It’s been an exhilarating week for The Local, with our team taking home some of the most prestigious awards in Canadian journalism.

On Thursday, we were awarded the CJF Jackman Award for Excellence in Journalism (small media category) for our stories on life expectancy in Toronto, which revealed a 12-year disparity between different neighbourhoods of the city.

On Friday, at the Digital Publishing Awards, we took home a trio of awards. Wency Leung’s series on school funding, “A Thousand Cuts,” won a silver for Best News Coverage (Community Publication). Brennan Doherty won gold for Best Feature (Long) for “Another Year, Another Encampment, Another Eviction.” Throughout the summer of 2024, Doherty and photographer Nick Kozak visited with unhoused people living in park encampments across Toronto to tell a comprehensive and compassionate story of the last five years of Toronto’s homelessness epidemic. “It was the most immersive story I’ve ever done…it’s unfortunately very rare for publications to give reporters the time to do that kind of work,” said Doherty. “This award really is a huge honour…I hope the story at least pushes the needle a bit in the right direction.”

For the fourth time in five years, The Local was recognized for General Excellence in Digital Publishing (small publication). “It’s an incredible honour to have received this award once again,” said Editor-in-Chief Tai Huynh. “This award speaks to the enormous talent and dedication of our staff and the dozens of freelance contributors who make The Local what it is.”

Later Friday, at the National Magazine Awards, Kozak won gold in the Photo Essay & Photojournalism category for his encampment photography, and Executive Editor Nicholas Hune-Brown won gold in Feature Writing for “Moss Park’s Lost Years.” Illustrator Michael Deforge won silver for his work in the Art + Money issue.

To close out a night of incredible wins, the Editor Grand Prix at the National Magazine Awards, honouring an editor making an outstanding impact on a magazine, was awarded to The Local’s Editor-in-Chief Tai Huynh. “Huynh is a shining example of what it means to be an editor in contemporary Canadian journalism,” the judges said. “From his unwavering commitment to telling stories that go deeper to his willingness to nurture up-and-coming talent, Huynh has grown The Local into one of the country’s most important—and inspiring—independent media brands.”

“Working with Tai is such a privilege and a joy,” said Executive Editor Nicholas Hune-Brown. “Tai is somehow all at once one of this country’s leading data journalists, a brilliant art director, a thoughtful editor, and an unending source of guidance, ambitious ideas, and support. I can’t think of anyone in Canadian journalism more deserving of this recognition.”

“I’m deeply honoured by this recognition,” said Huynh. “In a year where The Local celebrated its fifth anniversary and undertook some of the boldest, most challenging projects since its inception, this award is enormously meaningful to me and our incredible team.”

Here are all of the stories that were honoured this week: