Milan: The second edition of the Kering Generation Award X Jewelry took place on July 9, 2026, at the luxury group Kering’s headquarters in Paris during Paris Haute Couture Week. The World Jewellery Confederation (CIBJO) is a partner of Kering in the awards, which aim to support visionary talent whose work demonstrates excellence in sustainable design and practices in jewellery-making. The contest was scientifically coordinated by Poli.Design, a consortium of Politecnico di Milano, Italy’s leading technical university.
Launched in China in 2018, the Kering Generation Award was created to support local startups developing sustainable and innovative materials and processes with a positive environmental and social impact. Since then, the initiative has expanded to several regions, including Saudi Arabia and Japan. In 2024, Kering also broadened the scope of the award to include the jewellery category.
This year, the award brought together 44 startups and students from 10 world-renowned universities and academies.
The second edition of the Kering Generation Award X Jewelry took place on July 9th, 2026, at the luxury group Kering’s headquarters in Paris during Paris Haute Couture Week. The World Jewellery Confederation (CIBJO) is a partner of Kering in the awards, which aim to support visionary talent whose work demonstrates excellence in sustainable design and practices in jewellery-making. The contest was scientifically coordinated by Poli.Design, a consortium of Politecnico di Milano, Italy’s leading technical university.
Student Category award winner Yang Yuchan (centre), flanked by Professor Alba Cappellieri (left), Head of Jewellery at Politecnico di Milano, and CIBJO President Gaetano Cavalieri.
Launched in China in 2018, the Kering Generation Award was created to support local startups developing sustainable and innovative materials and processes with a positive environmental and social impact.
Since then, the initiative has expanded to several regions, including Saudi Arabia and Japan. In 2024, Kering also broadened the scope of the award to include the jewelry category. This year, the award brought together 44 startups and students from 10 world-renowned universities and academies.
Taking first place in the Student Category was Yang Yuchan of China. Her winning design was called “Perching Willow,” which is is a contemporary jewelry piece that transforms discarded compact discs (CDs) into fine jewelry through traditional craftsmanship. The project incorporates traditional Chinese lacquer techniques and classical mother-of-pearl inlay craftsmanship, while recreating the shimmering iridescence of mother-of- pearl through recycled materials.
First place in the Startup Category was won by GeoGems, France, whose OriGems project aims to provide scientifically verifiable gemstone origin identification, addressing traceability challenges in the jewellery supply chain.
The Student Category winner received a six-months internship with Kering’s Jewelry Maison Pomellato, whereas the Startup Category winner received a mentorship with Politecnico di Milano experts.
