From addressing malnutrition with a sustainable and scalable solution, to turning one of the planet's largest sources of agricultural waste into a biodegradable plastic alternative, to using synthetic biology to prevent antibiotics from contaminating our water— the innovations unveiled at the 2025 Wege Prize Awards offer bold, hopeful visions for a more sustainable and resilient future.

Organized by Ferris State University's Kendall College of Art and Design (KCAD), the Wege Prize has been inspiring college and university students from across the globe to rethink the way we produce and consume since 2013.

"With over 1,700 participants engaged from 73 countries around the world over its 12-year history, Wege Prize reflects the reality that our capacity for solving wicked problems together is only growing stronger," said KCAD Interim Dean Stephen Halko.

In this annual competition, interdisciplinary teams compete for a share of $65,000 in cash prizes by collaborating across disciplinary and cultural boundaries to develop solutions to systemic problems such as food insecurity, environmental harm, and climate change. Through a nine-month iterative design process, they're guided by a global panel of expert judges in developing their ideas into real-world applications, with a focus on the principles of the circular economy, a model that redefines economic growth by focusing on positive society-wide benefits.

"Instead of a linear model – take, make, and dispose – these teams are pioneering pathways towards a circular economy; one that is regenerative, restorative, and intentional by design," says Gayle DeBruyn, a KCAD professor who is on the organizing team for Wege Prize.

Awards

The five finalist teams emerged from an initial pool of 130 applications to present their fully developed ideas on May 16 at the 2025 Wege Prize Awards in Grand Rapids, Michigan:

1st Place ($30,000) - Agpress

Agpress, with members studying in the U.S. (North Dakota State University), Costa Rica (EARTH University), and Tanzania (The Institute of Finance Management) impressed the judges with the simple elegance of their circular solution to combat malnutrition by enhancing the nutritional content of ugali, a staple food made from maize flour that's consumed in over 20 countries across Africa.

Biodegradable packaging prototype of Agpress protein-enriched mealworm/maize flour.

While protein-enriched flour itself is nothing new, Agpress's process circularizes the concept by using two abundant agricultural waste streams—maize leaves and cassava leaves—as feedstock for farming mealworms. These mealworms—rich in protein and essential amino acids, iron, zinc, fiber, and vitamin B — are then ground into flour, which, when blended with maize flour, drastically enhances the nutritional value.

The low-cost inputs of the team's system coupled with its superior feed conversion (total feed input divided by livestock weight gain) over poultry and beef equals an affordable and accessible nutritional stream that can have an immediate impact in Africa and be scaled into other countries and refugee settlements around the world where food insecurity persists.

Agpress is also developing a line of food products made from this mealworm-enriched maize flour, including snack chips and tortillas, that will aid in increased adoption and provide their business with additional revenue streams.

Agpress team presenter, Brenda Maembe, with team mentor and Wege Prize alum, Anthony Illalio Mbunju, celebrate the Wege Prize trophy virtually with their team members in Tanzania and Costa Rica.

"Agpress stood out by approaching their idea in an impressively cohesive and systemic way," said judge Scot Welch, principal/founder of Global Bridgebuilders, a firm based in Grand Rapids, MI, providing organizational development, cultural transformation, and inclusion services to enterprises across the globe. "They considered not just how this could work on a local level, but how it could scale beyond that and become part of a larger circular economic system."

2nd Place ($20,000) – Rethread Africa

Rethread Africa, with all members studying in Kenya (Kenyatta University and the University of Nairobi) centered their proposal on converting sugarcane bagasse—the fourth largest source of agricultural waste in the world—into a biodegradable alternative to traditional plastic synthetics that decomposes in natural environments without commercial intervention.

Rethread Africa team member, Noreen Mwancha, with a model showcasing their unique material atop a waste site in Africa.

Using locally sourced microbes and solvent-free processes powered by renewable energy, the team is using sugarcane bagasse to produce Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA), a type of bioplastic resin. In addition to viable prototypes of their material, the team is developing a network of industry partnerships to incorporate this material into products like clothing, food packaging, and feminine hygiene products that are currently either fully or partially composed of polyester and other petroleum-based materials.

Charles Otieno Oyamo presenting for team Rethread Africa at the 2025 Wege Prize Awards.

"This was an incredible display of innovation in the bioplastics space, and these kinds of models are critical for further support and scaling of bio-based materials," said judge Alysia Garmulewicz, founder and co-CEO of Materiom, a platform providing open data and AI to accelerate the development of bio-based materials. "Most notable is the team's leveraging of industry relationships and use of a locally appropriate feedstock derived from waste rather than raw material, which is critical to the success of novel polymers like PHA when you consider how costly they can be to manufacture."

This is the third year members of Rethread Africa have participated in Wege Prize. Having refined their concept each time and reached the semifinalist round in 2024, they stand out as a strong example of perseverance and dedication to the circular economy model.

3rd Place ($10,000) – Envirovex

Envirovex, with members studying in England (University of Oxford), Spain (University of Málaga), and the U.S. (Carnegie Mellon University), is developing an innovative bio-based technology that can help existing wastewater treatment systems adapt to the increasing presence of antibiotics released from agriculture, livestock, pharmaceutical, and wastewater discharge.

Digital rendering of the Envirovex modular bioreactor leading to antibiotic degradation.

Using artificial intelligence and cutting-edge synthetic biology, the team has created a series of synthetic enzymes that can be incorporated into a standalone filtration device to more effectively and efficiently filter out antibiotics—all at a fraction of the cost of completely retrofitting existing treatment systems. The team is even working on a way for their filtration system to capture and reuse some of the chemicals used in the antibiotic production process.

From left to right, Envirovex team members Vishwa Maharajan (presenter), Iván Toro Pineda, and Aayushi Barchha speak with Wege Prize judge, Braj (BK) Singh, after the awards ceremony.

"The judges have never seen a solution like this before, and while there are still some finer points to iron out, we acknowledge the tremendous potential here. This is an incredibly innovative solution in a sector that sorely needs it," said judge Nathan Shedroff, an entrepreneur, business strategist, education innovator, author, and speaker. "As they take this idea out of the lab and into the world, we're excited to see this team continue to embrace a circular model while refining the social and cultural impacts of what they're building."

Finalist Awards

Receiving $2,500 Finalist Awards were Eco Nasi and Dry Fresh Solution.

Eco Nasi, with team members studying in Kenya (Africa Nazarene University, University of Nairobi, Technical University of Kenya, and the Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology), presented a novel technology that converts pineapple pulp waste into a premium high-performance leather alternative that is five times more durable than conventional leather.

Dry Fresh Solution, with team members studying in Rwanda (Rwanda Institute for Conservation Agriculture, Rwanda Polytechnic – Kigali, and the University of Rwanda),

presented a solar-powered dehydrator that extends the shelf life of fruit and vegetables by removing moisture through indirect heating, reducing post-harvest losses.

Wege Prize 2026: Starts Now!

Interested in becoming a part of Wege Prize? Wege Prize 2026 is already underway, with organizers encouraging potential participants around the world to begin networking and building teams over the summer. The team application portal will open in August 2025.

To learn more and stay connected, visit wegeprize.org.