Design is a key factor of change: Sustainable design contributes significantly to the transformation towards a sustainable society. The new GSA Design awards these contributions and provides orientation for consumers in the search for sustainable alternatives. The design award will be paused in 2023.
On 1 December 2022, particularly sustainable products, systems and services were awarded the German Sustainability Award Design for the third time. The winners cover all areas of life and offer sustainable alternatives. Honorary awards were presented to Cradle to Cradle founder Prof. Michael Braungart and top model Toni Garrn. The band Reiche Söhne and Leslie Clio accompanied the evening with musical interludes.
H.S.H. Prince Albert II of Monaco, Cradle to Cradle founder Prof. Michael Braungart, supermodel Toni Garrn, French singer Zaz and singer-songwriter Michael Patrick Kelly were presented with honorary awards on 1 and 2 December 2022.
Sustainable design provides answers to the most pressing challenges of our time and changes the way of life - users are able to choose sustainability and contribute to transformation. In the foreseeable future, products and services that enable this, will establish themselves. The German Sustainability Award Design recognizes the best solutions in all segments. By design we do not refer solely to the design of physical products,
but the development of any conceivable product, system or service. Ideally the development starts with the question of how the result can achieve the greatest possible positive effect for sustainability, and the design and realization are inspired by this. The GSA Design wants to motivate and give good examples a tailwind for their success. The GSA Design can make sustainable design more successful and thus more effective.
After three years the German Sustainability Award for Design is taking a break in 2023. The next application period starts in 2024.
The company, designer(s) or student(s) must apply to be nominated. The solution and its contribution to sustainable transformation are presented in an online questionnaire using key questions and informative visual materials. The assessment team then evaluates the applications to select the nominees. The nominees stand for exemplary and outstanding sustainability.
The basis of the jury's evaluation is the documentation submitted to the jury and the personal assessments of each jury member. Jurors also consider areas of need such as furnishings, nutrition, clothing, mobility, communication and leisure, and determine the finalists. The finalists represent the best of the best, qualified by their outstanding sustainable solutions. The jury then selects the winners from this top pool of applicants, identifying the most effective contributions to sustainable transformation - in short: the best products, services and systems in the competition.
Founder EPEA
CEO Utopia
Executive Board DGNB
Director of ecosign/Akademie für Gestaltung
Trendscout Vitra
Management Effizienz-Agentur NRW
Department Manager Wuppertal Institut
Product designer
Chairman of the Board AGD
Owner futurize & Managing Director VDMD
Journalist and design critic
Publisher & Chair Stylepark
Head of Design & Innovation Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH
Dipl. Ing. Architect Architonic Service GmbH
With the GSA Design seal, nominees, finalists and winners can demonstrate their leading position in the field of sustainability - to customers, suppliers, media and the financial world. The GSA seal is a prestigious external recognition, identifying pioneers and helping them secure a leading position in the market. The GSA seal is a useful guide for consumers in their search for sustainable alternatives.
According to a recent study by the University of Hohenheim on the importance of sustainability and environmental competitions in Germany, the GSA is both the best-known and most coveted award in this field (ranking first in each case). There are currently around 200 competitions with a focus on sustainability.
Source: University of Hohenheim, Dr. Beate Gebhardt, 2017
Since 2020, the German Sustainability Award Design has been honouring products, systems and services from companies that are leading the way as good examples of sustainable design. The design solutions provide consumers with orientation in their search for sustainable alternatives and thus make decisive contributions to the change towards a sustainable society.