THE INTERNATIONAL Association of Business Communicators announced that Cotton Council International and its public relations agency, Golin/Harris International, have been awarded a Gold Quill merit award for its special event entitled Cotton Day Hong Kong — 2003.

The Gold Quill Awards program is an annual international competition that offers professional communicators an opportunity to have their work evaluated by expert judges.

“We are honored by this award and honored to work with professionals like Golin-Harris,” said CCI's Industry Services Director Drayton Mayers. “Public relations has been a vital tool for helping CCI strengthen U.S. cotton's global presence. We have a fantastic team that is dedicated to carrying out an extensive public relations effort to help develop and expand markets for U.S. cotton and cotton products.”

This year's professional winners competed against entries from Argentina, Australia, Bermuda, Canada, Croatia, Hong Kong, Japan, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Peoples Republic of China, Philippines, Russia, Slovenia, South Africa, Switzerland, Taiwan, Turkey, United Kingdom and the United States.

For more than 25 years, IABC's Gold Quill Awards program has honored excellence in business communication.

CCI is the Washington, D.C.-based export promotion arm of the National Cotton Council.