This year marks the 15th anniversary of the James Dyson Award, and the 15th year of empowering the next generation of engineers to solve the problems that will impact their future.
The James Dyson Foundation is challenging innovative and entrepreneurial students and recent graduates to design something that solves a problem. Ingenuity can be found anywhere. We want to support as many young inventors as we can. James Dyson says: “Young engineers and designers have perspective and unbridled intelligence that makes them incredibly adept at problem solving. Their ideas can easily be dismissed, but if nurtured and celebrated they are transformative. Developing a product or technology is a long and daunting process; the James Dyson Award celebrates the inventive young people embarking on that process. The Award champions our next generation of inventors and will propel them towards future success. I am excited to see what surprising ideas this year’s award brings.”
Past winners have sought to address food waste, water conservation, pollution, medical treatment in developing countries and sustainability across all industries.
The 2018 International Winner, O-Wind Turbine (pictured), addresses sustainable energy generation in urban environments with a new type of wind turbine that captures wind flowing in every direction.
The competition brief: design something that solves a problem. This problem may be a frustration we all face in daily life, or a global issue. The important thing is that the solution is effective and demonstrates considered design thinking.
The prize is NZ$ 55,000* (plus NZ$9,000 for the winner’s university), two international runners-up receive NZ $9,000 and each national winner receives NZ$3,500).
The process: entries are judged first at the national level – before progressing to the international stage. A panel of Dyson engineers select an international shortlist of 20 entries. The Top 20 projects are then reviewed by Sir James Dyson, who selects the international winner.