FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

The Institute for Canadian Citizenship (ICC) is pleased to announce the winners of its third annual Canoo Awards, which recognize institutions that open their doors to newcomers via the ICC’s award-winning Canoo app with exceptional effect.

The 2025 Canoo Award winners are: Science World (Kids’ Choice Award), TELUS Communications Inc. (Breakthrough Award), Prince of Whales (Innovation Award), Danse Danse (Community Award), Royal Ontario Museum (Founders’ Award), and The Toronto Zoo (Partner of the Year Award). 

“As Canada stares down an existential threat to our existence, it is even more important to retain talented newcomers, build their belief in Canada, and set them up to contribute their unique talents to our success,” says Daniel Bernhard, CEO of the ICC. “Canoo is Canada’s largest immigrant integration service, but it is only possible because of our exceptional partners, whose contributions via Canoo make Canada so much stronger in this hour of need.” 

This year’s winners have collectively welcomed over 107,641 newcomers with free admission and heavily discounted experiences in 2025 via Canoo. By offering one-of-a-kind welcome experiences for newcomers, these organizations do a great service to all of Canada, supporting a strong and resilient society where people from around the world contribute to our shared future and success. 

The 2025 Canoo Awards winners are: 

Kids’ Choice Award: Science World, Vancouver The Kids’ Choice Award recognizes a Canoo partner attraction with the highest proportion of child admissions via Canoo over the last year. In 2025, Science World welcomed the largest proportion of children relative to overall admissions. By opening its doors to newcomers through Canoo, Science World gives children and families the chance to explore transformative educational experiences together, sparking a lifelong love of learning while helping young newcomers feel inspired, welcomed, and connected to their new home. 

Breakthrough Award: TELUS Communications Inc, Toronto The Breakthrough Award recognizes the most popular Canoo partner that joined the program within the last year, quickly becoming a new favourite among newcomers. In 2025, more than 100,000 Canoo members engaged with TELUS through exclusive offers and experiences designed specifically for them. 

Innovation Award: Prince of Whales, Victoria The Innovation Award recognizes the Canoo partner which demonstrated exceptional creativity and innovation in designing programs, services, or initiatives that provide unique value to newcomers. In 2025, 6,130 Canoo members engaged with Prince of Whales through the Canoo App, enjoying an exceptional West Coast experience. Notably, Prince of Whales was the first Canoo partner to pilot a dedicated contest for Canoo members. Their “Win Free Whale Watch Tickets” contest for Year 2 Canoo members in British Columbia generated 868 entries over 11 days. 

Community Award: Danse Danse, Montreal The Community Award recognizes the Canoo partner which has shown extraordinary dedication to fostering connections and creating a sense of belonging for newcomers through active community engagement, on and beyond Canoo. In 2025, Danse Danse offered discounted and free tickets for Canoo members to attend 12 shows last year, helping them experience some of the best cultural programming in Montreal. They’ve also hosted special Canoo Member nights, creating a dedicated space for newcomers to gather, connect, and experience contemporary dance together. 

Founders’ Award: Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto The Founders’ Award recognizes the Canoo partner that has demonstrated a long-standing commitment to advancing the ICC’s co-Founders’ vision of an inclusive Canada that embraces newcomers and all they contribute to our society. As the second ever Canoo partner, The Royal Ontario Museum has welcomed over one hundred thousand newcomers via Canoo since 2009. In 2025, they welcomed 19,419 Canoo members to experience their exhibits just as longer-tenured Torontonians do. 

Canoo Partner of the Year Award, presented by CIBC: Toronto Zoo The Partner of the Year Award recognizes the Canoo partner that welcomed the most newcomers in 2025: the stand-out favourite among Canoo members. For the third year in a row, this Award goes to the Toronto Zoo, which welcomed 37,491 newcomers to its site via Canoo, bringing total Canoo admissions to 151,907 since 2022.These awards will be presented at the ICC’s 2026 Canada’s Difference Makers Gala, which will be held at the St. Lawrence Market in Toronto on April 16th. 

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Quotes from 2025 Canoo Award winners: 

Jennifer Wild, Interim Co-Director & CEO at ROM. “For 17 years, ROM has been a proud partner of Canoo, offering new Canadians free admissions to the Museum—a gateway to the art, culture, and nature of Canada. To be recognized for this work is a great honour, especially by the Institute for Canadian Citizenship, an organization that has done so much to make new Canadians feel at home.” 

Lola Jegu, Responsable – Éducation, Inclusion & Programmation Jeunesse, Danse Danse « Chez Danse Danse, nous voyons la danse comme un terrain de rencontre. Un espace où des histoires venues d’ailleurs trouvent écho ici, sur scène, dans la salle, entre les communautés. Nous sommes profondément touché·es et fier·es de recevoir cette reconnaissance, qui met en lumière un partenariat faisant une réelle différence dans le parcours des nouveaux arrivant·es à Montréal. Accueillir ces publics prend tout son sens pour nous, puisque notre programmation fait dialoguer des cultures, des esthétiques et des récits venus des quatre coins du monde. Ce partenariat avec Canoo est au coeur de notre engagement : ensemble, nous ouvrons des portes, nous créons des moments partagés, nous offrons des expériences où chacun peut se reconnaître et se sentir à sa place. Quand les corps bougent ensemble, les distances se réduisent. Et c’est là que commence le sentiment d’appartenance. » 

Elspeth McGillivray, General Manager, Prince of Whales “Prince of Whales is proud to accept Canoo’s Innovation Award. Being the first in our industry to collaborate with Canoo reflects our commitment to inclusion, as we believe that adventure tourism creates meaningful connections that help newcomers explore and learn about their new home.” 

Hilen Wong, Senior Vice President, Consumer Channels, TELUS “We’re incredibly honoured to receive the Breakthrough Award from the Institute for Canadian Citizenship and proud to partner with Canoo. At TELUS, connecting Canadians to what matters most is at the heart of everything we do. We’re committed to supporting Canoo members with solutions that help them feel connected at home, at work and on the go as they embark on their journey towards citizenship.” 

Dolf DeJong, CEO of Toronto Zoo “Being named Partner of the Year for the third consecutive time by the Institute for Canadian Citizenship is a tremendous honour for the entire team at the Toronto Zoo. It reflects our shared belief that welcoming people to Canada also means connecting them to nature, community, and a sense of belonging—and we’re proud to play a small part in helping new Canadians feel at home.” 

About the ICC 

The Institute for Canadian Citizenship is a national charity that works for a Canada where immigrants don’t just come, but stay, become citizens, succeed, and make Canada stronger, richer, and more interesting. 

The ICC’s Canoo app gives newcomers and their families free access to Canada’s most sought-after experiences as well as the tools they need to help call Canada home. Since 2010, Canoo has welcomed over 950,000 newcomer members. All recent permanent residents and new citizens can join Canoo for free by downloading the app. For more about the app and the growing list of benefits for Canoo members, please visit https://canoo.ca/. 

Media Contact 

Alex Nanoff 
media@forcitizenship.ca