This year’s entries stand out for their particularly high quality and diversity. Out of around 380 entries, 149 were admitted to the jury session. After intensive deliberation, the interdisciplinary jury nominated 30 projects, from which 14 winners are being awarded today in the atriums of the Federal Ministry for the Environment.
The award’s strong potential for transformation
Rita Schwarzelühr-Sutter, Member of the German Bundestag, Parliamentary State Secretary at the Federal Ministry for the Environment and jury member: “Ecodesign benefits us in several ways: in times of geopolitical tension, it reduces our dependence on imports. Ecodesign makes us more resilient. Thoughtful design and innovative materials are business models for the future. And not least, Ecodesign is good for our environment. We save resources and use less energy. That’s not only sustainable, but also economically successful and sensible”
Prof. Dr. Dirk Messner, President of the German Environment Agency: “The German Ecodesign Award was established in 2012 to demonstrate, through concrete examples, the relevance of environmental aspects in the design process. Even in the competition’s 14th year, it remains important to give pioneers a platform and thus send a signal to industries. I am pleased to see a good mix of start-ups, SMEs and global players among the award winners.”
Call for Entries 2026: Next Competition Round Starts in January
The Europe-wide call for entries reopens on 19 January 2026. Since 2012, the German Ecodesign Award has been presented by the Federal Ministry for the Environment (BMUKN) and the German Environment Agency ( UBA ) in cooperation with the International Design Center Berlin (IDZ).
In the four categories Product, Service, Concept and Young Talent, projects that combine design quality with environmental impact get to be recognised. The competition is open to companies of all sizes, design studios and students across Europe.
The award seeks durable, repairable and circular products, processes and systems: solutions that demonstrate how design can drive the transition to a sustainable economy and way of life.
The German Ecodesign Award goes to the following projects:
Category: Young talent
Category: Concept
Category: Service
Category: Product
The Jury of the German Ecodesign Award 2025
- Werner Aisslinger (product designer, founder of studio aisslinger)
- Ina Budde (Fashion designer, co-founder and Managing Director of circular.fashion)
- Matthias Held (Product Designer, Professor at the Schwäbisch Gmünd University of Design)
- Dr. Claudia Perren (Architect, Director of the Basel Academy of Art and Design)
- Siddharth Prakash (Head of the Circular Economy and Global Value Chains Group in the Product and Material Flows Division at the Öko-Institut in Freiburg)
- Paula Raché (communications designer)
- Bettina Rechenberg (Head of Department III “Sustainable Products and Production, Circular Economy” at the German Environment Agency (UBA)
- Rita Schwarzelühr-Sutter, Member of the German Bundestag (Parliamentary State Secretary at the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Climate Action, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMUKN))
- Michael Volkmer (communication designer, founder of the creative agency Scholz & Volkmer)
Information on the competition
bundespreis-ecodesign.de
Contact for images
Luisa Stibbe | presse [at] bundespreis-ecodesign [dot] de
German Ecodesign Award Office
c/o IDZ | International Design Center Berlin e.V.
Markgrafenstraße 88 | 10969 Berlin-Kreuzberg
Postal address: Hagelberger Straße 52 | 10965 Berlin
Tel. +49 30 61 62 321-22
presse [at] bundespreis-ecodesign [dot] de
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