About the Awards
The Multicultural Community Medals celebrate the people and organisations who continuously strive to make NSW a harmonious place for everyone. The winners are recognised for their outstanding leadership, innovation and community connection. They are the change makers, the thought leaders, working tirelessly behind the scenes to shape a harmonious NSW.
Nominations for the Multicultural Community Medals have now closed.
There are 13 award categories.
Arts and Culture Medal in honour of Carla Zampatti AC, sponsored by Powerhouse
This award recognises the achievements of an individual who has promoted cultural understanding, and artistic endeavours within or between communities of different cultural and/or linguistic backgrounds.
Community Languages Teacher Medal sponsored by NSW Department of Education
This award recognises the achievements of an outstanding and innovative teacher who instills knowledge and a lifelong love of language and culture in students.
Human Rights Medal sponsored by SSI
This prestigious medal recognises an individual who has made a lasting and meaningful contribution to advancing human rights in NSW.
Interpreters and Translators Medal sponsored by NAATI
This award recognises the achievements of an interpreter or translator for the role they play in ensuring that the community of NSW has access to essential information and services.
Lifetime Community Service Medal sponsored by SBS
This award recognises an individual’s commitment to community service within a migrant community. The contribution will have had a significant and lasting impact on the social or cultural wellbeing of the community that spans over 30 years.
Multicultural Youth Support Medal sponsored by the NSW Service for the Treatment and Rehabilitation of Torture and Trauma Survivors (STARTTS)
This award recognises an individual or organisation who have developed a program or community initiative to support disadvantaged school-aged children from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds, including refugee or refugee-like backgrounds.
Multicultural Not for Profit Medal sponsored by NSW Department of Communities and Justice
This award recognises the outstanding achievements of a not for profit who has promoted diversity and inclusion in their programming.
Regional Unity Medal
This award recognises the contribution of an individual who has significantly benefited the economic, social and cultural wellbeing and unity of a regional community. For the purpose of this award ‘regional’, is defined as being outside the greater metropolitan area of Sydney.
Stepan Kerkyasharian AO Community Harmony Medal
This award recognises an individual’s contribution and achievement in facilitating and promoting social cohesion, understanding and acceptance between members of different cultural or faith communities in NSW. The award recognises volunteers and community leaders.
Dr G.K. Harinath OAM Sports Medal sponsored by Cricket NSW
Recognises the achievements of an individual or sporting code who has promoted cultural understanding and sporting endeavours within or between communities of different cultural and/or linguistic backgrounds.
Multicultural Publication of the Year
This award recognises outstanding contribution of a multicultural media publication in informing and engaging its audience.
Best Report in Multicultural Media
This award recognises excellence in journalism for multicultural media (text, audio, and/or audio-visual report).
Multicultural Marketing Campaign of the Year
This award recognises excellence in delivering a multicultural campaign. All organisations are eligible to enter including government, business and community groups.
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Award Categories
What are the new media and marketing medals?
The 2025 Multicultural Community Medals have expanded to include three new media and marketing medals. They recognise excellence in multicultural media and marketing, and the important role stories and campaigns play in communicating with diverse audiences in NSW.
These are:
- Best Report in Multicultural Media – recognising excellence in journalism for multicultural media (text, audio, and/or audio-visual report).
- Multicultural Publication of the Year –recognising outstanding contribution of a multicultural media publication in informing and engaging its audience.
- Multicultural Marketing Campaign of the Year – recognising excellence in delivering a multicultural campaign.
Nomination Process
How do I submit a nomination?
Nominations for the three new categories must be submitted on Award Force by 5pm Tuesday 14 January 2025. No extensions will be given.
What happens after I submit my nomination?
The nomination process involves three steps:
- Initial eligibility assessment: The submission will be reviewed to ensure it meets the eligibility criteria.
- Merit assessment: Eligible nominations are scored by a Judging Panel based on a scoring matrix.
- Ministerial Approval and Premier’s Endorsement: The NSW Minister for Multiculturalism and the NSW Premier approve and endorse the list of winners.
Eligibility Criteria
What are the general eligibility criteria for all nominations?
