The Griffin Canadian Poetry Prize is back.

In an announcement on June 10, the trustees of the prize announced that the $65,000 Canadian Poetry Prize would be reinstated, along with a number of other changes to the prize. The changes are being made “after reviewing the comments and recommendations of the Canadian poetry community,” the trustees said in a statement.

The Griffin hosted a town hall meeting last month to hear feedback from the Canadian poetry community on the prize’s format.

In 2022, the Griffin Poetry Prize announced it would merge its two categories – Canadian and international – into one prize worth $130,000. Simultaneously with the merger, the Griffin Poetry Prize introduced the $10,000 Canadian First Book Prize. In the following three years, a key concern expressed by many in the literary community was that the exposure for, and celebration of, Canadian poets by this Canadian prize had been significantly reduced.

The $130,000 International Poetry Prize will continue to be awarded, and Canadian poets will remain eligible for that prize, though no Canadian poet will be able to win both prizes: if a Canadian poet wins the International Prize, a different book will be chosen as the winner of the Canadian Poetry Prize.

In a departure from the structure of the initial Canadian prize, there will not be a longlist or shortlist created for the Canadian Poetry Prize; like the Canadian First Book Prize, it will be announced with one winner.

Translated “collected” works will no longer be eligible for the International Poetry Prize, though translated “selected” works will remain eligible. In order for a translated volume to be eligible for the prize, both the translator and the original author must be alive at the date of publication.

The prize’s three-judge panel will always include a Canadian, and the longlist will be expanded from 10 to 12 titles and “will feature Canadian representation.”

The shortlist will remain a five-title one, and each shortlisted poet who participates in the annual readings will receive $10,000.

The $10,000 Canadian First Book Prize will continue to be awarded; however, the winner will no longer receive a residency at the Civitella Ranieri in Italy.

The $25,000 Lifetime Recognition Award will continue to be granted.

The changes will come into effect as of next year.

The winner of this year’s Griffin Poetry Prize, American poet Kevin Young, was announced last week.