Each year, the Australian Good Design Awards celebrate projects (designs), teams and individuals (designers), and design practices (designing) that contribute to a brighter future for all. Across disciplines of architecture, engineering, research, fashion, social impact and more, winners are bestowed with the Good Design Tick Trophy – one the most respected and recognised design endorsement symbols in the industry. 

The Australian Good Design Awards also present a number of Special Accolades that recognise outstanding achievements beyond the boundaries of the 12 Design Disciplines. Each accolade spotlights design excellence within a team or individual and also in specific areas such as sustainability, inclusivity and innovation.

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Special Accolade Winner Highlights

Nominations for the Special Accolades for the 2024 Australian Good Design Awards are open now and close May 3rd. As we look forward to the transformational projects, people and processes that will take centre stage this season, let’s discover the Accolades and explore some of the incredible Winners of last year.

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Australian Design Prize

The Australian Design Prize is awarded to an individual who has significantly influenced Australian design through their innovative contributions over the course of their career. This accolade not only celebrates the achievements of seasoned designers but also aims to inspire emerging designers to pursue excellence and innovation in their work. 

2023 Winner – Marc Newson

“To receive this Award and to be honoured in Australia is also special, because it will always be my home country. I’ll always be Australian, and I’ll always be regarded as an Australian designer, which is something I’m very proud of. It’s a big deal. I would hazard a guess that I’ve not received any award, anywhere in the world, as significant as this.”

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Good Design Team of the Year Award

This award recognises design teams that have consistently demonstrated excellence in integrating a design-led culture within their organisations. The objective is to showcase how strategic design can drive business success and innovation. By awarding teams that excel in creating and maintaining a culture where design is an integral part of business strategy, the award encourages other organisations to adopt similar practices, thereby fostering an environment rich in creativity and innovation.

2023 Winner – Future Friendly

Nick Gower: “I think to be recognised as a design team is something that we’re really excited about. We don’t believe that that design can be done by an individual – design is a team sport.”

Jon Christensen: “The Award is a really powerful tool that shows, to the teams and organisations we work with, the positive outcome that has been created. A lot of people might focus on the process side of design or what it is that designers need to do, but the Award is the pinnacle proof that all the efforts and impact has been recognised.”

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Michael Bryce Patron’s Award

Named after the late Michael Bryce, the Michael Bryce Patron’s Award honours the best Australian-designed product, service or project that promises to make significant contributions to societal improvement. This award focuses on entries that showcase potential benefits in economic, social, cultural and environmental areas, aiming to continue Bryce’s legacy of promoting impactful design. The award serves as a beacon, encouraging designers to consider how their work can address broad societal challenges.

2023 Winner – Bushfire Social Intelligence 

Abby Philips: “Thank you so much to all of the judges for recognising the contribution design brings to digital products like ours. This is just one step in our journey to helping the world fight the worsening wildfire crisis.”

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Women in Design Award

The Women in Design Award seeks to recognise and celebrate women who have made significant contributions to our industry. By addressing the notable gender imbalance throughout the space, it also hopes to encourage more diverse and equal representation within the design industry and other creative sectors. It highlights the importance of giving visibility to women who are paving the way for future generations in design-related fields.

2023 Winner – Professor Veena Sahajwalla

“There are so many women in Australia and the world who do amazing work. We are really privileged that we have so many incredible women who are so passionate about the kind of work they do and about caring for our people and our planet. I just feel really humbled that I’m considered in the mix of these incredible women.”

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Indigenous Design Award

The Indigenous Design Award – proudly presented by RMIT University – celebrates the unique contributions of Australia’s Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander designers across the entire spectrum of design disciplines and practices. It welcomes nominations of Indigenous individuals as well as projects where at least one member of the design team identifies as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander. RMIT and representatives from the Indigenous Community evaluate nominated submissions and select the overall winner for the Award based on specific evaluation criteria.

2023 Winner – Solid Lines

Dr. Nicola St John: “Beyond thrilled to receive the Good Design Indigenous Design Award alongside Emrhan Tjapanangka Abbott-Sultan and The Jacky Winter Group for Solid Lines. This agency is seeking to change the face of Australia’s design industry by increasing access, representation, support and success of First Nations creatives. This recognition is inspiring in our continued efforts to support First Nations voices, talents, and ways of working with Australia’s design industry.”

