Many architectural and design awards recognize and promote the “beauty” of successful design. But the Design Educates Awards goes one step further. It seeks design that offers true added value, as an additional benefit with long-term implications (resulting from the educational aspect). The Design Educates Awards (DEAwards) recognize even subtle forms of artistic communication that can change our behavior—and thus the world—albeit quietly and gradually.

The DEAwards globally recognize, showcase, and promote the best educational ideas and implementations of architecture and design. The design itself may provide an informative and educational layer that guides us through the increasing complexity of our environment. It can highlight specific possibilities and challenges, explain sociocultural factors and influences, or even outline new scenarios for future development. Each year, the esteemed panel of judges selects outstanding ideas and implementations in the categories of architectural design, product design, universal design, and responsive design.

Jury

The Jury of the 2022 edition has been joined by, among others:

Prof. Toyo Itō (Architect, Toyo Ito & Associates, Laureate of the Pritzker Architecture Prize)

Jette Cathrin Hopp (Architect, Director of Acquisition & Business Development Snøhetta),

Prof. Winy Maas (Architect, Founding Partner and Principal Architect of MVRDV)

Jakob Lange (Architect, Partner at BIG (Bjarke Ingels Group) and Head of the BIG Ideas)

Julie Payette (Publicist, Founding Partner of v2com newswire)

Doris Sung (Architect, Director of UG Programs and Assoc Prof USC,  Principal, DOSU studio)

Prof. Claudia Pasquero (Architect, Researcher, Lecturer, Cofounder of ecoLogicStudio)

Prof. Masayo Ave (Industrial designer, educator, founder of MasayoAve Creation)

David Basulto (Founder, CEO, and Editor-in-chief of ArchDaily)

Maria Aiolova (Designer, Global Principal at AECOM and Co-Founder of Terreform ONE)

Prof. Mark L. Gardner (Architect, Principal at Jaklitsch / Gardner Architects (J/GA), Assistant Professor Parsons the New School)

Prof. Alan Pert (Director, University of Melbourne School of Design, Australia)

Prof. Ranjana Dani (Designer, MIT Institute of Design, Graphic Design Dep., India)

Aidin Ardjomandi (Industrial designer, manager of events in Istituto di Moda Burgo Qatar, founder of Ardjou Design Studio)

Dr. Peter Kuczia (Architect, Designer, Initiator of the Design Educates Awards)

Awards

Winners, laureates of prizes, honorable mentions, and nominations will be selected in each category. In addition to the general evaluation, the student project with the highest score will be awarded the label of 'Emerging Designers'. Parallel to the jury’s evaluation, representatives of Solarlux will select the laureates of Solarlux Choice. The benefits for laureates include the elements listed below (please remember that we will not charge you any hidden costs; the only cost of participation in the awards is during the registration of your entries, and all additional benefits are free of charge in edition 2022):

- Inclusion in the book, Design Educates

- Participation in the exhibition in Germany

- Presentation of the design during the awards ceremony in Germany

- Certificates and winning labels to promote your success

- A gift certificate from v2com for the winners,

- Lifetime Winner title with press packages

- Promotion within the group of media sponsors and media supporters

- Financial awards for participants of student categories

Ceremony

The awards ceremony will take place during the Architecture in Foyer 2022 worldwide conference at the Solarlux Campus in Germany (Melle, Lower Saxony, Germany) from September 22–23, 2022. The conference will be hosted by Solarlux GmbH (the strategic partner of the awards) and will consist of an exhibition of the results of the DEAwards, lectures by distinguished architects and designers, laureates’ presentations, workshops, and networking opportunities. Participation in the awards ceremony is free of charge (registration is required). Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, interested parties should follow updates about the event on the official website: www.architektur-im-foyer.com/en/

Schedule

Registration opens in September 2021

Early registration: until October 1, 2021

Regular registration: until December 1, 2021

Late registration: until February 1, 2022

Project submission deadline: February 2, 2022

Jury deliberation: February 2022

Announcement of winners: March 1, 2022

Awards ceremony 2022: September 22–23, 2022

UTC time zone for all dates.

Please follow the official website of the awards for possible changes in the schedule.

Join

The DEAwards are open to everyone. To join the awards, please proceed to the User Panel (https://profile.designeducates.com/login). In the User Panel, you can register for the awards, prepare drafts of your submissions, make registration payments, and see the list of your submissions. The awards are a multidisciplinary call for ideas and implementations in the categories of (1) architectural design, (2) product design, (3) universal design, and (4) responsive design. Descriptions of all categories are available in the 'About' section of the official website.

Participants may submit multiple projects, and there is no limit to the number of participants per team. Individual entries are also allowed. Interdisciplinary teams are encouraged to join. The theme of the awards is inspired by the research titled “Educating Buildings” (“Bildende Bauten”) by Dr. Peter Kuczia. Entries will be evaluated based on the following criteria: overall idea and implementation, the potential for educational influence, effectiveness and quality of the informative layer, aesthetics, quality of presentation, visionary approach, originality, feasibility, and comprehensiveness. The submitted ideas should refer to the competition theme and highlight the educational potential of design.

Participation Fees

The registration fees (specified on the website) support the statutory activity of the Laka Foundation (non-governmental &  non-profit organization). At the Design Educates Awards, we will never charge you any hidden costs. The only fee is the registration fee which is visible during the registration and on the User Panel. If you decide to submit more entries, discounts are applicable (you will see the amount of the discount during the registration).

Organizer and Partners 

Organizer

The host of the DEAwards is Laka Foundation (a nonprofit and nongovernmental organization).

Official website of the awards: www.designeducates.com

Contact the organizer at hello@designeducates.com 

Partners

Strategic partner: Solarlux GmbH (www.solarlux.com)

Media sponsors: Architecture in Foyer (www.architektur-im-foyer.com)

Archdaily (www.archdaily.com)

World Architecture Community (www.worldarchitecture.org

e-architect (www.e-architect.com)

International Newswire Partner: v2com-newswire (www.v2com-newswire.com)