Melbourne Water earns silver at World Design Awards, following gold at GOV Design Awards
Melbourne Water’s innovative learning program, The Future Water Story, has been awarded silver at the 2026 BETTER FUTURE World Design Awards, which celebrates both the courage of commissioning clients and design professionals.
This international honour follows the program’s gold win at the GOV Design Awards in the Digital – Education category earlier this month.
The World Design Award winners were announced on Friday ahead of the global ceremony in March in London, where Melbourne Water will be supporting the event from Australia.
Melbourne Water’s Education Team worked with design studio S1T2 to create The Future Water Story, located at the Western Treatment Plant. This interactive learning experience lets young people explore a dynamic water system and see how their choices shape outcomes through real-time simulation. Through storytelling, collaboration, negotiation, and hands-on activities, students learn about water and discover sustainable decisions that shape our communities.
Melissa Cordy, Melbourne Water’s Water Literacy Manager, said this recognition reflects Melbourne Water’s commitment to empowering the next generation to take action.
“We designed The Future Water Story to spark curiosity, build confidence, and give young people a sense of agency on what it takes to shape a sustainable future. This award is a testament to what’s possible when education, creativity, and technology come together with a shared purpose. We’re incredibly proud of the impact this program is having in schools across Victoria.”
Melbourne Water thanks everyone whose creativity, teamwork, and dedication helped create The Future Water Story. This achievement demonstrates how digital learning can inspire curiosity, confidence, and genuine environmental action among young people.
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