Arcause Social Internships
Arcause Social Internships bridges architecture and design education with India’s on-the-ground social realities. It connects students with NGOs and community-focused organisations working across sustainability, inclusion, heritage, and rural development.
This year, Arcause Social Internships continues its association with partner organisations such as Sponge Collaborative, Mason’s Ink, Urbz Mumbai, MOD Foundation, Chaal Chaal Agency, Ka.Sa, and Tar Youth Association. Together, they offer students opportunities to engage with diverse social challenges through community-led initiatives, participatory urban development, sustainable practices, and grassroots interventions. These experiences allow students to explore how design can respond to real-world needs beyond conventional architectural practice.
Several students have already secured impactful internships: M K Roopika with Gramiyo Foundation and Rupak Kallianpur with SPARC. The initiative continues to open pathways for students to learn from communities, engage with real-world challenges, and understand the role of design in creating meaningful social change.
PROJECT UDAAN | A BRIDGE SCHOOL FOR TOMORROW
Project Udaan | A Bridge School for Tomorrow aims to create accessible, inclusive, and adaptable learning environments for children of migrant workers, including construction workers. This is a National Design Competition for Undergraduate Architecture and Design students by the Rotary Club of Bangalore Rajmahal Vilas in collaboration with Ethos Foundation.
The initiative invites architecture and design students to explore how existing or underutilised spaces can be transformed into meaningful learning spaces. The challenge encourages participants to understand the needs of children and their communities, study the constraints of a site, and develop practical, context-responsive interventions that can potentially be realised on the ground.
The built-up area would be approximately 600 sq. ft., with awnings and other extensions on 3 sides, so more children can be accommodated at the same time. These can be retracted when not in use. The proposal should provide a functional learning space with safe access, basic storage, adequate daylight, ventilation and environmental comfort. The design may incorporate other uses, such as reading, making, play, outdoor learning, and community interaction, as appropriate to the site. Through Project Udaan, Ethos Foundation aims to bridge the gap between design education and social realities, encouraging young designers to recognise how thoughtful, small-scale interventions can create more opportunities for learning and community engagement.
We invite students of architecture and design to participate in this challenge and explore how design can open new pathways to learning.
Register and submit your proposal: https://ethosfoundation.in/project-udaan/
Arcause College Champion Award 2026
The Arcause College Champion Award recognises institutions that actively foster a culture of responsible design through student leadership, community engagement, innovation, collaboration and sustained initiatives.
The award celebrates colleges that take architectural and design education beyond the classroom, creating opportunities for students to engage with real-world challenges, work with communities, explore inclusive and sustainable approaches, and contribute meaningfully through design.
The 2026 recipients have demonstrated diverse approaches to embedding responsible practice within their academic environments, spanning design literacy, inclusive education, sustainability, experiential learning, research and interdisciplinary collaboration. We congratulate the recognised institutions for their commitment to nurturing socially conscious designers and making responsible design an integral part of architectural education.
Discover the Arcause College Champion Award 2026 recipients and explore their initiatives: Arcause Awards 2026 : Results - Ethos Foundation
