Each year, designers from over 80 countries, aiming to drive social change through design, submit their work to the Seoul Design Award. A panel of 32 design leaders from more than 20 countries serves as juries, providing valuable feedback. Recognized by international design experts, the Seoul Design Award is the world’s only public design award dedicated to sustainable daily life.
Mardis Bagley, Creative Director and co-founder of Nonfiction, presented the project in front of the esteemed jury and received the award in Korea. “We’re deeply honored to receive this award, recognizing the most impactful design fostering harmony between people, society, and the environment. It couldn’t have been achieved without Phnam Bagley, David Marlatt and the incredible team at Jaza. This recognition is also a celebration of the incredible community of designers shortlisted from a thousand entries. Every one of them is pushing boundaries, elevating causes, and using creativity as a force for global change.”
Phnam Bagley, industrial designer, futurist, aerospace architect, and co-founder of Nonfiction, explains, “4 years ago, Jaza founder Jeff Schnurr came to us with an audacious dream: to light up the African continent with solar energy so bright it could be seen from space. Even in cities like Lagos, people experience power outages multiple times a day, disturbing their daily activities. Those who can afford it run diesel generators to supplement the grid, to great financial and environmental detriment. Jaza Solar Hubs and Batteries – along with the ecosystem that supports it – are a solution to these problems.”
David Marlatt, AIA, founder and principal of DNM Architecture, adds, “DNM’s contribution to this project was to help develop the design for panelizing and flat packing, as well as solving the problem of assembling wall, floor and roof panels in the field using little to no power tools – all in a single day. DNM also developed the precast foundation system using threaded rod and bolts to level the floor of each Jaza Hub on site, eliminating the need for traditional foundation work that is invariably time-consuming and skill-intensive. We are incredibly proud to be part of a solution with life-changing implications for Africa.
DNM Architecture is thrilled by this well-deserved recognition of Jaza and Nonfiction’s comprehensive design vision. Collaborating with Phnam and Mardis was rewarding creatively, professionally, and personally, knowing that we were revolutionizing access to clean, renewable energy in West Africa while empowering the local women who are leading the process.”
About the Seoul Design Award: The Seoul Metropolitan Government (SMG) and Seoul Design Foundation has been hosting the Seoul Design Award, an international award now in its sixth edition, since 2019. It recognizes designers who use creativity to tackle everyday challenges and foster harmonious, sustainable relationships between people, society, and the environment.