08/27/2026
This year, NYF Health has launched the new category, Human Lens: The Lived Experience, a category that elevates authentic human experiences, honoring work that is rooted in authentic patient, caregiver, and community experiences. This new category will celebrate storytelling that gives voice to real lives, challenges stereotypes, and fosters empathy, understanding, and connection.
In order to give this new category and the work entered additional care and attention, we have invited our co-creators, whom we worked closely with from inception to launch, to lead as the Co-Chairs of a Specialty Jury who together will review the entries from Shortlist to final judging.
Anna and Jordan Rathkopf, Co-Founders of Rathkopf, a patient-and caregiver-led strategy and storytelling studio, will lead the panel’s review of the entries, bringing both their lived experience of cancer and caregiving and their professional expertise to the judging. Their work with creative agencies, pharmaceutical and life sciences companies, and advocacy organizations revealed the need for an award category that recognizes not only authentic representation, but meaningful community involvement throughout the creative process.
Together we see this as an opportunity to recognize a type of work that has been hiding in plain sight for years. What distinguishes this category is not just the subject matter, but the process. NYF Health and our Co-Chairs, the Rathkopfs, are looking for stories made with people, not simply about them.
