For Immediate Release AVIE BENNETT NAMED RECIPIENT OF $10,000 HARBOURFRONT FESTIVAL PRIZE Toronto, September 24, 2015 — IFOA announced at a luncheon today that Canadian businessman, publisher and philanthropist Avie Bennett is this year’s recipient of the $10,000 Harbourfront Festival Prize . Mr. Bennett was selected for the annual Prize for his tremendous contribution to Canadian publishing. As a publisher, he published roughly 100 titles per year by major authors like Margaret Atwood, Leonard Cohen, Rohinton Mistry, W.O. Mitchell, Alice Munro and Michael Ondaatje. He is a Companion of the Order of Canada and has received many awards and honorary degrees, including ones from the University of Ottawa, the University of Toronto and York University. Previous acknowledgments from IFOA include being named President Emeritus in 2011. Mr. Bennett was chosen by a jury comprised of Deborah Dundas (Books Editor, Toronto Star ), Carol Off (Host, As It Happens ) and Geoffrey E. Taylor (Director, IFOA) who said: “Winning this award places Avie Bennett on a list with many authors he has previously published or nurtured. His name is known and respected in many areas of arts and culture well beyond the literary world. The Prize is a small way of thanking Mr. Bennett for all he has done for IFOA and the publishing community.” Past recipients of the Harbourfront Festival Prize, which was established in 1984, include Dionne Brand, Austin Clarke, Margaret MacMillan, Alice Munro, Michael Ondaatje, Paul Quarrington, Seth and Jane Urquhart. The Prize will be presented to Mr. Bennett during the International Festival of Authors on October 26, before the event celebrating the finalists for the Governor General’s Literary Award for English-language Fiction at 8pm in the Fleck Dance Theatre . For more information about the Harbourfront Festival Prize and the International Festival of Authors, or to purchase tickets, call the Harbourfront Centre Box Office at 416-973-4000 or visit ifoa.org . -30- Since its inception in 1974, IFOA has hosted over 8,500 authors from more than 100 countries, including 21 Nobel Laureates. Our season runs from September to June and includes the annual International Festival of Authors (October 22 – November 1, 2015), including YoungIFOA and IFOA Ontario, and the annual ALOUD: A Celebration for Young Readers with Forest of Reading® Festival of Trees™ (May 12–13, 2015). MEDIA CONTACTS Maeve O’Regan : [email protected] ; 416-973-5836 Meghan Gribben : [email protected] ; 416-973-4395 Visit IFOA online: ifoa.org Follow IFOA on Twitter: @IFOA Like IFOA on Facebook: International Festival of Authors Follow IFOA on Instagram: @internationalfestivalofauthors .