Five winning ideas to help refugees feel at home

July 7, 2016

We can now reveal the winners of the What Design Can Do Refugee Challenge, and share their ideas to make life better for urban refugees.

The IKEA Foundation announced the five winning entries at What Design Can Do Live in Amsterdam on Friday 1 July. At the event, we gave each of the winners €10,000 to develop their ideas, presented by Dutch Minister of Foreign Affairs Bert Koenders. The winning entries are:

  • Makers Unite, a co-creation lab of creatives and refugees
  • The Welcome Card, which gives refugees access to social amenities
  • Eat & Meet, a network bus transformed into a kitchen
  • AGRIshelter, self-sufficient sustainable shelters
  • Reframe Refugees, a photo agency that enables refugees to tell their own stories.
What Design Can Do refugee challenge

Organised by the Foundation, What Design Can Do and the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR), the Refugee Challenge called for ideas and concepts to improve the standard of living for urban refugees.

It attracted 631 entries from 70 countries around the world, of which 25 were shortlisted. An international jury, including Marcus Engman, IKEA’s Head of Design, selected the five winners.

Jonathan Spampinato, Head of Communications at the IKEA Foundation, said: “This has been a fantastic collaboration with the design community. It fits our aim to explore how the principles of democratic design—form, function, quality, price and sustainability—can help drive innovation in the humanitarian sector.”

As well as the €10,000 stipend, the five winners will receive expert support to develop their concepts and take them to the next level. The revised projects will be assessed and presented again at the end of 2016.

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What Design Can Do
http://www.whatdesigncando.com/
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UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency
https://www.unhcr.org/
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What can change when agriculture and energy are planned together? 🌱🌍 Food systems depend on more than crops and climate — they’re shaped by people, supporting services, and the systems around them. Written last year, this article brings together insights from work and partnerships across Eastern Africa, co-written by Judith Jacobs from #SNV, and our co-workers, Ahmed Sameh and Nico Janssen. Today, nearly 20% of the world’s energy use goes into food systems, yet many farmers still lack the power, infrastructure, and services they need to adapt and thrive. These five reasons explain why bringing regenerative agriculture and renewable energy together can help make food production — and rural livelihoods — more resilient. 🔗 Read the full article, link in bio. The Power for Food Partnership works across Kenya, Ethiopia, Uganda, and Rwanda to bring these connections into practice — linking renewable energy, regenerative agriculture, and cross-sector collaboration to support farmers and build more resilient, sustainable food systems. #IKEAfoundation #PowerForFoodPartnership #RegenerativeAgriculture #RenewableEnergy
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@ikea_foundation
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•
Follow
Did you know that methane emissions affect both the health of people and our planet? And here’s the fact we can’t forget: methane is 86x more potent than CO₂.But it’s also faster to remove from the atmosphere than CO₂ — meaning that reducing methane can deliver impact sooner. The good news? Solutions already exist, and with support from the IKEA Foundation, the #GlobalMethaneHub is helping scale effective ways to reduce emissions worldwide. 🔗 Spend a day with Henrique to learn more, link in bio. #IKEAfoundation #ClimateChange #ClimateAction
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@ikea_foundation
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•
Follow
In a world full of noise and misinformation, credible voices matter more than ever. That’s why nearly 800 @IKEA co-workers applied to join the 2025 IKEA Foundation Ambassador Programme — a journey that connects them with the people and partners the foundation supports as they tackle real-world challenges every day. Ambassadors listen, ask questions, and learn from those closest to the issues — building understanding they bring back to their teams and communities, where awareness grows and perspectives begin to shift. In 2025, the programme: 🌎 reached five hubs across four continents 🇰🇪 launched the first-ever Super Hub in Nairobi 🌟 welcomed 169 new ambassadors 🌱 grew a global learning community of 550+ people in 30+ countries These numbers reflect a growing curiosity — a desire to understand how change really happens and to hear directly from those working closest to the world’s toughest challenges. None of this learning happens without the insight and generosity of our partners. Their leadership continues to inspire and inform us. With our strategy now in motion, we’re doubling down on #ClimateAwareness at a moment when it matters most — and supporting partners creating solutions for people and planet. For 2026, that energy is even stronger: nearly 1,000 IKEA co-workers applied, and we’re excited to welcome 161 new ambassadors, with 38 more joining our Alumni Hub. We’re proud of what last year set in motion, and looking forward to what comes next. #IKEAfoundation #IKEAFoundationAmbassador
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@ikea_foundation
@ikea_foundation
•
Follow
This year reminded us that progress on climate action isn’t a straight line and that the way we move forward matters. 🌍 As climate extremes intensified and uncertainty grew, we saw the importance of working together — with trust, openness and shared purpose. For the IKEA Foundation, being on the way in 2025 has meant moving forward together: 🤝 With our partners, who are doing the work — working alongside communities, testing new approaches, learning what works and pushing for change where it’s needed most. Their leadership, commitment and courage are what turn ambition into action. 👥 With our team, learning, adapting and shaping a new strategic direction — focused on enabling impact, strengthening partnerships and keeping people at the heart of climate action. 🌱 With our ambassadors and changemakers, who share trusted knowledge, challenge misinformation and help people make sense of complexity with clarity and hope. As we look ahead — deepening partnerships and scaling impact — we carry our founder’s reminder with us: happiness, and real change, are found in the journey. #IKEAfoundation
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