In addition to the individual eligibility criteria set forth above, the following mandatory eligibility criteria must be met for the nomination to be deemed eligible:
- All required fields must be completed.
- All required documentation must be provided.
- All entries must have been published or broadcast between 1 July 2023 and 8 December 2024.
- Nominees must be permanent residents or citizens of Australia.
- Nominees must be a resident of New South Wales or an organisation based in New South Wales.
- Nominees must not be a current Multicultural NSW employee or Advisory Board member or member of the judging panel.
- Entrants must declare any and all use of artificial intelligence (AI) used in producing the works entered and preparing their submission. This includes but is not limited to the use of generative AI technology to create text, artwork, photography, data visualisation, and other graphics.
What are the specific eligibility criteria for each award category?
Medal Individual eligibility criteria per Medal Category.
Best Report in Multicultural Media
- Open to all multicultural media*.
- Work must have been published or broadcast in NSW or had an impact on the NSW community.
Multicultural Publication of the Year
- Open to all multicultural media*.
- Work must have been published or broadcast in NSW or had an impact on the NSW community.
Multicultural Marketing Campaign of the Year
- Open to public relations, advertising, and digital agencies, not for profits and volunteer groups and internal marketing teams in organisations.
- Joint entries are allowed.
- The campaign must have included NSW community in the target audience.
* Multicultural media is defined as any media outlet or organisation publishing in a language other than English or catering to specific multicultural communities. Submissions to multicultural media only categories will only be accepted from public broadcasters like ABC and SBS if the submission is in a language other than English.
Submissions for multicultural media categories must either be submitted in a language other than English, or demonstrate the submission caters to a specific multicultural community. Submissions in language must be accompanied by an English translation. All nomination questions should be answered in English.
Multicultural NSW Awards Program
Are nominations for all the award categories under the 2025 Multicultural Community Medals and Honour Roll open?
No. Only the three new media and marketing medals are open for nominations.
Nominations for the following medals under the 2025 Multicultural Community Medals and Honour Roll have closed:
- Community Languages Teacher Medal sponsored by NSW Department of Education
- Multicultural Not for Profit Medal sponsored by NSW Department of Communities and Justice
- Arts and Culture Medal in honour of Carla Zampatti AC, sponsored by Powerhouse
- Stepan Kerkyasharian AO Community Harmony Medal
- Lifetime Community Service Medal sponsored by SBS
- Regional Unity Medal
- Multicultural Youth Support Medal sponsored by the NSW Service for the Treatment and Rehabilitation of Torture and Trauma Survivors (STARTTS)
- Dr G.K. Harinath OAM Sports Medal sponsored by Cricket NSW
- Interpreters and Translators Medal sponsored by NAATI
- Human Rights Medal sponsored by SSI
- Multicultural Honour Roll.
Why did the 2025 Multicultural Community Medals program include new multicultural media and marketing medals?
Multicultural NSW conducts reviews of its portfolio of events and awards programs to evaluate relevance and alignment of program objectives and ensure that these provide value for money for the people of NSW.
Following a review of the Multicultural Community Medals program and Premier’s Multicultural Communications Awards (PMCAs), the two have been streamlined into one program that focuses on a comprehensive list of medals that are relevant to the diverse communities of NSW.What will happen to the PMCAs?
Following the launch of the new multicultural media and marketing medals under the 2025 Multicultural Community Medals program, the Premier’s Multicultural Communications Awards will be discontinued.
From 2025, winners of the multicultural media and marketing medals will be recognised at the Premier’s Harmony Dinner, the largest multicultural celebration of its kind in NSW.
The Multicultural Community Medals program and Premier’s Harmony Dinner provide a bigger platform to recognise the work that media and advertising professionals do in our communities.Why were some PMCA categories not included in the 2025 Multicultural Community Medals program?
Multicultural NSW conducts reviews of its portfolio of events and awards programs to evaluate relevance and alignment of program objectives and ensure that these provide value for money for the people of NSW. One recommendation from a review of the PMCAs is to consolidate the PMCA award categories to three medals and bring them into the wider Multicultural Community Medal program. This gives awardees the opportunity to be celebrated on a larger stage, in front of their peers, the Premier and the Minister for Multiculturalism.
