The 2020-21 Winners impressed the jury members by presenting their state-of-the-art net-zero and climate-resilient designs that had the potential for scale-up,  accelerating our transition to a net-zero future. Their use of local resources, frugal engineering, and iterative development of design made their work stand out, at par with that of the industry. Teams effectively used passive and active strategies to meet the cooling demand and demonstrate adaptability, paying attention to building operation and maintenance.

The Division Winners of the 2020-21 Challenge pitched their project to the Grand Jury and competed for the Grand Prize. Team Archons, the Grand Winner, proposed their net-zero school building as an economic model that would benefit the students as well as the institution that is running the school. They also articulated the ease at which consumers can make economic decisions about their model.

The Division Winners of the 2020-21 Challenge presented their whole building solutions, with innovations such as rice-husk ash insulation, fiber-optic daylighting lamps, kinetic façades, rain-catcher canopies, cooling-as-a-service, use of bamboo and shipping containers, and a variety of apps. Their use of local resources, frugal engineering, and iterative development of design impressed the jury. Teams effectively used passive and active strategies to meet the cooling demand and demonstrate adaptability, paying attention to building operation and maintenance.

Finalist teams showcased their net-zero projects in 3-minute long movies. They weaved interesting narratives from the point-of-view of the inhabitants and made full use of graphics and visual renders to explain the design and spatial features of their buildings.

Professor Gunjan Kumar, was given the Outstanding Faculty Award for his tremendous support, guidance, and inspiration to the students of Team Nivas in the 2020-21 Challenge. In the words of his students, “Our faculty advisor was the real backbone behind the team. He was a constant support for all of us, motivating and helping us in difficult situations to solve our problems.”