The 2008 James Irvine Foundation Leadership Awards
Advancing Solutions for California's Future

Please note: Finalists have been selected for the 2008 James Irvine Foundation Leadership Awards. Nominators have been notified of the status of their nominees. Award recipients will be announced in July.

The Awards

The James Irvine Foundation Leadership Awards recognize individual leaders who are making a demonstrable difference to California's future. We anticipate making four to six awards in 2008, the program's third year. The leaders we seek to recognize may be working within any sector — nonprofit, public or private — and within any field, such as education, health, housing, economic development or the environment.

What these leaders have in common is that they are all advancing innovative and effective solutions to some of the challenging issues facing California, and they are making a significant difference to our shared future.

Award recipients each receive $125,000 of flexible support for their work to benefit the people of California. At least $100,000 is designated for core support of the leader's project or organization and up to $25,000 for the leader's own professional development, as determined by the recipient. The award also includes strategic communications activities, undertaken together by the award recipients and the Foundation, to educate policymakers and practitioners of the effective solutions implemented by these leaders.

2006 and 2007 Award Recipients

The 2006 and 2007 recipients of the James Irvine Foundation Leadership Award represent a variety of backgrounds and experiences. What they have in common is dedication, a focus on underserved communities and optimism that they could overcome problems many consider intractable.

Nomination and selection process

We welcome nominations from people who are well-acquainted with the leader or leadership group and can attest to their qualifications. We have outlined selection criteria for nominees. Leaders from any sector or field may be nominated.

The selection process has several stages, over approximately five months.

• Following the nominations deadline, Irvine staff conducts an initial review of the nominations and begins to check references and conduct due diligence.
• An independent Selection Committee, composed of nine leading Californians, reviews the nominations and develops a list of final award candidates.
• At this stage of the selection process, Foundation staff and an expert in the nominee's field of work visit each finalist and his or her organization or project to more deeply understand the nominee's work and style of leadership.
• The Selection Committee selects four to six award recipients, who are announced in summer.

Questions?

If you have any questions about the awards program or nomination process, please contact: