Bengaluru, March 02: CMR University (CMRU) has officially launched CAUSE 2026, its flagship global Design Thinking Challenge, as part of the Design Thinking Day celebrations. The announcement was made by Dr. H.B. Raghavendra, Vice Chancellor, who highlighted the University’s continued commitment to nurturing innovation, creativity, and socially responsible leadership among students.
Building on the success of previous editions that saw participation from 1,500+ teams representing 214+ institutions across 13+ countries, CAUSE 2026 returns with the theme “The Future is Local.” The challenge invites students to reimagine innovation through the lens of local communities, indigenous knowledge systems, and everyday lived experiences. Participants are encouraged to develop context-driven, sustainable solutions across key areas including Community, Urban Infrastructure & Everyday Systems, Health & Wellbeing, Environment & Sustainability, and Learning, Skills & Livelihoods (including crafts).
With a total prize pool exceeding INR 1,50,000 (USD 1,600), CAUSE 2026 offers young innovators a global platform to showcase their ideas, gain mentorship from industry leaders, and collaborate with changemakers from around the world.
The online submission window closes in the last week of March 2026. Finalists will be announced in early April, followed by the Changemakers Bootcamp & Grand Finale to be held at CMR University, Bengaluru, on April 23–24, 2026.