Design students win Gold and Bronze at the DDC AWARD 2025
Two students from the Information and Communication Design programme have been honoured at the prestigious DDC AWARD 2025. Amal Hamed and Valeriia Kapustina received awards for projects that combine social relevance, strong conceptual thinking and outstanding design quality. Presented by the German Design Club, the DDC AWARD is one of the most important design awards in the German-speaking world. It recognises work that brings together creative excellence and a sense of responsibility towards the environment, culture and society. In addition to aesthetic and conceptual criteria, an impact jury also assesses the social impact of the submitted projects.
Award-winning projects with a strong social focus
Amal Hamed – “Ask Who Made It!” (Gold, Crossmedia)
Amal Hamed’s cross-media campaign Ask Who Made It! explores global supply chains across various industries, from fashion and electronics to everyday consumer goods. The project highlights the social and environmental conditions under which products are made and encourages consumers to critically reflect on their own purchasing decisions. Through interactive visualisations, in-depth research and a clear communication strategy, the campaign forms a powerful and coherent whole. For this project, Hamed was awarded Gold at the DDC AWARD 2025.
Valeriia Kapustina – “Acker Stadt Palast – Visual Identity & Season Campaign” (Bronze, Identity/Branding)
Valeriia Kapustina was recognised for a meticulously developed season campaign for Acker Stadt Palast in Berlin, a venue within the independent arts scene dedicated to contemporary music theatre, performance, dance and new music. The visual identity she created combines a modular design system with striking, characterful illustrations that offer distinct and expressive visual interpretations of each individual production. The jury praised the campaign’s conceptual clarity, design precision and its professional potential for long-term application. Kapustina received the Bronze Award for this work.
Diversity and exchange shape the degree programme
The Information and Communication Design programme is characterised by international perspectives, interdisciplinary collaboration and close interaction between students and teaching staff. This academic culture provides the framework in which projects emerge that engage with social issues and resonate both nationally and internationally.
“We are particularly pleased that Amal Hamed and Valeriia Kapustina have been recognised as two young designers who combine social responsibility, conceptual depth and design excellence. The diversity of our international student body and the close exchange within the programme enable topics and perspectives that extend far beyond the regional context and result in work of national and international relevance. These two award-winning projects powerfully demonstrate the potential that lies in this diversity,” says Nicolas Markwald, Professor of Communication Design at the Faculty of Communication and Environment.
A success that reflects the university’s profile
The awards align seamlessly with the self-image of Rhine-Waal University. As an internationally oriented and interdisciplinary institution, the university promotes a study culture in which social responsibility, diversity and sustainability are central values. In the field of design in particular, it becomes evident how students engage with these principles and translate them into their own projects. The award-winning works clearly demonstrate how young designers address issues of global relevance – from supply chains to cultural participation – and transform them into compelling design solutions. In doing so, they not only enhance the visibility of the degree programme but also strengthen the university’s position as a place where social impulses are generated and innovative perspectives are developed.
