Final Call: Register for the James Dyson Award 2026 Before 15 July

Engineering is always more than just machines, equations and prototypes. The essence of it is that it's there to solve problems that make life better. As the world faces more challenging issues, the part of young engineers is becoming more and more important. They can observe, ask questions, and provide innovative solutions that will not only benefit industries, but also communities.

The philosophy is central to the James Dyson Award (JDA), an international design engineering competition which invites engineering and design students and recent graduates to come up with solutions to real-world problems. The Award is for ideas that are technically sound and have a practical impact.

James Dyson Award 2026: Entries Open Until 15 July

Engineering or design innovations by students and recent graduates still have an opportunity to participate in the James Dyson Award 2026. The application will remain open until 15 July to submit their entries for the chance to become innovators.

Apply now at: https://www.jamesdysonaward.org/en-IN/

Empowering Engineers to Think Beyond the Classroom

For many engineering students, college projects often end with grades. The James Dyson Award encourages participants to “think differently”. The Award has developed into a space where creativity and curiosity is valued as much importance as technical knowledge. It aims to challenge participants to recognise problems faced by real users, create feasible solutions to those problems, test and develop them and create an understanding of how engineering can enhance everyday life.

This is a tactic in tune with Dyson's engineering thinking; innovation starts with a thorough understanding of a problem before trying to solve it. It's not about developing the most advanced technology, it's about developing solutions that are functional, user friendly and that have a significant impact.

Jagran Josh and James Dyson Award Bring Innovation Conversations to Students

Recently, Jagran Josh hosted a webinar on 'Empowering Young Engineers to Solve Real-World Problems Through Innovation & Design' in association with the James Dyson Award.

The session was a compilation of voices from academia, industry and the innovation ecosystem including, Alex Hudson Engineer at Dyson, Dr. Shivendra Mathur, Registrar, Professor at NIIT University, Ritesh Chawla, Co-Founder of RiarPro Learning Solutions and Tunir Sahoo, James Dyson Award 2025 India National Winner.

Each panelist brought a distinct viewpoint to the conversation. Alex Hudson, Engineer at Dyson, reinforced that effective innovation begins with awareness of user expectations, where user centric solutions create impressive value. 

Dr. Shivendra Mathur, Registrar and Professor at NIIT University, fosters the essentially of promoting problem-solving mindset, encouraging curiosity and experiential learning from the start of an engineering student’s educational adventure. 

Tunir Sahoo, India National Winner of the James Dyson Award 2025, said aspiring leaders and visioners should not expect perfection but awareness in constructing, testing and refining their ideas. Together, the panel endowed curiosity, empathy, agility, and quickness to transform engineering ideas into real world impact.

Ritesh Chawla, Co-Founder of RiarPro Learning Solutions, prompted students to churn out inspiration in day-to-day challenges, reminding them that even small, seed size ideas can lead to great improvements when corroborated by sustainable power and incremental efforts. 

The webinar provided sound advice on cultivating an innovator’s mindset and identifies problems that might actually be worth solving. It also explains how engineering ideas can grow into real solutions. 

You can watch the full webinar HERE

The webinar concluded with an encouraging thought: you don’t have to have all the solutions from scratch to be revolutionary. Innovation begins with noticing a problem overlooked by others, asking smart questions, and pursuing the answers as expected.