Find details about all the judges and their bios.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\nWebster, who has been a core judge since Wege Prize began more than a decade ago, says designers, entrepreneurs, and policymakers can help advance the circular economy. \u201cIf we think in that circular way, then we move much closer to a world where we are using these resources the way we should be using them,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In the coming weeks, the competition\u2019s complement of core judges will assess the student teams\u2019 collaborative work on their innovative concepts and offer expert guidance as the groups refine their products and services into real-world applications that support the circular economy. Only 15 semi-finalist teams will be named by the core judges in January, with five finalist groups selected in March. All five finalist teams will present their ultimate projects to the core judge panel during the competition\u2019s final live event on May 17, with the judges then selecting third, second, and first-place winners who will share in Wege Prize 2024\u2019s $65,000 USD prize pool.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Wege Prize\u2019s top teams have won more than $350,000 in total cash awards since the competition\u2019s onset, helping advance a circular economy among the multidisciplinary, cultural, and institutional participants. With insights from the judges\u2019 guidance, many of the teams\u2019 have advanced their solutions through incubator hubs and startup funding, tackling challenges related to the climate, environment, energy, social justice, the economy, food, farming, and in other areas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe students are eager to learn from the judges\u2019 expertise and to collaborate on ways to use those insights to distinguish their products in ways that support a circular economy,\u201d says Gayle DeBruyn, KCAD professor and Wege Prize organizer. She adds the judges\u2019 vast experiences bring attention to essential aspects of the circular economy, sustainable business operations, design, and the natural environment. \u201cWith the judges\u2019 spot-on guidance, the student teams are armed with next steps to make a real difference in regenerative product design, production, and use,\u201d says DeBruyn.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
As Wege Prize 2024 advances into the second phase of its worldwide student competition for circular innovation, judging of the select 31 remaining teams\u2019 sustainable solutions escalates as the contest\u2019s global team of core judges steps into action. Taking a lead from Wege Prize\u2019s largely regional panel of 10 preliminary judges that narrowed the competitor<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":95,"featured_media":93088,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false}}},"categories":[201],"tags":[40010,24030,40009,33839,33838,44606],"ppma_author":[48795],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"yoast_head":"\n
Wege Prize Names Core Judges with Diverse Expertise - retrofit<\/title>\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n\t \n\t \n\t \n \n \n \n \n \n\t \n\t \n\t \n