Events & Awards

WJA’s Awards for Excellence Will Be In Person Again This Fall

Events & AwardsAug 05, 2021

WJA’s Awards for Excellence Will Be In Person Again This Fall

The Oct. 20 event in New York City will have the theme of “Building Resilience with Responsible Business.”

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New York—The Women’s Jewelry Association’s Awards for Excellence will join the industry events returning to in-person formats in 2021. 

Slated for Oct. 20, the event will be held at the Lighthouse at Chelsea Piers in New York City under the theme “Building Resilience with Responsible Business.” 

The fundraising event will bring together 250 people in person as well as hundreds more virtually for networking in celebration of the Visionary Award winners: Borsheims CEO Karen Goracke and Fern Mallis, creator of New York Fashion Week and former executive director of the Council of Fashion Designers of America.

It will include an extended cocktail hour, a theater-style program, and an afterparty to mingle with industry leaders and colleagues. 

The virtual presentation will also include a keynote from Tensie Whelan, the former president of Rainforest Alliance and the current director of New York University’s Center for Sustainable Business.

 Related stories will be right here … 

During the event, WJA will also talk about the importance of operating a responsible business model and showcase industry partners doing just that. 

The Awards for Excellence event is designed to support WJA’s programming, including the recent launch of WJA Foundation’s Responsible Sourcing and Sustainability Education Fund, the Conversations on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion program, and the Masterclass leadership development series.

Individual tickets for the in-person and virtual event will be available starting at the end of August.

WJA also invites companies and organizations that support responsible business practices to sponsor the Awards for Excellence.

For more information, visit WomensJewelryAssociation.com.

Meanwhile, donations to the WJA Foundation can be made directly online

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