The James Dyson Award celebrates World Environment Day

The James Dyson Award gives the engineers and designers of tomorrow a platform to share their ingenious solutions to tackle the environmental issues of today. In a time of global crisis, never has innovative invention been so critical.

In order to recognize this, as of 2020, the James Dyson Award has introduced an additional $35,000 for the best sustainability-related entry, or an entry that has been designed, sourced or manufactured with sustainability in mind. 

As James Dyson says,

“Each year we have been struck by the ingenuity and conscience of young people to solve really big problems. So many of the James Dyson Award entries have a focus on improving the world through engineering and technology. Recognizing the role that engineers and scientists play in creating a sustainable future, we have decided to introduce a second international prize focused on ideas which do more with less and tackle environmental or social issues.”Have a browse through some of the James Dyson Award past winners below who have addressed environmental problems head on.

Past environmentally focused JDA winners

MANTA - UK national winner 2013
Inventor: Sam Etherington
As part of the search for renewable energy sources Sam invented MANTA - a wave energy generator. It is inspired by the wingspan of Manta rays and converts the rising and falling of ocean waves into electricity. Sam has launched his own company – Aquapower Technologies. The pilot scheme for MANTA began its final testing phase at a salmon farm off the coast of Shetland in 2018, and the commercial product was made available in 2019. Find out more here.

Lighthouse - US winner 2018
Inventor: Dr You Wu
Everyday 20% of the clean water produced in the world is lost due to pipe leaks. Dr You Wu has invented Lighthouse (now named Watchtower), a small robot built that uses a special tactile sensor to detect leaks in underground water pipes. It detects leaks as small as 1 gallon per minute and as accurately as 1 ft, whilst mapping pipe networks in 3D. His team have launched their own company, Watchtower Robotics, and are developing their robot to help prevent the deterioration of water infrastructure. Find out more here.


AirDisc Cooling Technologies - Philippines winner 2019
Inventor: Maria Yzabell Angel Palma
Current air-conditioning systems use harmful hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) as the medium of cooling. AirDisc Cooling Technologies uses air molecules and atmospheric moisture to create a cooling system that does not harm the environment and minimises energy usage. The inventor Maria is currently doing research and development work on AirDisc so that it can be commercialised. Find out more here.

Safety Net Technologies - International winner 2012
Inventor: Dan Watson
Currently, 1 out of every 5 fish caught are unmarketable, endangered or too small, resulting in 16m tons of fish wasted globally. Safety Net is an adapted fishing net that has lights and small holes to ensure small fish don’t get caught. Since winning the James Dyson Award Dan launched the company Safety Net Technologies which works to design, build, and test light emitting fishing devices to increase the selectivity of commercial fishing practices, making the industry more sustainable. Find out more here.

ORCA Water Cleaning Robot - China winner 2019
Inventor: Jiannan Zhu
Due to the rapid urbanisation many cities are suffering with serious water pollution in their lakes. ORCA Water Cleaning Robot can clean a lake 7 times faster than manual cleaners, and at a lower cost. Since winning the award the inventors have launched their own company and have trialled the ORCA Robot in the River Thames in partnership with IKEA.