the winners of the Transform Awards MENA deserve the recognition they received last night as they succeeded in a competitive, rigourously-judged field,” says Brittany Golob, Editor, Transform magazine. “We are proud to announce the winners of the second annual Transform Awards MENA and wish all of the successful brands our congratulations. It was a pleasure to see the dedication and level of work going into brand development and rebranding projects in the Middle East.”

The categories and winners of the Tranform Awards MENA 2015 included: Best Use of a Visual Property – Batelco and Unisono; Best Brand Architecture Solution – Enerya and Landor Associates; Best Use of Copy style / Tone of Voice – S’wich and Tonic International; Best Brand Experience –  Etisalat and StartJG; Best Use of Packaging – Al Fakher and CBA; Best Internal Communications during a Brand Development Programme – APM Terminals Bahrain and Miracle; Best Implementation of a Brand Development Programme – Men’s handball and 28 Design Consultancy; Best Implementation of a Brand Development Project across Multiple Markets – Malabar Gold and Diamonds and Brand Union; Best Creative Strategy – King Abdullah Economic City and Turquoise Branding; Best Brand Evolution – Horizon & Co and Bellwether; Best Strategic/Creative Development of a New Brand – Hamad International Airport and StartJG; best brand Development Project to Reflect Changed Mission/Values/Positioning – GO Telecommunications and Bellwether; Best Brand Consolidation – AlYaum and Bellwether; Best Rebrand of a Digital Property – Careem and North 55; Best Visual Identity from a Charity, NGO or NFP – CDA (Community Development Authority), UAE and Tonic International; Best Visual identity from the Energy & Extractives Sector – Enerya and Landor Associates; Best Visual Identity from the Financial Services Sector – Aseer Investments and Bellwether; Best Visual Identity from the Healthcare & Pharmaceuticals Sector – Fakih IVF and BrandAid; Best Visual Identity for the Industrial & Basic Materials Sector – King Abdullah Economic City and Turquoise Branding; Best Visual Identity from the Professional Services Sector – Horizon & Co and Bellwether; Best Visual Identity from the Public Sector – GCC-STAT and OHI Leo Burnett, Oman; Best Visual Identity from the Retail Sector – S’wich and Tonic International; Best Visual Identity from the Technology, Media & Telecommunications Sector – Batelco and Unisono; Best Visual Identity from the Travel & Leisure Sector – X Dubai & Start JG; Best Overall Visual Identity – Batelco and Unisono; Grand Prix – GO Telecommunications and Bellwether.

Alongside the awards, Transform MENA’s full day conference, The Transform Middle East Brand Summit, was attended by branding and communications professionals from the MENA region. The conference debated brand development, rebranding and brand positioning in the Middle East.

2015 SABRE Awards EMEA winners announced

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The 2015 SABRE Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) Awards were held on 21 May, 2015 at The Roundhouse in London. Over 650 PR professionals from the EMEA region attended the ceremony to celebrate the winners, selected from 2,400 entries.

Among the agencies to have won were Roche Lebanon with Memac Ogilvy Public Relations for their Breast Cancer Awareness Campaign, Al Baik with TRACCS for their Park it Right campaign, Dubai Gold & Commodities Exchange with Weber Shandwick for their The DGC-X-Factor! How DGCX Transformed its Regional and Global Profile campaign and Canon with DABO & CO for the Canon Cabast trade show. UN Women with Memac Ogilvy Public Relations – Dubai, were also nominated as finalists for the Platinum Sabre award for Best in Show for their campaign, The Autocomplete Truth.

Global agency Weber Shandwick won five awards in total on the night, with Memac Ogilvy winning three. Ketchum was presented with four awards for its clients, and Burson-Marsteller and Edelman (including Elan and DABO & CO) won three.

Leo Burnett wins at ADC Awards

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Leo Burnett was the most awarded agency at the 94th Art Directors Club (ADC) of New York Awards in Miami last night. The agency won a total of 32 awards including: The Tomorrow Award, The Designism Cube, 10 Silver, two Bronze and six Merit awards for its work from its global network of offices. Notably, Leo Burnett won the Network of the Year award, with Leo Burnett Dubai being named Agency of the Year, making it the first agency in the MENA region to have claimed the honour.

Leo Burnett Dubai was also presented with the prestigious Black Cube for Advertising, the best in show award, for it’s ‘Two for one’ campaign for du in the United Arab Emirates, headed up by Saad Yusuf, Group Communication Director, Leo Burnett, Dubai. This was the first time in the awards’ 94-year history that an agency from the region won the award, presented to entries in the Design, Digital and Advertising categories at the discretion of an unanimous jury.

“The ADC awards not only represent a great achievement for us but also represents many ‘firsts’ for us” says Saad. “The UAE’s first home-grown creative campaign, ‘du Tuesday’s’ global recognition over the past two years at international awards shows is reflective of a maturing UAE creative industry. These accolades couldn’t have been possible without the partnership of du, Ali Ali, Maged Nassar, DejaVu and our team at Leo Burnett Dubai.”

Middle East Event Awards shortlist announced

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The Middle East Event Awards 2015 shortlist has been announced. The awards have been split into 20 categories – including Best Corporate Product or Service Launch, Best Event Design, and Employer of the Year – and each is designed to showcase the diversity and excellence of the events and suppliers operating in the Middle East’s event industry. Shortlisted companies include Entourage Marketing and Events, dmg events ME, Viola Communications, ExtraCake and Flash Entertainment.

The winners will be announced at an awards ceremony on June 3 2015 at the JW Marriot Marquis, decided by a panel of renowned industry figures.