Winners

The winners of the No Waste Challenge draw from a wide range of strategies for reducing waste and its impact on the planet. The competition’s top prize will launch these 16 ground-breaking ideas into action with funding, publicity and a tailor-made development programme.

CARBON TILE

Carbon Craft Design | INDIA

A startup upcycling carbon recovered from tyre pyrolysis waste into beautiful materials and architectural products.

CLOTHING LOOP

powered by Slow Fashion Movement | NETHERLANDS

The Clothing Loop makes it easy and fun to share bags of pre-loved clothes by connecting people in local communities.

DAPODA: DESIGN LIVING LAB

FAU USP | BRAZIL

Dapoda collects organic waste from urban tree pruning, and investigates new ways to extend the value of this raw material through experimental products and designs.

Hagamos Composta strives to give everyone the opportunity to compost their organic waste responsibly. Already in 8 cities in Mexico and 2 in Honduras, this service offers home pick-up in colourful buckets.

LEAFYLIFE

leafylife | KENYA

A unique technology using benign organic chemicals to turn dirty diapers into fuel and construction materials.

LIVING COFFIN

LOOP | NETHERLANDS

The world’s first living coffin: a fully biodegradable casket made out of mycelium fungi, which turns into compost within 45 days.

MAPU – HANDMADE CLAY SPEAKERS

Documentary Design GbR | GERMANY

Mapu Preto are eco-friendly sound systems handmade out of clay that reunite traditional crafts and technology through heritage-led-innovation.

MODERN SYNTHESIS

modern synthesis | UNITED KINGDOM

Employing microbes to grow customisable and fully circular biomaterials for the fashion industry using local agricultural waste, like those from apple farms.

NYUNGU AFRIKA

Nyungu Afrika | KENYA

Nyungu Afrika has set out to reduce period poverty with their biodegradable, low-cost period products made from pineapple and corn husk waste.

°PACKING UP PFAS

CLAYBENS | Netherlands

PFAS are toxic chemicals that pose a growing problem for both human health and the environment. This project offers a clean-up solution, through a process that turns polluted soil and clay into clean ceramic bricks.

PROJECT “R”

know inc. | japan

An upcycling centre and ‘living lab for sustainability’ inviting people to learn about circular design techniques and lifestyles.

RADIAL BIOFABRICATION PLATFORM

RADIAL Biomateriales | mexico

Using fungal biotech, RADIAL transforms agricultural waste into carbon-neutral materials, replacing styrofoam, MDF as well as animal and plastic leathers.

REPARAR.ORG V2.0

Artículo 41 | Argentina

An online repair directory which makes it easy to find local repairers, to promote a culture of care and the reduction of waste.

Sustrato

Andrea Michael De la Peña Aguirre | mexico

Combining ancient techniques, contemporary design and waste from the pineapple industry, Sustrato develops sustainable materials and products including rope, bioplastic and felt.

UNPLASTIC: WASTE IS OPTIONAL!

Outlander Materials | Netherlands

Unplastic upcycles food industry and brewery waste to make new and compostable packaging materials.

WASTEWATER TO GREEN PARKS

OmiFlo Limited | KENYA

This project turns wastewater into lush greenery using an innovative hydroponic system to host macrophyte plants, which acts as a natural filter.

honourable mentions

These No Waste Challenge projects caught the eye of the jury with their approach and commitment to the issue of waste. As shining examples of sustainable design, these honourable mentions are invaluable to the global movement towards a more circular, no-waste future.

EARTHLINGS

varsha sastry | INDIA

Earthlings is a mobile app and service offering plastic-free home pregnancy tests, with the goal of reducing medical waste and making healthcare services more accessible and affordable to women across the country.

Medulla

DON YAW KWANING | NETHERLANDS

Medulla transforms soft rush (a type of weed found in wetlands and moors) into circular building materials that lower the use of energy through high-quality insulation.

pulp fusion

Bits to Atoms | lebanon

Pulp Fusion is a fully compostable chair made from recycled paper and organic materials that helps the propagation of seeds through guerilla gardening.

Vegeme

TEIKYO UNIVERSITY | JAPAN

A full-circle composting initiative which collects food waste from schools and offices in Tokyo, converts it to fertiliser, then uses it to grow fresh produce for the community.

VII Lab

Bioteca | FRANCE

A 3-dimensional interactive platform specifically designed to educate creators on material science, and encourage them to experiment with circular processes.