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Good Design Award for Sustainability

Focused on environmental impact, the Good Design Award for Sustainability is dedicated to recognising projects that excel in sustainable design practices. This accolade encourages the design community to prioritise environmental considerations in their projects, promoting innovations that lead to a more sustainable future. By highlighting exemplary projects that incorporate circular economy principles, the award aims to inspire designers to consider the full lifecycle of products and to develop solutions that minimise environmental impact.

2023 Winner – Erosion Mitigation Units

Reef Design Labs: “Thanks so much to Good Design Australia for recognising us and congratulations to all the other winners. Thank you to everyone involved in making this project possible! It’s taken over 10 years to make this happen so this award means a lot. Get down to Clifton Springs in Geelong this summer for a snorkel!”

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Automotive Design Award – Best Interior and Best Exterior

The Automotive Design Award honours exceptional design in the automotive sector, covering both the aesthetics and functionality of vehicle design. This accolade promotes excellence in automotive styling and engineering, encouraging designers to push the boundaries of what is possible in terms of visual appeal and user experience. The award recognises the importance of automotive design in enhancing the performance, safety, and comfort of vehicles, thereby contributing to the advancement of the automotive industry.

2023 Winner – Brüder EXP-4 and EXP-8

Dan Bosschieter: “I would have to assume that anyone that’s received any of the Awards could tell you about all the tears, trials and everything all behind it, but it was very, very humbling at the end of the day. To be a growing company and be compared to some of the other big groups that are out there is incredible.”

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INTRODUCING A NEW SPECIAL ACCOLADE FOR 2024…

Robert Pataki Award for Healthcare Design

New for 2024, Good Design Australia is proud to launch the Robert Pataki Award for Healthcare Design, in partnership with the Pataki Family. 

Named in honour of Robert Pataki OAM, recipient of the 2022 Australian Design Prize, Life Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia and industrial design pioneer, the Robert Pataki Award for Healthcare Design aims to inspire, recognise and support design solutions that have the potential to improve the lives of people living or working within the healthcare system.

The Award calls for individuals of any age residing in Australia or New Zealand and welcomes concepts and innovations already in use across product design, digital apps, services, policy and beyond. Designs aren’t required to be commercially available, but should address critical deficiencies within the healthcare system and demonstrate strong potential for commercialisation. 

Successful entries may also receive mentorship and guidance from professionals working in the field to refine or materialise their concepts.

If you have an idea or project underway that could make a positive impact within the Healthcare sector, we encourage you to enter into this Special Accolade! Entry for this accolade is free.

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The 2024 Australian Good Design Awards are now open, with submissions closing at midnight Friday 3rd May. Join the Design Effect movement and push not only the world of the design, but our society, environment and future forward.

Submit entry

New for 2024, Good Design Australia is proud to launch the Robert Pataki Award for Healthcare Design, in partnership with the Pataki Family. 

Named in honour of Robert Pataki OAM, recipient of the 2022 Australian Design Prize, Life Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia and industrial design pioneer, the Robert Pataki Award for Healthcare Design aims to inspire, recognise and support design solutions that have the potential to improve the lives of people living or working within the healthcare system.

The Award is open to students, designers, inventors and creators from Australia and New Zealand and welcomes concepts and innovations already in use across product design, digital apps, services, policy and beyond.

This new Special Accolade responds to deficiencies in the healthcare system that have impacted the Pataki family as Robert’s health has declined over the last decade, and the need for innovation across the board, from hospitals and rehab facilities, to aged care centres. 

“We are so proud to support this new Award which has the power to generate more ideas and better solutions for people interacting with the healthcare system,” commented Rachel Wye, Director of Good Design Australia. “It seems that most of us, unfortunately, have had experiences where the healthcare system has let us down, or fallen short of what we would expect from a place that is meant to heal and care for people. 

“With a rapidly ageing population in most countries around the world, there is no better time for designers to turn their attention to solving some of these really important challenges for a whole area of our society that often gets overlooked.”

In conversation with Robert’s wife Jackie and daughter Michelle, they highlighted the need for design-led solutions that have a positive impact on dignity, quality of life and experience for elderly, differently-abled individuals and caregivers. The importance of moving beyond a strictly patient-centric perspective was front-of-mind.

“Most people often just design from a patient viewpoint in the healthcare space, but there’s a whole ecosystem that supports and enables our loved ones to be cared for,” said Michelle. “The nurses, the assistants, the carers, the cooking staff, the cleaners, the admin… there’s so many layers to healthcare, and this is just aged care we’re talking about right now!” 

Jackie continued by describing the minimal resources that were available to care staff in Robert’s aged care experience:

“As silly as it might sound, one of the most used and important items in Rob’s room in the beginning of his journey was a sheet of polyester fabric – something that’s placed under a person to be able to roll and move them, and it’s only a piece of fabric!

“Carers are often much smaller in size than their patients, which makes it an incredibly difficult task! It quickly became clear to us, particularly as a family of designers, that they didn’t have the right tools to do what was being asked of them. 

“We very quickly became aware of significant and concerning deficiencies in a system that we may all find ourselves in one day.”

Jackie Pataki

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Challenging the contemporary healthcare designer’s conundrum 

The Robert Pataki Award for Healthcare Design will recognise healthcare innovations in both conceptual and fully-formed stages, with support and mentorship available to help commercialise exemplar solutions.

According to Jackie and Michelle, it’s an approach that hopes to, in part, side-step outside influences that have the potential to “water down” the integrity of the final design. It also ensures each entry aligns with a way of thinking Robert solidified under the guidance of lecturer Gerard Herbst as a student at RMIT – form must always follow function.

Highlighting the reality faced by many designers where this principle of good design comes into jeopardy, Jackie reflected on a decades-old project surrounding a chair design in a clinical setting:

“As designers, we had to become aware of the problem from all angles – the individuals, Australian Standards, cleanability, things like that. Yet, when it actually came to the crunch, dollars won out, profitability won out.”

“Through the democratisation of the design process and the often reductive processes projects undergo, products end up being compromised, not just for the people who are using them, but for the carers too,” added Michelle. 

Beyond cost-cutting, Jackie and Michelle underlined a variety of other design challenges with the potential to undermine the true impact of a solution:

• Designers’ input can get diluted or lost as projects progress if they don’t maintain control over the design process

• Existing policies and standards within healthcare facilities are not always designed with usability or sustainability in mind

• Healthcare is a complex system with many stakeholders, so engagement with the right people, who have the right insights (physios and caregivers in Robert’s case) is often difficult or overlooked

• Products are not always versatile or adaptable enough to support patients’ changing conditions over time

Assertiveness, autonomy, integrity and discipline were described as key attributes of a designer able to counteract such pressures.

“Dad was really a pioneer in putting his foot down and saying, ‘this is where design is important and I’m not going to compromise on the quality of that.'”

Michelle Hyams

“It’s something that I’ve also seen Future Friendly apply in their design approach. They’re quite disciplined and rigorous in their design process, and by maintaining the rigour they maintain the integrity of the process, the design and the value of the solution.”

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Setting sights on a brighter future for healthcare with design

The Robert Pataki Award for Healthcare Design calls for individuals of any age residing in Australia or New Zealand. Designs aren’t required to be commercially available, but should address critical deficiencies within the healthcare system and demonstrate strong potential for commercialisation. 

Successful entries may receive mentorship and guidance from professionals working in the field to refine or materialise their concepts.

“We hope that this Award will stimulate and increase discussion on what solutions are really needed within the healthcare space, how they will affect the end users, and how design can improve and assist the quality of life for our most vulnerable populations,” remarked Jackie.

“At the end of the day, the solutions that we award the prize to aren’t going to help Dad,” admitted Michelle in closing. “But, our goal is they’ll help others in the future.” 

“And for the winning designers, we hope that this award will help them further their careers, their plans and their dreams.” said Jackie. 

The 2024 Australian Good Design Awards are now open, with submissions closing at midnight Friday 3rd May. Join the Design Effect movement and push not only the world of the design, but our society, environment and future forward.

Submit entry