Peter Aykroyd’s Anniversary Axiomatique:

1. Reinforce the identity of the organism: in doing this, spend lots of time understanding all the dimensions of that identity.
2. Provide continuity and restatement, reminding people of the past that shapes the present: reassure the people of the value and worth of shared history by recognizing achievement and growth.
3. Seek out and accentuate unifying elements: symbols, songs and all things that are held in common, that have bonding potential.
4. Analyze destructive forces that may be present: thoughtfully plan how to aggressively oppose them.
5. Focus some part of the program on the future: give people confidence and determination to continue the voyage.
6. Encourage personal and community involvement: like when a special visitor is expected in the home, everyone wants to do their best and look their best.
7. Build monuments and memorials: these are tangible statements of achievement and strong elements of a sense of continuity.
8. Give gifts: not commodities that have only commercial value but gifts that keep on giving, gifts that have expanding worth.
9. Set up performances and public events to encourage participation: it is in sharing with others at the same time and place the experience of
   large-scale spectacles that one feels warmth, pride and cohesion.
10. Make sure it is fun, but also allow for dignity and emotion: it is healthy to release the spirit through noise, through laughter, through tears and through awe.

Source: The Anniversary Compulsion: Canada’s Centennial Celebrations, a Model Mega-Anniversary, Toronto: Dundurn Press, 1992, p. 11.