The Make it Circular Challenge is a partnership between the Amsterdam-based non-profit organization What Design Can Do (WDCD) and the Ikea Foundation, an organization of interiors giant Ikea that fights against inequality.
For the fourth time, the competition is calling on innovators around the world to submit solutions that fight climate change through circular design. From today, October 11, 2022, until January 11, 2023, designers and entrepreneurs can submit their ideas for products, services or systems, which should be both user and environmentally oriented, via the competition website ( makeitcircular.whatdesigncando.com). The best proposals are turned into reality through a development program.
“Most economies today are based on a linear model, where value is created by producing and selling as many products as possible. The problem is that this model assumes that infinite growth is possible on a finite planet. Today we see how wrong that assumption was as we face an accelerating climate crisis,” explains the Make it Circular Challenge.
According to WDCD and the Ikea Foundation, it’s about convincing people that creating a circular world is possible, not just focusing on the current obstacles. “Many people lose heart in the face of so much outrage, fatigue and disinterest – but not the creative people,” comments Richard van der Laken, co-founder and creative director of the WDCD, in a press release. “The ability to imagine is the ideal domain of the creative community: seeing what doesn’t yet exist, accepting a challenge, moving forward with optimism.”
“At the Ikea Foundation, we believe that designers and creatives can use circular principles to deliver tangible solutions to tackling climate change, waste and pollution. We believe that design can help create a better future on a livable planet. Equally important, design can motivate the public to want to belong to this world,” adds Liz McKeon, program director – Planet at the Ikea Foundation.
Interested parties can submit projects in five thematic areas: what we eat, what we wear, what we buy, how we pack and how we build, spanning 14 disciplines: architecture, biodesign, communication, agriculture, fashion, food, furniture, design (graphic, industrial, material, packaging, product), services and technology. Up-to-date information about events such as workshops, webinars and tutorials with tips on how to apply will be published on the initiative’s social media accounts.
Project examples include Aerseeds, aerodynamic nutrient and seed capsules made from food waste by Agrifood of the UK, consumer products and construction elements made from consumer and industrial waste by Miniwiz of Taiwan, the first sustainable toilet paper Carinho Eco Green of Brazil and Resting Reef Burials of the UK.
In February 2023, a jury of leading experts in design, social impact and climate protection will announce the nominees and select at least ten winners, who will be announced in March. The winning ideas will be implemented through €10,000 in funding and a global development program developed in partnership with Impact Hub Amsterdam, which will include online training, mentoring and a bootcamp.