BOISE, ID (BRAIN)—The Outdoor Industries Women’s Coalition (OIWC) is now accepting nominations for two awards supporting women in the industry.
The first is the Pioneering Woman Award. This award honors women within the bicycle industry who have furthered the vision of the OIWC by demonstrating an outstanding commitment to mentoring female colleagues.
In 2006, the first OIWC Pioneering Woman Award for the Bicycle Industry went to Ashley Korenblat, owner and proprietor of Western Spirit Cycling. Last year’s winner was Ariadne Delon Scott, director of advocacy and the environment for Specialized.
The second award to be presented is the First Ascent award. This award recognizes a woman new to the bicycle industry who demonstrates strong potential for leadership. This award furthers the vision of OIWC by increasing visibility of talented young women at lower levels in an organization, thereby facilitating and nurturing their leadership skills. The inaugural First Ascent Award for the Bicycle Industry was presented last year to Sabine Dukes, creator of Velo Bella, a women’s cycling club of more than 300 members.
The winners of both awards will receive a monetary scholarship of $1,000 to be applied towards a national leadership program that supports their goals and ambitions. Recipients may choose their own program (to be approved by the OIWC board) or pick one from our list of suggestions.
The winners of this year’s Pioneering Woman and First Ascent awards will be announced on September 25, 2008 at a luncheon panel, a new OIWC event during Interbike.
Show your support of women in the industry by nominating a colleague, a mentor or friend for these Awards. This is open to anyone who would like to submit a nomination, but the deadline is fast approaching. Post your nominations online by August 21, 2008: http://www.oiwc.org/?AwardNomination.
Previous nominees may be nominated again. The award recipients must be present at The OIWC luncheon at Interbike. Please take this request into consideration when submitting a nominee.
