Emerging Sustainability Leader Award

20,000 USD Prize

Emerging Sustainability Leader Award

20,000 USD Prize

Awardees

2023
2021
2020
2018
2017
Dr.-Ing. Youjin Kim

Dr.-Ing. Youjin Kim is a member of 'Association of Fluid Mechanics' (LSTME) e.V. Erlangen, Germany. She is a lecturer of Energy Environmental Engineerin...

Dr. Bahareh Kamranzad

Dr Bahareh Kamranzad is a Chancellor's Fellow in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Strathclyde. Her research in...

Dr. Julia Lohmann

Julia conducts research on education in the context of sports and physical education. The focus here is on the development of competences among multipli...

stars 2023
Dr.-Ing. Youjin Kim

Dr.-Ing. Youjin Kim is a member of 'Association of Fluid Mechanics' (LSTME) e.V. Erlangen, Germany. She is a lecturer of Energy Environmental Engineerin...

stars 2023
Dr. Bahareh Kamranzad

Dr Bahareh Kamranzad is a Chancellor's Fellow in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Strathclyde. Her research in...

stars 2023
Dr. Julia Lohmann

Julia conducts research on education in the context of sports and physical education. The focus here is on the development of competences among multipli...

stars 2021
Dr. Lela Mélon

From the beginning of her academic career, Dr. Lela Mélon has been focusing on path-breaking insights into corporate sustainability, arguing against a n...

stars 2021
Prof. Dr. Anet Režek Jambrak

Prof. Dr. Anet Režek Jambrak is a Professor from the Faculty of Food Technology and Biotechnology of the University of Zagreb, Croatia. She is also a sc...

stars 2020
Dr. Jing Meng

Dr. Jing Meng is a Lecturer at The Bartlett School of Construction and Project Management, University College London (UCL), and a fellow of the Cambridg...

stars 2020
Dr. Natalia Mykhaylova

Dr. Natalia Mykhaylova has a background in engineering, chemistry, and design. Natalia is passionate about the environmental sustainability field. Her P...

stars 2018
Dr. Bradley Hiller

Dr. Bradley Hiller is an emerging global sustainability leader. He has a strong academic foundation, upon which he is boldly applying sustainability pri...

stars 2018
Dr. Xiaodong Zhang

Dr. Xiaodong Zhang is a Professor at the School of Environmental Science and Engineering at Shandong University. He is a licensed professional engineer ...

stars 2017
Dr. Esther Ngumbi

Dr. Esther Ngumbi is a 2007 recipient of American Association of University Women (AAUW) International Fellowship. She has been featured in the AAUW cel...

stars 2017
Dr. Xiaosong Hu

Dr. Xiaosong Hu received a PhD degree in Automotive Engineering from Beijing Institute of Technology, China in 2012. He conducted scientific research an...

Process of Nomination

Nominations need to be submitted to info@mdpi-foundation.org. Nominee applications will go through 2 rounds of selection until the final 3 are decided. The finalists will then have to present during the Award Ceremony to win either first place (10,000 USD) or runner-up (2 x 5,000 USD).

What will the Selection Committee be looking for?


  • A unique, sustained and outstanding achievement based on strong pure or applied research in any appropriate discipline
  • Achievement that addresses at least 2 pillars of sustainability* and demonstrates measurable impact within those particular pillars
  • Novelty and feasibility of real-life applications of the research 
  • Entrepreneurial potential of the research
  • Alignment with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

*The 3 pillars of sustainability are as follows:

  • Social (Standard of Living, Education, Community, Equal Opportunity)
  • Environmental (Natural Resource Use, Environmental Management, Pollution Prevention)
  • Economic (Profit, Cost Savings, Economic Growth)
  • Nominees for the Emerging Sustainability Leader Award Nominees may be individual researcher or start-ups founded by researchers under the age of 35 at the time of the submission deadline from the international research community.
  • Candidates may be nominated by third parties or self-nominated.
  • The entrepreneurial and sustainable potential of the research will be considered in addition to the academic quality.
  • The 2022 Emerging Sustainability Leader Award will be shared amongst 3 winners (1 of 10,000 USD and 2 of 5,000 USD).
  • This award will be given upon the quality of research output and a pitch presentation from the nominees.
  • The Selection Committee will select the final 5-8 competitors. Out of the 5-8 competitors, a group of 3-5 judges will choose 3 finalists. The finalists will then be required to present their final pitch at the 10th World Sustainability Forum.
  • The awardees will be informed on 15 June 2023.
  1. Download and fill in Nomination Form
  2. Attach the nominee’s detailed CV, including a list of most relevant publications and a list of funded projects
  3. Please send the files to info@mdpi-foundation.org. Nomination deadline is 14 April 2023 extended to 14 May 2023.

Nomination must be submitted in English, in one single document, PDF format.

Dr. Shu-Kun Lin

Permanent Selection Committee Member Founder and President of MDPI and founder and chairman of the MDPI Sustainability Foundation

Prof. Dr. Ed Constable

Permanent Selection Committee Member Former Vice President for Research of the University of Basel

Dr. Shu-Kun Lin

Permanent Selection Committee Member Founder and President of MDPI and founder and chairman of the MDPI Sustainability Foundation

Prof. Dr. Ed Constable

Permanent Selection Committee Member Former Vice President for Research of the University of Basel

Non-Permanent Members:


  • A university professor from the Scientific Board of Sustainability
  • An unaligned university professor with expertise in sustainability
  • A representative of either an intergovernmental organization, a civil society or the business sector

Up to three non-permanent members of the selection committee may be appointed for each Award. Re-appointments are possible three years after having served on the Selection Committee.

  • The right to the Emerging Sustainability Leader Award is not transferable.
  • A recipient can receive the Emerging Sustainability Leader Award only once.
  • The recipient/s of the Emerging Sustainability Leader Award is/are required to participate in the award ceremony at the World Sustainability Forum.
  • The associated costs are covered by the organizers to an extent that will be communicated to the recipient.