Community Updates

Interface Launches Design Competition with Net Impact Inspired by Project Drawdown

Published 7 years ago | About a 2 minute read

Interface, Inc. (Nasdaq: TILE), the world’s largest manufacturer of modular carpet, joins Net Impact to launch Drawdown: INNOVATE, a solution-oriented, student-led competition created to address climate change. The initiative perfectly aligns with Interface’s Climate Take Back mission, which challenges the company to look at ways in which it can help reverse global warming. Interface’s historic sustainability achievements were lauded in Paul Hawken’s latest book Drawdown – The Most Comprehensive Plan Ever Proposed to Reverse Global Warming, and the competition builds on his seminal work to encourage everyone to get involved in addressing climate change.

The competition will travel to 15 cities across the country to help young people innovate new business models, products, services and more based on Project Drawdown’s solutions using a toolkit provided by Net Impact. Participants will choose from a curated list of Drawdown solutions aimed at reducing atmospheric carbon, then use design thinking and business planning to develop ideas that make their chosen Drawdown solution more accessible, scalable, or impactful. At the end of the academic year, Net Impact will convene a judging panel to identify the top winning submission. Interface will serve as an active advisor along the way, including helping with participant recruitment and choosing the winner, who will be awarded a summer internship with the manufacturer.

To kick off the six-month competition, Net Impact created a toolkit that details climate change solutions inspired by Drawdown and offers tangible tactics on how to implement them, as well as how to receive ongoing coaching from Net Impact team members.

Drawdown: INNOVATE is part of Net Impact’s Drawdown Program, which encourages students to share, implement, and scale climate solutions, contributing to one of the most pressing issues of our time.

For Interface, supporting this competition is a key element of expanding its Climate Take Back mission to create a climate fit for life. “We are excited to start a new conversation in the built environment around using carbon as a resource. We hope that the competition will provide a new perspective and inspire creative thinking around how the next generation of leaders not only views, but also utilizes carbon,” said Erin Meezan, VP and Chief Sustainability Officer, Interface.

Learn more about the competition on Net Impact.