Greater Purpose Announces Winners of the 2026 Greater Purpose Awards

Honouring Canadian leaders and organizations putting purpose into practice

TORONTO, Oct. 28, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Greater Purpose today announced the winners of the 2026 Greater Purpose Awards, recognizing Canadian leaders, businesses and partnerships that integrate purpose into how they lead, operate and grow. The awards were presented at the Greater Purpose Conference on October 28.

“Business can and should be a force for good,” said Brad Offman, founder and CEO of Greater Purpose. “The 2026 Greater Purpose Awards are a reminder of how many outstanding Canadian organizations are already living that conviction – and an invitation to every business leader to follow their lead.”

“Our vision is for Canada to be a global leader in the purpose economy, and this year’s winners show the work is already happening here at home,” said Claire Williams, Chief Purpose Officer of Greater Purpose.

The 2026 Greater Purpose Award winners are:

• Purpose Leader Award: Lucie Bourgeois, Founding President, Umalia. Recognized for helping Canadian organizations embed social purpose into business strategy and connect purpose with organizational performance.
• Innovative Impact Partnership Award: Purpose Driven Development and Soroptimist International of Vancouver (SI Vancouver). The partnership combines real estate and community development expertise with advocacy for women and girls to address systemic social challenges.
• Outstanding Social Purpose Company of the Year – Small Business (up to $10 million in revenue): Unwrapit. Its digital gifting platform replaces traditional physical gifts with choices that include charitable donations, local experiences and sustainable products.
• Outstanding Social Purpose Company of the Year – Medium Business ($10 million-$100 million in revenue): veritree. Its data-driven platform connects companies with verified reforestation projects, supporting transparency and accountability in corporate environmental commitments.
• Outstanding Social Purpose Company of the Year – Large Business ($100 million+ in revenue): Assiniboine Credit Union. The credit union integrates social, environmental and Indigenous reconciliation principles into its banking model, with accountability to communities, employees and the planet.
• Social Purpose CEO of the Year – Small Business (up to $10 million in revenue): Phil Haid, Founder & CEO, Public Inc. He has built Public Inc. around helping organizations communicate their social purpose and connect with the audiences they aim to reach.
• Social Purpose CEO of the Year – Medium Business ($10 million-$100 million in revenue): Brad Liski, CEO, Tru Earth Environmental Products Inc. He leads Tru Earth’s work to reduce waste through laundry strips and household products, building a business around more sustainable everyday consumer choices.
• Social Purpose CEO of the Year – Large Business ($100 million+ in revenue): Zahid Salman, CEO, GreenShield. He has made health equity and access central to GreenShield’s mission, focusing on expanding coverage and reducing barriers to health care.
• Emerging Social Purpose Leader Under 40: Annelise van der Veen, Director of Partnerships & Finance, Purpose Driven Development. Her work brings together real estate, partnerships and social finance to advance community development through a social purpose lens.
• Purpose Reporting Award (in partnership with the Canadian Purpose Economy Project): Armour Valve. The company is recognized for reporting on progress against its social and environmental commitments, demonstrating the role of accountability in purpose-led manufacturing.
• Purpose Storytelling Award: Hope Air / Uber. Their collaboration connects medical transportation and mobility services through storytelling that highlights the human impact of access to care.
  
  

For more information about the winners and finalists, visit https://www.greaterpurpose.inc/2026-award-winners

About Greater Purpose

Greater Purpose is a Canadian membership-based community for purpose-led business. It brings together leaders and businesses working to make purpose integral to their success, through the Greater Purpose Conference, the Greater Purpose Awards, and a growing network of purpose-driven organizations. Learn more or join the community at greaterpurpose.inc.

Media contact:

Brad Offman, Chief Executive Officer, Greater Purpose
brad@greaterpurpose.inc | (416) 629-9242