The winners of the CONSTRUCTIVE WORLD AWARD 2026 have been announced.
Selected from a large number of outstanding submissions, the award-winning entries were honored during the awards ceremony held in Berlin at the beginning of June. Their work powerfully demonstrates how constructive journalism can open up new perspectives, highlight solutions, and support societal change.
We warmly congratulate the award winners and thank all participants for their commitment and inspiring contributions.
Media professional: Gustav Hofer
Protagonist: Kongjian Yu (1963 – 2025), Mette Skjold
Kongjian Yu (1963-2025) is counted among the most influential landscape architects of our time. The Chinese urban planner and professor at the Peking University attracted international attention with his concept of sponge cities: Cities are not supposed to block water out, but absorb, store, and drain it in a controlled way – as an answer to climate change, heavy rain, and flooding.
Due to the extremes of climate change, cities are under growing pressure. Torrential rainfall, deadly floods, and months-long droughts have long since become part of reality as traditional urban infrastructure is not adapted to the new water and weather patterns. Classic concepts of sealing and the fast drainage of water heighten these risks instead of minimising them.
Media professional: Carolin Lemuth
Protagonist: Karsten Schulz
In Uganda, there are few opportunities for people with disabilities to receive appropriate medical care. Many have no prostheses or ones that fit poorly. Children affected are often abandoned by their mothers and cared for by their grandmothers, who are often in frail health themselves, under inhumane conditions. They live in abandoned cottages in the jungle and have medical aids that are completely outdated and unsuitable for their environment, such as distorted, rusty wheelchairs. An association from Usingen, in southern Hesse, has been providing prostheses and orthopaedic aids to those affected in Uganda for over ten years.
Media professionals: Jasmin Cilesiz Linhart & Annette Hoth
Protagonist: Timo Leukefeld
Every little balcony power plant counts. To achieve the great energy transition, we require many people to participate. Creative minds have found solutions to make this work regardless of one’s budget. Nonprofit associations, architects and engineers have been working on affordable energy storage, stable rents and low service charges to get as many people as possible on board. Many small steps towards one goal: to make Germany climate-neutral by 2045.
Media professional: Katrin Groth
Protagonists: Jörg Flügge, Sebastian Heuchel, Harish Reddy Sunkara & Ye Yun Khor
Emigration, over ageing, right-wing extremism; companies in rural areas occasionally struggle to attract skilled personnel. Especially people from abroad hesitate to settle down in Germany. In Saalfeld, Thuringia this problem is evident, as young people leave the region due to a lack of work and perspectives. Those who remain experience growing frustration and increasingly agree with right-wing populist rhetoric. This is shown by election results as well as incidents in the businesses. A vicious cycle. And a threat to democracy. Thuringian software company Batix has paired up with civil society stakeholders and the local office “Partnership for Democracy” to help its own skilled personnel from India and Malaysia settle in and stay in their new home.
Media professional: Kristin Kasten
Protagonist: Amy Striehn, Gunnar
Depression is one of the most common mental illnesses in adolescents, affecting approximately six percent. This means that statistically, there are one or two teenagers in every classroom at a secondary school who suffer from depression. And the illness can be deadly, as it significantly increases the risk of suicidal thoughts. Around 200 minors take their own lives in Germany every single year. Suicide is thus one of the most frequent causes of death in this age group.
What Amy’s story goes to show is how vital attentive caregivers can be in an educational environment: A teacher recognises warning signs, takes responsibility, and initiates professional help.
Media Professional: Florian Guthknecht
Protagonists: Prof. Dubilier and Prof. Reusch
First published on ARTE / ZDF
Visually masterful and journalistically nuanced, this production explores the crucial role seagrass plays in sustaining life above and below the water. It portrays outstanding scientists who believe in their mission—and succeed. An insightful and compelling piece that opens our eyes to a highly complex yet critically important topic.
Media Professionals: Stella Koenemann & Annette Hoth
Protagonists: Pamela Schwarz-Hartkopf & Diane Roberts
First published in the ZDF Mediathek (plan b)
This documentary portrays two extraordinary women whose work involves caring for children as a pediatric nurse and supporting people at the end of their lives. Told with great sensitivity and emotional depth, it is the story of two inspiring role models who encourage us not to give up, no matter how great the challenges we face.
