Stage time
Winners are announced in front of a full conference room, with photography and press coverage from each edition.
PolyNext Awards
Honouring excellence across the plastics value chain
The PolyNext Awards recognise the people and organisations advancing plastic recycling, circular design, sustainable materials and waste management. Winners are announced live at a red-carpet ceremony and gala dinner at every PolyNext edition, in front of the leaders, investors and press who matter.
- 20+
- Award categories
- 3
- Global gala nights
- 100%
- Independent jury scoring
Why enter
Recognition that travels further than a trophy
Credible benchmark
Entries are scored by independent practitioners against published criteria — no pay-to-win categories.
Buyer trust
A shortlist badge is a shortcut to credibility in enterprise procurement conversations.
Team morale
Public recognition for the engineers, researchers and operators who shipped the work.
The categories
Twenty ways to be recognised
Enter as many categories as genuinely apply. Each entry is judged on its own merits by the jury panel assigned to that category.
Organisations
- Recycling Company of the Year
- Most Innovative Recycling Startup of the Year
- Sustainable Packaging Company of the Year
- Circular Economy Transformation of the Year
Technology & materials
- Recycling Technology of the Year
- Best Advanced / Chemical Recycling Project
- Best AI or Automation Solution in Recycling
- Best Sustainable Material or Polymer Innovation
- Best Design for Recyclability
- Best Food-Grade PCR Initiative
People
- Sustainability Leader of the Year
- CEO of the Year
- Plant / Operations Leader of the Year
- Emerging Leader in Plastics Award
- Women in Plastics & Sustainability Award
Impact
- Waste Management Initiative of the Year
- Best EPR or Policy Contribution
- Circular Economy Impact Award
How entries are judged
Four criteria, equally weighted
Real-world impact
Documented outcomes — revenue, efficiency, accuracy, adoption or social benefit — not roadmaps or pilots.
Technical originality
How novel the approach is, and how well it stands up against readily available alternatives.
Scale & adoption
Depth of deployment: users served, workloads handled and the durability of the results.
Responsibility
Governance, transparency, data handling and bias mitigation baked into the delivery.
The process
From nomination to the gala night
- Step 1
Nominations open
Submit your entry online — self-nominations and third-party nominations both welcome.
- Step 2
Shortlisting
Entries are screened for eligibility and scored against the published criteria.
- Step 3
Nomination Confirmation
You receive a confirmation once your nomination is validated, with a summary of the categories you have entered.
- Step 4
Jury review
An independent panel of practitioners, researchers and operators scores every shortlisted entry.
- Step 5
Winners revealed
Trophies are presented live on stage at the gala night of each PolyNext edition.
Entries are open
Put your work in front of the jury
Pick the edition you want to compete in, then complete your nomination on the PolyNext portal. Sponsors and jury applications go through the same flow.