Five leading European design platforms invite young European designers to disrupt with purpose.
The second edition of the Next Gen Design Competition has launched its 2026 Open Call, inviting young creatives across Europe to engage with a world in flux and address urgent global challenges through bold, regenerative, and inclusive design. Under the theme “Futures Worth Living,” the competition calls on young creatives from 18 to 35 who are born, studying, or living in Europe to challenge outdated systems and propose human-centered innovations that protect the environment, strengthen social cohesion, and reimagine how we live together.
Exceptional Opportunities for Winners
From all submissions, the jury will select 50 winning projects to join the Next Gen Design Cohort 2026, gaining outstanding opportunities for international visibility and professional development.
The selected works will be presented through the Next Gen Design Traveling Exhibition, reaching international audiences and industry leaders. The exhibition will premiere at the Mikser Festival in Novi Pazar in June 2026, before continuing to What Design Can Do Live, Vienna Design Week, Barcelona Design Week, and Skopje Design Week later that year.
Selected designers will participate in fully funded residency programs in one of the five partner cities. During intensive 4–5 day design sprints, participants will collaborate in teams to tackle local challenges and present their solutions to expert juries. Travel, accommodation, and daily expenses are fully covered.
At each residency location, three projects will receive monetary awards from a €2,000 regional prize fund (1st Prize: €1,000; 2nd Prize: €600; 3rd Prize: €400), supporting further education and project development in circular design.
International Jury of Change-makers
Submissions will be evaluated by a diverse panel of forward-thinking innovators, social change-makers, and leading practitioners of sustainable and social design: Henriette Waal – Designer, researcher, co-founder of Atelier Luma, and artistic leader of Veenweide Atelier (The Netherlands); Juan Umbert – Entrepreneur, CEO, innovator, and creative soul (Barcelona, Spain); Nikola Radeljković – Industrial designer, Numen / ForUse (Croatia); Elli Schindler – Managing director of designaustria and designforum Wien (Austria); and Emile Smeenk – Designer, entrepreneur, and founder of Cool Bricks and Nature Nomads (The Netherlands).
How to Apply & Deadline
The call is currently open. For more information, full evaluation criteria, and submission guidelines, visit the competition page: www.nextgendesign.eu/open-call-2026/
Eligible designers must submit their applications, including project descriptions and visual materials, via the online form at www.nextgendesign.eu/application-form
Deadline for submissions is midnight on March 24, 2026.
For competition-related inquiries, please contact competition@nextgendesign.eu
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FOR THE EDITORS
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ABOUT NEXT GEN DESIGN
Next Gen Design is a three-year, multinational program that brings together research, competitions, and public events to encourage the European design sector — particularly emerging designers — to create, adopt, and promote sustainable design solutions aligned with the European Green Deal.
Five major international design platforms and annual festivals – Skopje Design Week (North Macedonia), Mikser Festival (Serbia), designaustria (Austria), What Design Can Do (the Netherlands), and Barcelona Creativity & Design Foundation / Barcelona Design Week (Spain) — have joined forces to launch Next Gen Design collaborative initiative aimed at strengthening youth participation in the design sector while advancing a shift toward circular, socially responsible design practices across Europe.
The initiative emerges at a moment when the world is facing intensifying climate and social challenges. Across the globe, young people have responded with remarkable energy and creativity, raising their voices and calling for more ambitious action to protect their future. Yet a clear gap persists between acknowledging these concerns and translating them into meaningful change. Next Gen Design responds directly to this challenge by creating opportunities for young designers to actively participate in shaping more sustainable and inclusive systems.
At the core of the project is the development of an innovative educational and engagement platform embedded within leading European design festivals. Combining physical and digital formats, the platform expands the role of festivals beyond cultural events, positioning them as spaces for learning, experimentation, and collaboration around circular economy principles.
Through annual design competitions in 2025 and 2026, open calls, research surveys, events, and international residencies, the program encourages young creatives to explore how design can address environmental and social issues while imagining more resilient futures.
The partnership also highlights the role that emerging designers can play in advancing the goals of the European Green Deal. By supporting designers aged 18–35 across Europe, the project seeks to nurture a generation of professionals who view sustainability, circularity, and social responsibility as integral to their practice. In doing so, it aims to harness the creativity and innovation of young talents while fostering a deeper sense of responsibility toward communities and the planet.
The project is co-funded by the European Union through the Creative Europe Program.
