BE OPEN celebrates winners of DESIGN TO NURTURE THE PLANET, competition to support the UN sustainable goals

LONDON, June 28, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — Design to Nurture the Planet student competition in support of the United Nations SDG Programme, announces the winners of its three core prizes.

BE OPEN’s latest competition aimed to bring the talent and creativity of the global community to focus on SDG2: Zero Hunger. Under the umbrella of zero hunger, SDG2 is not only about ending hunger, but also achieving food security and improved nutrition and promoting sustainable agriculture. The competition called for innovative solutions that can contribute to how we transform our food systems to end food insecurity and create better conditions for an equitable and environmentally prosperous world.

All the eligible submissions have been evaluated according to the combination of criteria, such as viability, feasibility and desirability of the design, evidence of a comprehensive research and the creative value of the solution proposed, and the prizes have been allocated the following way:

First Prize of €5,000 goes to Helena Markus from Tallinn, Estonia, who developed Sys-Stem, a blockchain-based system of food production and distribution. Blockchain as a data technology can help address challenges of food supply through fixing data faults in the producer – supplier- consumer chain, raising the efficiency at each stage. Transparency of processes, sustainability, quicker feedback and regulation are only a few advantages of blockchain technologies that food industry can benefit from.
Second Prize of €3,000 goes to Riccardo Mirarchi from Milan, Italy for his Urban Gardens project that encourages repurposing available urban spaces into sustainable food producing spots to be run by communities of neighbours. The project offers insight into sustainable food cultivation, relevant technologies and materials, offers practical instruction that allow urban dwellers cultivate their own fresh food, support local biodiversity, repurpose and recycle waste.
Third Prize of €2,000 goes to Maria Balash from Basel, Switzerland for the interactive online platform Seed Sync. that aims to engage people in co-cultivating fresh food and co-farming in general by providing them with a platform for finding new friends, uniting efforts, sharing experiences, know-hows, materials, seeds, etc. The platform allows for sponsorships, charitable activities, community initiatives, etc.

BE OPEN is a global cultural and social initiative to foster creativity and innovation, a think-tank whose mission is to promote people and ideas today to build solutions for tomorrow through a system of conferences, competitions, exhibitions, master classes and cultural events.