The GOOD DESIGN AWARD, one of the world's top 4 renowned industrial design awards, has announced its winners for 2021 on October 20. Standing out of 5835 entries, XAG V40 Agricultural Drone earns this "G Mark" award for its innovation on helping farmers bridge the digital divide and grow more food with small footprints.

The Iconic G-Mark Design

Founded in 1957 and sponsored by the Japan Institute of Design Promotion, the GOOD DESIGN AWARD is an international movement to discover new things by screening, broadly share the discoveries with the society through the use of G Mark, and thus build a bridge to the next innovation. "G Mark" is the symbol of the award recognised widely as an identity representing good design.

The GOOD DESIGN AWARD features 18 entry categories bringing together various design objects surrounding us, including accessories and wearable, household goods, personal care, housing, industrial equipment and so on. The "G Mark" awards were presented to such globally well-known products as Apple iBook computers, Speedo Fastskin swimsuits, Dyson fans, and Toyota Prius cars.

18 entry categories featured in GOOD DESIGN AWARD

From small personal items, such as pencil, smartphone and sneaker, to huge architecture, such as hotels and museums, this award honours subjects of design that can evoke a rich and creative life no matter in which forms and sizes. Even initiative and activity for the public good as well as other intangibles can also be considered as outstanding design. Since the foundation of "G Mark", there have been entries accepted from 45 countries and regions.

Humanity as Focused Issues

Interestingly, in addition to the strict assessment of aesthetic design, quality, safety, and performance, the GOOD DESIGN AWARD also focuses on the fundamental issues that people face, such as humanity, honesty, and ethics.

This year, the award experts placed a special theme on "Aspiration and Action with Consideration". It highlights design works that open a new way to difficult issues we face today, including coping with the COVID-19 pandemic, tackling climate change, and narrowing our social divide.

Judge's comments highlighted the significance of XAG V40 agriculture drone for people, environment and society, as they praised "XAG focused on agriculture and developed a drone that can spray agricultural chemicals, which was highly rated. At a time when there are questions about the impact agricultural chemicals have on people's health, there is a strong social need for drones to be able to spray agricultural chemicals for long periods of time and over large areas, and there is the possibility that this one could grow into a routinely used drone."

Caring for Farmers and Nature

With the rapid development of urbanisation, the global food system has been facing pressure from labour shortage and low productivity. The traditional labour-intensive production and outdated tools have resulted in massive waste of resources and environmental pollution, restricting the sustainable development of mankind.

XAG V40 Agricultural Drone is a milestone of getting farmers connected to the digital age. All the tedious, repetitive field works will be undertaken by drones and robots to greatly ease the burden of farmers and protect them from harmful agrochemicals.

The design of the V40 embodies XAG's understanding of agriculture, farmers, and society. Digital agriculture is the path to a sustainable future, and by using digital solutions and clean energy, we can drive greater rural development with smaller environmental footprints.