Social Impact Award Slovenia 2026: Four Award-Winning Ideas for Social and Environmental Change
- Impact Hub Slovenia
Ljubljana, 22 September 2026 – After four months of developing ideas, workshops and mentoring, the sixth edition of the Social Impact Award Slovenia programme concluded with a final event on Friday, 18 September. Out of more than 35 submitted ideas, 19 projects made it to the final, with four teams ultimately receiving the main awards: three selected by an expert jury and one chosen by the community.
Throughout the programme, participants developed their ideas through workshops, individual mentoring and work with experts from various fields. The main focus was on how to build on an initial idea and turn it into a solution with a clear social or environmental impact that can also be put into practice.
»This year’s edition once again showed just how many high-quality ideas are emerging among young people in Slovenia. We are particularly pleased to see that the projects go beyond simply identifying problems: they seek concrete solutions and consider how to actually put them into practice. When you run the programme for the second year in a row, you can also see very clearly how important it is to provide teams with the space, knowledge and people who can help them take the next step ,” said Gal Krajnčič, Programme Manager of Social Impact Award Slovenia, at the conclusion of the programme.
This year, the expert jury selected three winning projects: Tistega lepega dne, TwisQ and Let Ideas Run.
Tistega lepega dne, a project by Zala Hrastar, creates wedding dresses from vintage and inherited textiles, preserving the stories and memories of the materials while giving them a new life.
TwisQ, developed by Nika Krajnc, Bine Oder, Vid Bolčič and Ernest Smotlak, is an app that helps households use food before it expires, thereby reducing food waste, saving money and using resources more responsibly.
Let Ideas Run, created by Tanja Goltnik, Jana Verdnik and Daša Gajšek, is developing a platform that, with the support of sponsors, converts steps walked into value used to fund research and charitable projects.
The fourth winner was selected by the community. The finalists presented their ideas in short videos, after which the public voted for the project that impressed them the most. The Community Award went to Butterfly Give,a project by Miha Osredkar, Marta Lajevec and Milan Djaković. The platform enables young people to solve challenges set by companies, which in return support charitable projects in developing countries. In this way, young people can participate in charitable activities without contributing their own financial resources, while also gaining a more tangible understanding of the impact of their participation.
At the closing event, Impact Hub Slovenia also presented two additional recognitions. The Award for Outstanding Social Innovation went to the teams Idioma and ADA Asistent, while the Award for Greatest Implementation Readiness went to Shopaware.. Idioma is developing a smart terminal for direct two-way translation between Slovenian Sign Language and spoken or written language; ADA Asistent is developing an intelligent learning system for blind and visually impaired people; and Shopaware is developing an app that allows users to scan products and access clearer information about their composition and characteristics.
The journey does not end with winning. Recipients of the main awards receive €1,500 in financial support and membership at Impact Hub Ljubljana, where they will be able to continue developing their ideas and remain connected to the entrepreneurial community. As part of the international Social Impact Award network, the winners will also have opportunities to connect with young social entrepreneurs from other countries, including at the annual international SIA Summit.
Social Impact Award Slovenia 2026 was co-organised by Impact Hub Slovenia and SLOAM, with partners and supporters from the academic, public and private sectors also contributing to the programme: the University of Ljubljana, University of Maribor, University of Primorska, Ministry of the Economy, Labour and Sport, EY Slovenija and SAP Slovenija.
With this year’s edition now concluded, the work is only just beginning for the award-winning teams. They will continue developing their projects with the support of the community they have built around their ideas over the past few months. A new generation of young people with ideas for social and environmental change will have their opportunity in the next edition of the Social Impact Award Slovenia.
About SLOAM, Youth Agency
SLOAM, Youth Agency is a non-governmental, non-profit organisation with public-interest status in the youth sector. Through the development and implementation of programmes, it encourages young people between the ages of 12 and 30 to engage in active citizenship and social responsibility while supporting their personal growth. It fulfils its mission through cooperation and the organisation of various international projects and programmes, including the European Youth Card programme, which encourages young people to become more mobile and independent, participate and engage in society, while also offering them numerous benefits, as well as the YMS Association, which brings together some of the most promising young people in Slovenia.
About Impact Hub Slovenia
Impact Hub Slovenia is a community of entrepreneurs and innovators united by a desire to create positive social and environmental change. In addition to its entrepreneurial community and workspaces, it develops programmes such as Social Impact Award, Impact Launchpad and Impact Next, which support entrepreneurs at different stages of development, from their first ideas to growth and preparation for investment.
