DGNB Sustainability Challenge: Conditions of participation
These provisions apply equally to people of all genders, who shall be referred to with the pronouns they/their/them.
- The initiator, promoter and organiser of the DGNB Sustainably Challenge is the German Sustainable Building Council (DGNB e.V., Tübinger Straße 43, 70178 Stuttgart, hereinafter referred to as DGNB). By submitting an application, the applicant agrees to the validity of these terms and conditions and the associated privacy policy.
- Applications for the DGNB Sustainability Challenge may only be submitted via the website application form (https://www.dgnb.de/en/events-and-dates/competitions-of-the-dgnb/dgnb-sustainability-challenge). Completing the application form constitutes a declaration of consent to participate in the competition. Applicants thereby agree to be bound by the conditions listed herein. Applicants are responsible for the accuracy of their own data and information. They also undertake to submit only entries for which they hold the necessary rights. If photos are submitted, they must come with the name of the photographer or originator. In case of doubt, applicants must be able to provide a written declaration of consent from any depicted persons. By submitting photos, applicants or the original owners grant the DGNB non-exclusive and limited rights of use and assure that all depicted individuals have consented to their publication. Underage applicants must submit a written declaration of consent from a parent or legal guardian.
- The closing date and time for entries is Friday, 28 February 2025, 23:59. Participation requires that the application form and any documents to be submitted are received by the organiser by this deadline. Punctual delivery is determined solely by receipt of the documents online.
- Once the submission deadline has passed, the organiser will check the validity of all submissions as part of the first stage of evaluations (founding year of start-ups and information required under mandatory entries). The expert jury appointed by the organiser for the second stage will assess submissions admitted to the competition as part of a jury session that will take place in mid-March 2025. Three finalists will be selected from all submissions as well as the winner in each category (start-ups/innovation/research) and any winners of special prizes. The decision of the expert jury is binding for all applicants and cannot be contested. Winners will not be announced until the awards ceremony. Prior to this, only the finalists in each category will be announced and publicised. The awards ceremony will take place during the DGNB Sustainability Day on 25 June 2025in Stuttgart.
- The applicant hereby declares that all information provided is correct. Upon submission of false information, the organiser is entitled at any time to exclude the applicant and revoke any titles that they have been awarded.
- The applicant assumes responsibility for submitting all details of named partners (or companies) involved in the project. The organiser assumes that partners (or companies) named by the applicant have been informed that they are part of the application.
- Incomplete application documents do not entitle applicants to participate in the DGNB Sustainability Challenge and applicants may be excluded from the competition. The DGNB may share documents submitted by applicants with the jury of experts for evaluation purposes. By uploading applications, applicants agree that any information on the company, the website, information regarding the project and any submitted photos or logos may be used publicly and free of charge by the organiser, the press or other media outlets for the purposes of advertising, documentation and reporting on the DGNB Sustainability Challenge, including in print and on the internet. The applicant shall indemnify the organiser against all third-party rights.
- The DGNB reserves the right to exclude applicants from the competition, in particular due to any breaches of these conditions of participation. Participation in the competition is free of charge. Participants are fully responsible for their own expenses. There will be no reimbursements of costs.
- The organiser cannot accept liability for submitted documents. Any liability for damages on the part of the organiser and its bodies, employees and vicarious agents arising from or in connection with the competition, regardless of legal grounds, shall be limited to cases of intent or gross negligence, insofar as this is legally permissible.
- In the event that image and/or sound recordings are made during the awards ceremony, by submitting their application applicants agree that they may be photographed, filmed or recorded, that any such material featuring applicants may be broadcast, published and made publicly accessible on the internet by the organiser for the purposes of reporting and press work relating to the DGNB Sustainability Challenge, and that material may be used for advertising purposes without any claim to remuneration.
- Legal recourse is excluded. The law of the Federal Republic of Germany applies. The organiser reserves the right to change the conditions of participation. Unforeseen events that make it impossible to hold the competition entitle the organiser to cancel the competition. All claims on the part of applicants are excluded.