The Design Impact Awards are run by Titan Company, an Indian consumer products group, together with Villgro and Sattva Consulting. Edition 2 is built around water and funds innovators whose solutions address water problems in India.
The award names four focus areas: waste water management, water-efficient agriculture, water resource management and distribution, and access to water. The organisers frame the theme broadly, from groundwater depletion and potable water to water for agriculture, water management and conflicts over water.
Money comes in two steps. Six grantees are funded for an implementation phase, and the strongest two from that group receive a much larger grant to scale.
Edition 2 launched in 2024, its applications are closed, and the funded cohort is still running. Titan has not published a date for a further edition.
Benefits & funding
- Grants of up to INR 50 lakh for six grantees in the implementation phase.
- Grants of up to INR 1.5 crore for the top two grantees coming out of the implementation phase.
- Tailored mentorship, advocacy, capacity building and networking support alongside the money.
- The first edition, in 2019, made eight grants; its funded projects were expected to reach over 57,000 people and save over 80 lakh litres of water during the grant period.
Eligibility
- Open to an individual, a team, or an institution working on an innovation that addresses water sustainability.
- Applicants may be of any nationality.
- The solution must serve the Indian subcontinent.
- The work must sit in at least one of the four focus areas: waste water management, water-efficient agriculture, water resource management and distribution, or access to water.
- In the 2019 first edition, entrants needed a prototype ready before applying.
- No age, degree or work-experience requirement is published.
Can you apply?
Open to all applicants
No nationality, residency, education, or experience limits are listed.
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Application process
- 1Watch for a new call on the awards’ own site, designimpactawards.titan.in, which Titan links from its Design Impact Awards page, and on Villgro’s program page. Edition 2 applications are closed.
- 2Build the entry around one of the four water focus areas and show how the solution reaches users in the Indian subcontinent.
- 3Submit while a call is open. The first edition picked its winners through a jury process.
- 4Six selected entries enter the implementation phase with grants of up to INR 50 lakh.
- 5The top two coming out of the implementation phase receive grants of up to INR 1.5 crore to scale.
Program timeline
First edition of the Design Impact Awards runs, with 993 applications and eight grants.
2019
Edition 2 launches on the theme of water.
2024
Applications are closed and the funded cohort runs the implementation phase.
2024 to present
Not published
No opening date for a further edition.