Conscious Innovators
2026

We invite architecture, design, and urbanism schools from across India to nominate their top graduation projects for this year's Conscious Innovators platform.


Made to Matter. Designed to Last.

Waste isn't only what happens at the end of a product's life. It's often decided the moment something is designed.

Projects We're Looking For

This year, we are particularly interested in projects that prevent waste, extend the life of materials, and turn overlooked resources into meaningful solutions.

Submissions can thus include:

  • Research or material explorations that reduce, reuse, or reintegrate waste into nature
  • Projects reimagining how communities handle, understand, and revalue waste
  • Built-environment systems designed for better ecological connection

Are you an Institute? Nominate Graduation Projects Now!

The
Recognition

Our jury will select six Finalists, two of which will have the opportunity to showcase their project physically at Conscious Collective 2027.



  • 2 Showcase Finalists

    Live Showcase with Design Fraternity + Certificate of Excellence + Social Media Feature

    Two exceptional graduate projects will be showcased at Conscious Collective 2027, and will be honoured with certificates of excellence and exclusive features on GDL's social media channels.

  • 4 Notable Finalists

    Honourable Mention + Certificate of Excellence + Social Media Feature

    Four stand-out graduate projects will be awarded certificates, along with features on GDL's social media platforms.

Behind the
Platform

The
Jury

To be announced soon.

Program
Mentors

  • Sneha Ullal Goel

    Program Partner & Mentor
    Design Culturist, Educator, Curator

    A media professional-turned-educator and brand storytelling and marketing communications specialist with 20 years of total work experience, Sneha thrives in collaborating with design, craft, home decor, real estate, lifestyle, luxury, fintech, and social impact brands in India and around the world. Thanks to her former experience as a prolific design journalist, she continues to actively champion Indian-born and bred talent, hoping to, in some solemn way, put the country on the world map of design and craft. Since 2020, she has been instrumental in building the foundation of, and providing strategic direction to over 60 creative enterprises. She also mentors creative and handmade early-stage startups on brand building and business development.

  • Henry Skupniewicz

    Head of Godrej Design Lab, Godrej Enterprises Group

    Henry has extensive experience working within the design community across India including teaching at and founding the FabLab at CEPT University in Ahmedabad. Henry studied Computational Design at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Timeline

  • Nomination

    Deadline : 5 November, 2026


    • Nominations need to be made only by higher education institutes based in India, via a faculty representative..
    • Each institute can submit up to 6 projects by recent graduates.
    • Eligible projects include graduation, thesis, capstone, or final-semester major projects completed in 2024 or later.
    • The graduate students behind each project must provide consent towards the submission.

    Eligible submissions can include:

    • Architecture and interior projects linked to better living, climate responsiveness, material systems, spatial wellbeing, public infrastructure, waste management, or sustainable built environments.
    • Product, furniture, industrial, material, textile, and craft-led projects that improve everyday life, reduce impact, optimise use of materials, or rethink production and use.
    • Service, systems, UX, interaction, or communication projects when they address meaningful real-world problems tied to conscious choices, sustainable living, health, housing, mobility, civic life, or collective wellbeing.

  • Evaluation & Announcement

    Announcement of Finalists: 1st week of December

    Shortlisted entries are reviewed by an expert jury against a rubric spanning research rigor, design judgment, critical thinking, application and analysis, and real-world relevance.

    For full details on how nominations are evaluated, and our suggestions, please see the Details & Advice below.

  • Finalist Mentorship

    January & February, 2027

    Showcase Finalists will work with our program mentor as well the Godrej Design Lab team to translate their project work into a physical showcase.

    The program mentor will work with each showcase finalist on their presentation skills enabling them to get the most out of participating in Conscious Collective.

  • Showcase at
    Conscious Collective 2027

    26 - 28 February 2027 in Mumbai

    Showcase Finalists present live at Conscious Collective (Godrej Enterprises’s event for industry and the community centered on sustainability and the built environment), with travel, staging, interactions, and exhibition support from GDL.

Details &
Advice

Hello, Nominating Faculty! Here’s a primer for you to understand how GDL will evaluate all applications. Please go through and guide your graduated students while submitting their project accordingly.

The Conscious Innovators platform is looking for India's most promising design graduates the moment they move out of campus, and are getting ready to dive into practice. These graduates have trained hard to build professional skills, and are still sharpening them while finding their own voice.

At Godrej Design Lab we understand that. We are not looking for a finished professional; we are looking for clues in the thesis, capstone or research project that point to what the graduate will do next.

Keeping this in mind, we will look at every nomination through three lenses: the project itself, the professional skills the graduate demonstrates, and their unique voice.

When choosing your institute's (up to) six projects, look for work that comprehensively addresses the three lenses above, not just work that looks finished. Use each context-setting note to point the jury to where the graduated student’s most meaningful work took shape.

Three lenses of
evaluation

  • 1. The Project

    We see the graduate’s academic work as a reflection of how well they have mastered core design skills, and how they use design in compelling, meaningful ways.

    Design and implementation

    Show us:

    • The framing: a clearly articulated problem or issue.
    • The research: rigorous, with evidence behind the decisions.
    • The analysis: sharp, with critical thinking applied where it counts.
    • The process: trials, errors and iterations. Don't hide the attempts that failed — document them.
    • Its relevance: how the work contributes to better, more sustainable living.

    Design, with a capital D

    We will look for:

    • Empathy for the people who will use the work, and care for human factors.
    • Delight
    • Strategic judgement and conscious choices.

    Few notes for graduates to bear in mind

    Know your focus.

