About The Nevada International Women's Forum Carolyn M. Sparks Founders Award

The NVIWF Carolyn M. Sparks Founders Award was established November 9, 2010.  The Award was established to honor the legacy of leadership of our Nevada Forum Founder, Carolyn M. Sparks. The first recipient was awarded in 2011.  One of the goals of the International Women’s Forum is to establish and foster a mentor culture among women.  The members of the Nevada Forum wished to create a vehicle to provide mentoring for women on the rise in our state.  The membership chose to establish an award to annually sponsor two  professional young women to IWF’s World Leadership Conference. The World Leadership Conferences, conducted annually by the International Women’s Forum, draw women from more than 50 countries who are the world’s leading architects, advocates, catalysts, and pioneers of change – the women who are re-drawing the map for how we’ll live, work, produce, and maintain healthy communities in the coming years. As our global economies restructure and reshape business, politics, environments, access and opportunity, IWF’s cutting–edge conferences harness those must-have conversations in order to educate, inform and inspire our women leaders and our partners to be out ahead of the change that is needed. 

The Nevada International Women’s Forum (NVIWF) seeks to select professional or business women of high potential who have established themselves in their sphere of interest to sponsor their attendance at the World Leadership Conference. The two categories of applicants are considered to be either an entrepreneur or from a small business or non-profit and one candidate comes from a government or public entity or large corporate entity. Candidates complete an online application including an essay, resume of business and community accomplishments and leadership experience. Candidates should have approximately 10 years of continuing professional activity and leadership contributions. Their application should show substantive professional/work experience and significant specific accomplishments. They must be a citizen of the United States and a resident of Nevada. Candidates are not recent college graduates or even recent graduates of advanced degree programs. The recipient must be available to travel to and attend the World Leadership Conference in the year awarded. The optimal candidate will have achieved considerable success in her field, yet would benefit from attending the International Women’s Forum World Leadership Conference.

The award includes transportation, hotel accommodations, meals and registration for the World Leadership Conference.  A member of NVIWF will accompany them to the conference to ensure they maximize the leadership development opportunities available.