Efficiency for Access Design Challenge

To help provide clean energy access, we urgently need to enhance the efficiency and affordability of high-performing off-grid appliances. Between 2019 and 2025, the Efficiency for Access Design Challenge brought together university students from around the world to explore how to meet that need.

Delivered in partnership with Engineers Without Borders UK, and funded by UK aid from the UK government via the Transforming Energy Access platform and the IKEA Foundation, this global, interdisciplinary competition invited teams of university students to design affordable, high performing off-grid appliances and enabling technologies. Over six successful years, the Challenge worked to foster innovation, address market barriers, forge beneficial partnerships between universities, researchers and industry partners on a global scale, and further strengthen academic capacity within the off-grid sector.

Highlights from the Challenge

• Six years of student ideas
• 650+ students participated
• 80+ industry mentors
• 40+ universities from 18 countries
• 150+ appliance designs
• 46 prizes awarded

The Challenge supported students to develop globally responsible designs that were innovative, scalable and both socially and environmentally conscious. Every year, the Challenge recognised the teams that best met these criteria, as decided by industry experts, at our Grand Final event.

Contact

If you have any questions about the Efficiency for Access Design Challenge and how it was delivered, please contact  EforAchallenge@est.org.uk