    Every strong project has a centre of gravity. Tell us where your most meaningful work happened, then choose the direction that fits it.

    Choose your direction

    Research-led and speculative, generating new insights, frameworks, or ways of seeing a future problem.

    Applied with plausible implementation: those connected to manufacturing, building technology, material innovation, supply chains, or other high-relevance domains discussed in the meetings.

    For both: strong insight and analysis, a clear interpretation and next steps, and a sense of where yout work sits in the wider body of knowledge.

    Ask yourself

    • Did you design the right amount? Which details did you prioritise, and what did you consciously leave out?
    • Did you understand the system? How will your work engage or provoke the people in it, and did you go out and talk to them?
    • Did you back it with numbers? Practical considerations count, and so do skeptical, back-of-the-napkin numbers.

  • 2. Professional Skills

    Let the presentation do the work. How the graduated student has communicated is evidence too. IF they have worked with other, tell us how.

    These are the universal skills and qualities it takes to collaborate, get things done and follow through:

    • Craft and technique, with clear, high-quality communication.
    • Effective teamwork and engagement with stakeholders.
    • Work ethic, rigor and discipline.

  • 3. Voice

    This lens looks at each the graduated student as a future, distinct voice in the professional, creative and community space.

    • Designerly choices: does the work carry their creative fingerprint?
    • Their position: an awareness of ethical, social and environmental issues, and a clear stand on them.

Important
Considerations

The full terms and conditions will be available at the time of submission. By submitting, institutions and students agree to them.

Conscious Innovators is a recognition and showcase platform. It is not an incubator, accelerator, funding program, investment opportunity, or hiring commitment. Participation or recognition does not create any employment, funding, or business relationship with Godrej Enterprises Group.


  • Expectations of all nominating institutions

    Nominating institutions should ensure that:

    Eligibility: Submissions are graduation, thesis, capstone, or final-semester major projects by undergraduate or postgraduate students who graduated from the institution no later than 2024.

    Institutional endorsement: Each submission is nominated by the institution through a designated faculty point of contact. That individual is the primary contact for Godrej Design Lab for the rest of the program.

    Nomination limits: Each institution may submit up to 6 projects.

    Originality and attribution: Submissions are original and free of plagiarism. All collaborators, team members, faculty guides, and industry partners are credited. Any third-party material (images, data, music, fonts, research) is used with permission or properly cited.

    Student consent: Every student named in a submission, is fully aware about the nomination and agrees to it, including the use of their name, image, and work as described below.

    Accuracy: All information submitted (project details, student details, graduation year) is accurate and complete. Godrej Design Lab may ask for proof of eligibility.

    Confidentiality and third-party rights: The submission does not disclose confidential information belonging to the institution, a sponsoring company, or any third party. Where a project was done with an industry partner, the institution has confirmed the work can be shared publicly.

    Intellectual property: The students and/or institution keep full ownership of the intellectual property in their work. By submitting, they grant Godrej Enterprises Group a non-exclusive, royalty-free licence to reproduce, exhibit, and publish images, descriptions, and excerpts of the work. This applies to the exhibition, the program website, social media, press, publications, and related communications, for an unlimited period. The work will always be credited to its creators and institution.


  • Expectations of Finalists and their institutions

    The Finalists commit to taking part in Conscious Collective (26–28 February 2027), including the following:

    Onboarding

    • Signing a participation agreement (which includes a media and photography release and a code of conduct) within 7 days of being notified.
    • Attending an orientation session (online or offline) with Godrej Design Lab (date to be confirmed).
    • Confirming the names of the students and the faculty member who will represent the project. Up to two graduates and one faculty member may attend.
    • Sharing contact details, travel requirements, and any accessibility needs.

    Showcase development and promotion

    • Taking part in mentoring sessions with Godrej Design Lab to adapt the project for the exhibition.
    • Delivering showcase content (high-resolution images, drawings, project text, video, and bios) by the deadlines set during onboarding.
    • Taking part in promotional activities in coordination with Godrej Design Lab, such as interviews, short videos, social media features, and press. Awardees are welcome to promote their participation on their own channels using the program's official assets and guidelines.

    Logistics

    • Institutions are requested to support students with transporting any materials needed for the exhibition to and from the venue (Vikhroli, Mumbai).
    • Prototypes and materials must arrive by 20 February, 2027 for installation and be collected by conclusion (28 February, 2027) the event. Items not collected may be disposed of after 30 days.
    • Finalists are responsible for insuring their own prototypes and materials during transit, as well as on site at the venue of Conscious Collective.

    On-Ground & During Event

    • Institutions are requested to support students with accommodation and local transportation during the course of the Conscious Collective.
    • Showcase finalists and their faculty should be present at the exhibition for the full three days to engage with visitors, and taking part in any talks, walkthroughs, or award moments scheduled during Conscious Collective.

  • What you can expect from Godrej Design Lab

    Showcase mentoring and production support

    • Godrej Design Lab will mentor Showcase Finalists and work with them to adapt their project to a physical installation format and develop their presentation skills.
    • Godrej Design Lab will design and produce the core exhibition components, such as display structures, signage, and lighting. Finalists will need to provide physical prototypes, samples, or models.
    • All Finalists will be credited by name and institution across the exhibition and related communications.

    Travel support for Showcase Finalists

    • For institutions outside Mumbai, Godrej Design Lab will arrange for travel to Mumbai for up to two (2) graduates and one (1) faculty member per finalized project.

    Program communication

    • A single point of contact at Godrej Design Lab, with timely updates on timelines, deadlines, and event details.