(Editor: Leona)

Las Vegas Market is accepting entries for the fourth Global Goodness Awards, recognizing furniture, gift and home decor companies for environmentally friendly, sustainable and socially responsible business practices.

“This prestigious awards program, which debuted at the summer 2013 Las Vegas Market, has been highly successful in calling attention to the dramatic growth in sustainable, eco-friendly and Fair Trade products in the home furnishings industry,” said Dorothy Belshaw, president of Gift & Home Décor at International Market Centers.

The awards are open to all Las Vegas Market exhibitors, and the five honorees will be selected by a jury of trade press editors and other industry experts. Essays from the five award recipients will be posted on the Las Vegas Market website and each honoree will receive at-market recognition signage.

For the first time, the Global Goodness Awards will incorporate a social media element: The five winning Global Goodness submissions will be posted on the Las Vegas Market Facebook page Jan. 2-12. The entry that receives the most “likes” will receive an award.

Las Vegas Market tenants and exhibitors wishing to participate in the Global Goodness initiative are invited to submit essays that describe their personal journey, outline the socially responsible products that they offer and detail how these products and the sourcing process have had a positive impact on people and communities. Essays, which must include both photos and text, are due by Jan. 2 to Crissy Hunt at chunt@imcenters.com. All submissions should include the following:

+ Essay of 100 words or less explaining the socially responsible products offered; countries visited and people or organizations supported.

+ High-resolution photo to illustrate the essay. Photo should be a minimum of 5 by 7 inches at 300 dpi resolution; JPG/JPEG, TIFF/TIF or EPS files will be accepted.

The Global Goodness awards program supplements a partnership the Las Vegas Market has with the Sustainable Furnishings Council to create One Good World, a guide to sustainable furniture and home décor products to help connect legitimate suppliers and retailers. The effort includes a sustainable products locator program, showcasing relevant at-market resources, expanded educational offerings addressing issues and opportunities connected with sustainability.

The Las Vegas Market also showcases Fair Trade, sustainable and socially-responsible products and producers within MADE, a collection of temporary exhibitors presenting hand-made artisanal products, on floor C-11.