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Another important international recognition for Istituto Marangoni Milano Design.
ONE BAG, a project designed by Anastasiia Ovsiannikova, has received an Honorable Mention at the European Product Design Award, once again confirming the design excellence and social awareness that distinguish the work of the Institute’s students.
This achievement is part of a long series of awards and nominations earned over the years by Istituto Marangoni, a source of great pride for the school and a clear demonstration of how design can serve as a tool for innovation, responsibility, and real-world impact.
A Project Born from Personal Experience
ONE BAG originates from an authentic and deeply human story. Anastasiia Ovsiannikova, herself a refugee, has transformed her personal experience of loss, escape, and rebuilding into a conscious design project capable of speaking to millions of people worldwide.
“It was a very personal work for me, inspired by my own story as a refugee. The goal was to create something for people… something empowering, and hopefully a way to give back.”
From this urgency emerges an object conceived not only to meet practical needs, but also to restore dignity, identity, and a sense of control to those living in conditions of extreme vulnerability.
Function, Identity, and Dignity
ONE BAG is a minimalist, durable, waterproof emergency bag designed to support people facing crisis situations and forced displacement. The project begins with a fundamental question: what truly matters when you are forced to leave everything behind?
Alongside essential items — documents, water, food, medicine — another, less visible but equally vital need emerges: the need to feel like an individual, recognizable and present.
From a design perspective, the bag follows the form follows function principle:
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a dual-compartment structure, protecting sensitive items while separating essentials;
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a roll-top closure and waterproof materials, suitable for extreme conditions;
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a lightweight, adaptable, and floating structure, designed for real emergency scenarios.
A distinctive feature is the inclusion of graphic symbols and color codes, allowing the bag to be personalized. In crowded and chaotic environments, being able to recognize what is one’s own becomes a way to reclaim safety and identity.
An Ethical and Sustainable Model
The project also integrates a clear vision of sustainability and social responsibility. ONE BAG is designed to be produced using recycled plastic and distributed through a one-for-one model: for every bag purchased through retail channels, one is donated to humanitarian organizations.
The product thus exists in two parallel worlds:
on one side, a design object and fashion statement; on the other, a practical tool for emergency support. Two different realities, united by a single act of solidarity.
Design as an Act of Responsibility
With ONE BAG, design emerges as a practice capable of listening, understanding, and acting. A project that shows how personal experience can be transformed into collective value, and how design — when guided by empathy — can become a powerful instrument for real change.
A further recognition that strengthens the role of Istituto Marangoni Milano Design as a place where creativity, awareness, and international vision converge.
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