1. The Guardian Sustainable Business Awards 2015 (the “Awards”) is open to businesses, public and voluntary sector organisations, and academic institutions with a place of business or registered office in the UK. The Awards are not open to employees or agencies of Guardian News & Media Limited (“GNM”), its group companies or their family members, or anyone else connected with the creation or administration of the Awards. UK national and regional newspapers are not eligible to enter.
The Awards
2. The Awards consist of 11 categories (each an “Award Category”). In each Award Category, two awards will be made, one for innovation (the “Innovation Award”) and one for impact (the “Impact Award”). For a description of each Award Category and further information on the criteria for the Innovation Award and Impact Award, please click here.
3. To enter any of the Award Categories, follow the instructions online at theguardian.com/gsbawards. The deadline for entries to all Award Categories is 23:59 GMT on Friday 13 February 2015. Entries received after this deadline will not be processed. For information on the entry requirements and the information you will need to provide in order to enter, please click here.
4. Organisations are able to enter into one or more Award Categories, but a separate entry form and entry fee will be required for each entry.
5. The work or project referred to in your Award submission, or some part of the work or project, must have taken place between 8 February 2014 and 13 February 2015.
6. Entries on behalf of another organisation will only be accepted if the entry is made with the consent of that organisation.
7. By submitting an application form to enter the Awards, you confirm that you have the right to enter and have obtained all and any consents, permissions and authorisations that may be required in order for you to enter.
Entry fees
8. There is a fee to enter the Awards. The fee for submitting each entry to the Awards is as follows:
a. Small businesses (1-249 employees), public and voluntary sector organisations and academic institutions: £395 + VAT per entry.
b. Medium and large organisations (250+ employees): £995 + VAT per entry.
Judging the Awards
9. A panel of judges, including at least one member who is independent of GNM, will select a maximum of 5 entries as Shortlisted Entries in each Award Category. For a full list of people acting as judges for the Awards and the criteria to be applied by the judges please click here.
10. Only shortlisted entrants and those eligible for the case studies website will be contacted by GNM.
11. The judges’ decision is final and no negotiations or correspondence with entrants will be entered into.
12. Shortlisted entrants will be contacted by email in the week commencing 16 March 2015. If a shortlisted entrant does not respond to GNM within 14 days of being notified, their place on the shortlist will be forfeited and GNM shall be entitled to select another entrant in accordance with the process described above (and that entrant will have to respond to the notification within 14 days or else they will also forfeit their place on the shortlist).
13. Three representatives from all shortlisted entrants will be invited to attend the Awards ceremony to take place at a venue in London in April 2015.
14. The winner and runners-up in each category of the Awards, as chosen by the judges, will be announced at the Awards ceremony. More complete details of the Awards ceremony will be provided to shortlisted entrants at the time GNM notifies them that they have been included on a shortlist for a particular Award Category.
15. Shortlisted entrants might be contacted by our team of journalists prior to the Awards ceremony to provide more detail on their entry. This is for the purposes of coverage in the sustainability case studies section and also (if shortlisted) the special supplement which will be published in the Guardian after the Awards.
16. GNM accepts no responsibility for any costs associated with the Awards, including but not limited to costs associated with attendance at the Awards ceremony (for those who are invited) or costs associated with submitting entries to the Awards.
17. The Awards are non-exchangeable, non-transferable and not redeemable for cash or any other prize.
Other terms and conditions
18. No responsibility is taken for entries that are lost, delayed, misdirected or incomplete or cannot be delivered or entered for any technical or other reason. Proof of submission of the entry is not proof of receipt.
19. GNM reserves the right to not process entries which are illegible or those that do not meet the entry criteria.
20. Entries must be the original work of those submitting the application. Any evidence of plagiarism may result in the entrant being disqualified.
21. Winners may be required for promotional activity related to the Awards and shall participate in such activity on the Promoter’s reasonable request. The winner and runners-up in each category consent to the use by the Promoter and their related companies, both before and after the closing date of the Awards for an unlimited time, of their voice, image, photograph and name for publicity purposes (in any medium, including still photographs and films, and on the internet, including any websites hosted by the Promoter and their related companies) and in advertising, marketing or promotional material without additional compensation or prior notice and in submitting an Award entry, all entrants consent to the same.
22. Material entered will not be returned to senders.
23. Details of the winners and runners-up can be obtained by sending a stamped addressed envelope to the following address: Joanna Letts, Guardian News & Media Limited, Events Department, 90 York Way, London, N1 9GU.
24. The named entrant of each organisation’s submission(s) owns the copyright to that Award entry. If another person or organisation is the author of your entry, you warrant that you have received an assignment of all associated copyright to your Award entry from that person. The Promoter may ask to see evidence of that assignment at any time.
25. GNM accepts no responsibility for any damage, loss, liabilities, injury or disappointment incurred or suffered by you as a result of entering the Awards. GNM further disclaims liability for any injury or damage to your or any other person’s computer relating to or resulting from participation in or downloading any materials in connection with the Awards. Nothing shall exclude the liability of GNM for death, fraud or personal injury as a result of its negligence.
26. GNM shall be under no obligation to publish or exhibit any Award entry.
27. In consideration of GNM agreeing to consider your entry, each Award entrant: (a) grants GNM a royalty-free licence to copy, edit, display, publish, broadcast and make available their entry in any format in connection with the Awards or promotion of the Awards (including here, as necessary); (b) agrees that GNM may publish their name in connection with GNM’s use of the entry; (c) warrants that the work submitted with their entry is their own or the relevant organisation’s original work, that it is not defamatory and that it shall not infringe any third-party rights; and (d) agrees that GNM may grant to its partners and/or associated companies a sub-licence of the rights licensed to GNM under these terms and conditions on such terms as GNM shall agree in its sole discretion.
28. The Promoter shall use and take care of any personal information you supply to it as described in its privacy policy, a copy of which can be seen here, and in accordance with data protection legislation. By entering the Awards, you agree to the collection, retention, usage and distribution of your personal information in order to process and contact you about your Awards entry, and for the purposes outlined in paragraph 23 above.
29. GNM reserves the right at any time and from time to time to modify or discontinue, temporarily or permanently, the Awards or any feature thereof with or without prior notice due to reasons outside its control (including, without limitation, in the case of anticipated, suspected, or actual fraud).
30. GNM accepts no responsibility for any damage, loss, liabilities, injury or disappointment incurred or suffered by you as a result of entering the Awards or accepting the prize. GNM further disclaims liability for any injury or damage to your or any other person’s computer relating to or resulting from participation in or downloading any materials in connection with the Awards. Nothing in these Terms and Conditions shall exclude the liability of GNM under law for fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation, or for death or personal injury resulting from its negligence.
31. GNM shall not be liable for any failure to comply with its obligations relating to the Awards where the failure is caused by something outside its reasonable control. Such circumstances shall include, but not be limited to, weather conditions, fire, flood, hurricane, strike, industrial dispute, war, hostilities, political unrest, riots, civil commotion, inevitable accidents, supervening legislation or any other circumstances amounting to force majeure.
32. The Awards and these terms and conditions shall be governed by English law and entrants to the Awards submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of the English courts.
33. Awards Promoter: Guardian News & Media Limited, Kings Place, 90 York Way, London, N1 9GU
