Pawan J. Mehra, co-founder and principal of multicultural marketing agency Ameredia, was selected as an ADCOLOR Change Agent for his commitment to spurring diversity within the advertising, marketing and media industry.

Honorees for the ADCOLOR Change Agent Awards are leaders who have taken an off-the-beaten-path approach to multicultural marketing that enriches and brings a fresh perspective to their respective industries. Mehra was chosen from a list of 220 African-American, Hispanic, Asian-American, Native-American and multiracial industry professionals, diversity champions and luminaries to be honored during the 2011 ADCOLOR Awards & Industry Conference on September 16 and 17 at the Los Angeles Beverly Hilton.

"We truly value this recognition of our vision by a hallmark industry organization like ADCOLOR," Mehra said. "Ameredia continues to be a trendsetting voice in the diverse multicultural markets."

Among the other diversity pathfinders to be honored are actor and comedian George Lopez and movie director Spike Lee. A full list of honorees can be found on the ADCOLOR website.

"ADCOLOR is pleased to honor and recognize this year's outstanding group of honorees whose work has influenced the industry, while positively impacting the lives of people across the country and globally," said Tiffany R. Warren, founder of ADCOLOR and senior vice president, chief diversity officer for Omnicom Group Inc.

Since 2003, Mehra has spearheaded Ameredia's emergence as one of the fastest-growing multicultural advertising firms in the nation. He has led the agency to various industry-wide recognitions including Excellence in Multicultural Marketing Awards organized by National Association for Multi-Ethnicity in Communications.

Ameredia has for two consecutive years been recognized as a Fast 50 Company by the US Pan Asian American Chamber of Commerce (USPAACC). This year alone, the agency was named a Top Business in America by Diversity Business, a Top 10 Business in California by USPAACC and was in the San Francisco Business Times' list of Top 25 Ad Agencies in the San Francisco Bay Area.

About the ADCOLOR® Industry Coalition

Founded in 2005, the ADCOLOR Industry Coalition (AIC) is a 501(c)(6) trade association that supports and inspires professionals of color and diversity champions within the advertising, marketing and media industries. As its first initiative, AIC launched ADCOLOR and The ADCOLOR Awards in 2007 to honor professionals of color, diversity champions and companies who work together to further diversity and inclusion efforts in the advertising, marketing and media industries.

About Ameredia

Ameredia Inc. ( http://www.ameredia.com ) is a full-service multicultural advertising, marketing and public relations firm specializing in building brands within U.S.-based ethnic communities. The agency enables private, government and non-profit organizations to connect with Hispanics, Asians, Europeans, Middle Easterners, Pacific Islanders, Africans and other diverse cultural groups nationwide.

SOURCE Ameredia