Nomination Deadline: October 3
The Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Accessibility Award recognizes the unique and innovative efforts of people and organizations who have moved the needle on inclusion within the fire service — not through a single gesture, but through sustained leadership and a genuine commitment to creating environments where women and underrepresented groups can enter, belong, and lead.
Recipients may be found at any level of the fire service: a Fire Chief who restructured hiring practices to remove systemic barriers; a training division that redesigned its PPE standards to reflect the needs of all firefighters; a department that built mentorship infrastructure from the ground up; or a national organization that has lobbied for structural change across provincial boundaries. The I.D.E.A. Award is open to individuals and organizations alike, and its past recipients reflect that range.
What makes a strong I.D.E.A. nomination is evidence of change — not good intentions, but measurable shifts in station dynamics, departmental culture, recruitment outcomes, policy, or the lived experience of women and underrepresented people in the fire service.
Past recipients include Camp Blaze operated by Oakville, Burlington, Milton, and Halton Hills Fire Departments (2025), Chief Jeremy Parkin of Rama Fire Rescue (2024), and Division Chief Ravjot Singh Chhatwal of Brampton Fire and Emergency Services (2023).
Who to nominate: An individual or organization — within or outside the fire service — who has demonstrated genuine, innovative leadership on inclusion, with outcomes that have improved the culture, accessibility, or equity of their department or the fire service community at large.
