Der Nachwuchspreis Circular Design

The Kunstgewerbeverein Frankfurt am Main e.V., in partnership with Frankfurter Entsorgungs- und Service GmbH (FES), the Start-ups Working Group of the Polytechnische Gesellschaft e.V., and as part of the Frankfurt Next Generation initiative, is announcing the Circular Design Emerging Talent Award 2025/2026.

The award acts as a catalyst for social change, promoting themes such as sustainability, resource conservation, waste prevention, and circularity. It encourages innovative, experimental thinking and responsible design practices.

The competition is open to design and craft students, as well as young designers and craftspeople in their first to third year of professional practice from Hesse. Application deadline: March 31, 2026. Main Award – “Circular Design Emerging Talent Award” (€3,500) honors projects that are creative, innovative, and sustainable in their approach to the circular economy, material use and reuse, recycling, and upcycling.

Special Award – “Entrepreneurship Circular Design” (€1,500) recognizes conceptual approaches for founding a start-up aimed at implementing a developed design idea in practice.

The awards ceremony will take place on Saturday, June 13, 2026, at 18:00, at the Kunstgewerbeverein, in the Historic Villa Metzler Schaumainkai 17 in Frankfurt.