The Public Relations Society of America San Diego/Imperial Counties Chapter (PRSA) awarded the City of San Diego Public Utilities Department with the 2014 Edward L. Bernays Silver Award of Merit for Public Affairs for its Water Purification Demonstration Project’s public outreach program. The city received the award during the Edward L. Bernays Awards Ceremony held at The Prado in Balboa Park on Oct. 15 in San Diego.
The city’s demonstration project confirmed the feasibility of purifying recycled water to supplement local drinking water supplies. The outreach program included presentations, booths at community events, facility tours, informational materials, advertisements and social media. The city council unanimously adopted the project’s findings in April 2013 and set forth directives for implementing water purification in San Diego.
The Bernays Awards were open to all agencies and organizations in San Diego and Imperial counties and are designed to recognize the finest in public relations campaigns, professionals and elements in a range of categories. The Bernays Awards were divided into two categories—Silver, honoring whole public relations campaigns, and Bronze, honoring one-time public relations tactics. Silver Bernays assessments included research, planning, execution and evaluation of a campaign or program.
More than 100 entries were submitted this year. The submissions were judged by 15 members of the Houston chapter of the Public Relations Society of America, six of whom hold an Accreditation in Public Relations and all of whom have more than five years of experience in the industry.
Source: San Diego Public Utilities
