22 Ports To Receive 59 Awards In AAPA’s 2012 Communications Competition

The American Association of Port Authorities (AAPA), a trade association representing leading port authorities throughout the Western Hemisphere, has selected 22 seaports to be recognized for exemplary communications projects and programs at its annual convention and awards luncheon this fall. Winning entrants in AAPA’s 45th annual Communications Awards Program will be recognized at an Oct. 25 luncheon in conjunction with AAPA’s 101st Annual Convention in Mobile, Ala., which runs Oct. 21-25.

“When port authorities communicate strategically with their many audiences, including their communities, business leaders and government representatives, they’re better able to articulate their value as economic development and jobs drivers,” said Kurt Nagle, AAPA’s president and CEO. “This competition helps our member ports by rewarding effective communications and highlighting best practices and lessons learned.”

The 2012 AAPA Communications Awards Program, which had a May 1 deadline for entries, received 101 submissions from 25 AAPA-member ports. The association’s communications competition utilized 29 professional public relations practitioners from the Washington, D.C. area who cumulatively spent more than 115 hours over a period of two weeks judging the 15 classifications of entries, ranging from advertisements and periodicals to videos and websites.

Based on the number of points awarded each entry by the judges, 15 submissions from 10 ports received an Award of Excellence, while 19 submissions from 12 ports scored an Award of Merit, and 24 submissions from 11 ports earned an Award of Recognition.

The Port of Long Beach, winner of AAPA’s top communications award in 2004 and 2011, will again receive the Dan Maynard Communications Award for Overall Excellence, which is bestowed on the port earning the most award points in AAPA’s communications competition.

To see all of the winning entries in the 2012 AAPA Communications Awards Program, as well as winners from previous years, click on http://www.aapa-ports.org/Programs/content.cfm?ItemNumber=692&navItemNumber=697

About AAPA

Founded in 1912, AAPA today represents more than 130 of the leading seaport authorities in the United States, Canada, Latin America and the Caribbean and about 300 sustaining, associate and honorary members, firms and individuals with an interest in seaports. As a critical link for access to the global marketplace, each year, Western Hemisphere seaports generate about US$9 trillion of economic activity, support the employment of tens of millions of people and import and export about 8 billion tons of cargo, including food, clothing, medicine, fuel and building materials, as well as consumer electronics and toys. As Western Hemisphere populations continue to rise, so too does the demand for goods, services and cruise offerings that depend on our seaports. To meet these demands, the AAPA and its members are committed to keeping seaports navigable, secure and sustainable.