The Artists for Peace and Justice (APJ) Festival Gala, presented by BOVET 1822, returns in 2017 at a new downtown location, the Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO).
Held on September 10, the gala celebrates and awards leading cultural icons for their lifetime of service while raising vital funds for APJ’s on going community development work in Haiti.
Co-chaired by Natasha Koifman and Suzanne Boyd, the event will be co-hosted by an influential team including APJ Founder Paul Haggis, alongside BOVET 1822 Owner Pascal Raffy, Ben Stiller, Cuba Gooding Jr., Morgan Spurlock, Shantelle and Yannick Bisson, George Stromboulopoulos and more.
This year’s Peace and Justice Activism Award recipient will be Jackson Browne, celebrating his lifetime of activism and commitment to peace and social justice both in Haiti and around the world. Previous recipients include Sean Penn and Susan Sarandon. In its inaugural year, APJ will also now present the APJ Canadian Changemaker Award presented by Birks to recipient Gary Slaight, honouring his work as a leading Canadian philanthropist committed to integrity and impact.
“The APJ Festival Gala, is our hallmark event of the year, allowing us to celebrate leading artists and entrepreneurs who embody our own fierce commitment to social justice while we continue to make remarkable strides in bringing education, healthcare and hope to the children of Haiti,” says Paul Haggis, Founder, APJ. “We look forward to our ninth TIFF event this September and together, with our extraordinary community of Toronto supporters, being ever stronger voices and advocates for the kind of activism and service needed to help ensure a brighter future for some of the neediest on the planet.”
Immediately following the 2010 earthquake, APJ funded the purchase of land and construction to build Haiti’s largest free high school for the very poor, the Academy for Peace and Justice, which serves the poorest and most deserving youth in Port-au-Prince. The Academy reached 2800 students at full capacity in 2016 and celebrated its first graduating class, giving underprivileged children the opportunity to continue their education beyond the sixth grade.
Sponsorships are still available. For more information on the gala or to donate, visit www.apjnow.org. Please also follow Artists for Peace and Justice on Twitter and Instagram @artistsforpeace, and use the hashtag #APJFest17 to see all event highlights. Charitable Registration #82296 2205 RR0001.
