their sponsorship. In 2019 UNESCO the Canadian Commission officially recognizes the festival and names it a Cultural heritage property. Naming dispute The name Caribana was invented by the organizers to capture the notions of Canada, the Caribbean, bacchanal and merrymaking. A naming dispute arose over the use of "Caribana." The Caribbean Cultural Committee claimed that it legally held the trademark for "Caribana". In April 2010, a panel for the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) ruled that Scotiabank, as the sponsors of the Caribana festival, did not have grounds for being awarded the domain name caribana.com from its current owners the Working Word Co-operative. In 2011, the Ontario Superior Court Of Justice ruled that the Caribana Arts Group (CAG), the successors of Caribbean Cultural Committee (CCC), has legal rights to the name Caribana. Sponsorship The first named festival sponsor was Scotiabank (Scotiabank Caribana from 2007 to 2011 and Scotiabank Toronto Caribbean Carnival from 2011 to 2015). In October 2015, Scotiabank announced that it would end its sponsorship with Toronto's Caribbean Carnival parade after six years. The festival continued without a naming sponsor until 2017, when Peeks became the new title sponsor and the festival became the Peeks Toronto Caribbean Carnival. In June 2019, Peeks' title sponsorship was removed and the festival was called the Toronto Caribbean Carnival for 2019. COVID-19 alternative formats The 2020 and 2021 editions of the event were cancelled because of the global COVID-19 pandemic; consequently, it took place in a "virtual format" on July 3, 2020. In order to accommodate restrictions during the pandemic during the summer of 2021, the festival pivoted to a foodie event with steel pans and masqueraders and replaced the grande parade with a food truck festival. Economics and impact The entire event, which is one of the first Caribbean Carnivals along with those in New York City, Notting Hill and Boston to be held outside of the Caribbean region. Economic studies estimates that the festival contributes approximately $400 million into Ontario's economy each year with the Federal Government being the largest beneficiary. The participation demographics of over 1.2 million attendees indicates that 58% of attendees are from outside the Greater Toronto Area and over one million individuals from the United States. Approximately 72% of participants have previously attended Caribana. See also Carifiesta List of festivals in Canada List of festivals in Ontario List of festivals in Toronto References External links Toronto Caribbean