President's Award

Established during the 2019-2021 term, WDO’s President’s Award recognizes the vital role our international membership plays as part of the continued success of the organization.

Presented at the biennial World Design Assembly, the award honours one member for their active involvement in our programmes and activities, as well as their investment in supporting WDO’s vision to create a world where design enhances global quality of life. Through a nomination process, supported by a letter of justification, members are eligible for consideration by the Board of Directors who then select the recipient based on the detailed criteria.

During the 32nd World Design Assembly in February 2022, WDO President Srini Srinivasan announced Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) (India) as the inaugural recipient of the Award.

Selection Criteria

Member must

be in good standing for entirety of term
participate in a minimum of two WDO programmes
demonstrate a consistent level of international cooperation, interacting/engaging with other WDO Members (within and/or outside their pillar)
demonstrate a level of commitment that makes them a model for other members
promote design that is responsible (considering social, cultural, economic and environmental sustainability)
support continued progress and excellence in the field of industrial design
exhibit efforts towards promoting design that is solution-based and impacts our communities and planet in a positive way
align with one or some United Nations Sustainable Development Goals

In recognition of their active participation in various WDO initiatives over the course of the 2019-2021 term, Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) was named as the inaugural recipient of the President’s Award during the 32nd World Design Assembly.

The organization, based in India, demonstrated a continued commitment to the progress of the organization and its larger objectives. In addition to hosting a dedicated Indian Dialogue component during World Industrial Design Day 2021, they also collaborated with WDO on several international activities, namely the CII Design Talks Series, Young Designer Awards and the 21st Indian Design Summit, where WDO hosted an exhibition booth and 2019-2021 President Srini Srinivasan provided the opening address.

About CII

Established in 1992, the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) works to create and sustain an environment conducive to the development of India, partnering industry, government, and civil society, through advisory and consultative processes.

Visit their website to learn more https://www.cii.in/.

Testimonial

“The Confederation of Indian Industry is extremely delighted to have been awarded the prestigious World Design Organization President’s Award for 2022. It has been a constant endeavour of CII to enhance the competitiveness and expertise of Design and Innovation fraternity of Indian Industry. The award is indeed an honour for the design community of India and also an acknowledgement of the huge potential of the Design Fraternity of Indian Industry. It is encouraging to have support of WDO and various other leading Design Councils towards CII’s initiatives on nurturing Design leadership.

The Design sector of Indian Industry is seeing a great transformation. There is a new range of specialized services and business opportunities being created through Design Thinking and the strategic linking of Indian Design community with global design community. CII would continue to play the role of enabler and facilitator for the growth and promotion of design practices in India, as well as the global arena. We look forward to collaborating extensively with WDO over the coming years to establish stronger footprints of Indian Design fraternity in the global perspective.”

Udayant Malhoutra
Chairman, CII National Committee on Design &
Chief Executive Officer & Managing Director, Dynamatic Technologies Limited
Confederation of Indian Industry

The next recipient of the President’s Award will be announced in 2023 at the 33rd World Design Assembly in Tokyo (Japan). Stay tuned for more details about the opening of the nomination period.