The winners of The JCI Malta awards were announced on Friday evening during the gala dinner held at Chateaux Buskett. A total of 44 nominees were running to win one of 15 awards during this year's awards' night.
For the first time ever, JCI Malta has combined the Friendly Business awards and the Global Goals awards under one mega awards' night: The JCI Malta awards. These awards aim to recognise youths between the ages of 18 and 40 and also small to medium business that through some project or initiative are helping towards reaching the Sustainable Development Goals.
All guests attending the awards' night, for the first time ever, participated in a voting session to award their favourite youth and their favourite business of the night with two People's Choice awards. These were selected from the winners of the main categories and were awarded to Bjorn Formosa, following his win of the Humanitarian Leadership award within the Global Goals Category and WaterPoint Malta, following their win of the Eco-Friendliness award within the Friendly Business Category.
2018 JCI Malta's vice-president for Marketing and Memberships, Nicole Borg, who organised the event together with immediate past president Rachel Cassar, expressed how important it is for such projects to be recognised. "These people are all working very hard and a lot of them on a voluntary basis in order to better Malta and the world in some way shape or form. This award is a mere token of recognition for their work and hopefully serves as a drop of encouragement for them to keep on working on this positive change."
2018 JCI Malta national president, Jonathan Mifsud said that he hopes that these awards serve as a pure example to encourage other young people to also take up the initiative and become the change-makers that this world truly needs.
On 1 January 2016, the 17 Sustainable Development Goals of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, adopted by world leaders in September 2015 at a historic UN Summit, officially came into force. Over the next 15 years, with these new goals that universally apply to all, countries will mobilise efforts to end all forms of poverty, fight inequalities and tackle climate change, while ensuring that no one is left behind.
Junior Chamber International has been recognising individuals from all over the world for their outstanding contribution towards the betterment of society through the Ten Outstanding Young Persons Awards programme. The JCI Malta awards are an adaptation of this.
Hereunder is a list of winners:
Award nominees
- Impactful Politics Julia Farrugia Portelli
- Impactful Reporting Jurgen Balzan
- Healthy Lifestyle and Wellbeing Natalie Muschamp
- SDG-Conscious Cultural Achievement Jacqueline Grech
- Scientific or Technological Development Jonathan Galea
- Environmental Sustainability Amy Sargent
- Quality Education Vanessa Vella
- Contribution to Peace and Human Rights Andrew Sciberras
- Humanitarian Leadership Bjorn Formosa
- Entrepreneurial Accomplishment Sarah Woods
- People's Choice - Global Goals Awards Bjorn Formosa
- The Eco-Friendliest Business WaterPoint Malta
- Best Customer Care The Deli
- The Friendliest Business VECO
- People's Choice - Friendly Business WaterPoint Malta