Media Professional: Claudia Mayer
Protagonist: Stephan Brenneisen
First published on Galileo on ProSieben
We can all feel how urgently new solutions are needed—for heatwaves, grey concrete landscapes, and the growing sense of social isolation that is also being intensified by increasingly empty city centres. Told with a strong journalistic instinct, this story shows how a willingness to innovate, combined with support from local authorities, can make a real difference.
Media Professional: Verena Garrett
Protagonist: Tom Mtenje
First published on 3sat, nano
With great journalistic impact, this film shows how acutely the climate crisis affects people like Anne Sithole and how direct, unbureaucratic support can make a genuine new beginning possible. Through precise visual storytelling and a high degree of empathy, Verena Garrett brings an often overlooked issue powerfully into focus—a strong example of solutions-oriented journalism that makes global responsibility visible.
Media Professional: Sophia Maier
Protagonist: Sawsan Chebli
First published on RTL
This piece is a powerful appeal to keep speaking out. It reminds us of what some women in our society have to endure simply because they want to help shape it. An important statement in support of women’s rights—and a reminder of how grateful we can be that some of them remain steadfast. That they do not become quieter, but continue to make their voices heard.
Media Professional: Rike Uhlenkamp
Protagonist: Mary Madalo Harawa
Photographer: Rainer Kwiotek
First published in Frankfurter Rundschau Magazin
“Sowing Knowledge” shows how malnutrition can be significantly reduced through self-empowerment and local engagement. Mary Madalo Harawa’s extraordinary initiative demonstrates the transformative potential that emerges when people are empowered to take their health and future into their own hands. This journalistic piece sends a powerful message: a healthy future for children is only possible on a healthy planet.
Media Professional: Joshua Kocher
Protagonist: Christoph Trütken
First published in Süddeutsche Zeitung Magazin
The report “Saving the Earth with Soil” by Joshua Kocher makes a highly complex scientific process tangible and accessible through its protagonist, Christoph Trütken. In doing so, it reduces complexity without diminishing the importance of the issue. Quite the opposite: Kocher and Trütken’s core message makes clear just how much needs to change in order to secure our future on this planet.
Media Professional: Bettina Rühl
Protagonist: Nancy Kemboi
First published on WDR 5
“The Harvest Makers” by Bettina Rühl is both moving and hopeful, showing that solutions can be found even for some of society’s greatest challenges—no matter how daunting the obstacles may initially seem. The podcast gives Nancy Kemboi’s initiative the space it needs to explore a complex issue in depth while maintaining journalistic distance.
Media Professional: Johanna Romberg
Protagonist: Irene Kalinin
First published on riffreporter.de
In her piece “Free the Streams So the Water Stays in the Landscape,” Johanna Romberg gives Irene Kalinin’s regional initiative a platform and shows how it can have a major impact on the lives of local communities—and beyond. She explains a complex issue in a compelling way and with a fine sense of language. The result strikes a strong balance between well-researched facts and vivid scenes that readers can easily relate to.
Media Professional: Matthias Weidner
Protagonist: Karsten Lutze
First published on MDR (Exakt)
Using two villages as examples, this report shows how innovative ideas and, above all, strong community engagement can help counter the decline of local shops in rural areas. Self-service concepts, regional products, and the voluntary commitment of residents are making local shopping possible again while also creating new social meeting places. It is a constructive story that powerfully demonstrates how people can actively shape the future of their communities when political support, funding, and an engaged village community come together.
Media Professional: Jan Rübel
Protagonists: Duygu Özen, Jürgen Heider, Anne Gersdorff, and Peter Kaiser
First published in Frankfurter Rundschau
In his article “So Close, Yet So Far Away,” Jan Rübel asks what kind of society we want to live in by drawing attention to a profound yet often overlooked issue. He neither condemns nor glosses over the reality, but instead points to possible solutions. The article gives a voice to people who are far too often overlooked—and in doing so raises awareness of the realities faced by people working in sheltered workshops.
Media Professional: Bastian Kaiser
Protagonist: Hernán Cañola
First published on ARD Sportschau
In his TV report “The Dream of the Big Stage,” Bastian Kaiser uses a compelling example to illustrate Colombia’s structural challenges. Through a clear and well-researched journalistic portrayal of Hernán Cañola’s initiative, he connects with viewers on an emotional level while highlighting football’s potential as a catalyst for education and as an economic force.