On May 19, 2010, at the United Way Ottawa Community Builder Award Gala, Dr. Qais Ghanem, GPC candidate for Ottawa South, received a surprise award “for helping to build a stronger, healthier and more caring community for us all.”

Dr. Ghanem was specifically recognized for his work with Potlucks for Peace, a Jewish/Arab discussion group that is helping seek peaceful solutions to the conflict in the Middle East; his weekly radio program Dialogue with Diversity on CHIN Radio FM 97.9 and for creating Dialogue for Democracy, an open, non-partisan community discussion group on topical issues.