Open Education Special Award
Every year since 2011 Open Education Global has hosted the Open Education Awards of Excellence (OE Awards) nominated and selected by peers from around the world. The awards provide recognition for contributions to the Open Education community, recognizing people, practices and resources that exemplify excellence in the field.
For 2026 the OE Awards collected seeds of recognition in the form of 204 nominations from 49 different countries. The 49 countries of the world represented by this year’s nominees was extensive including:
Afghanistan, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bangladesh, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, Ecuador, Egypt, France, Germany, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Kenya, Lebanon, Lithuania, Malaysia, Mexico, Netherlands, Nigeria, Norway, Pakistan, Palestine, Peru, Russian Federation, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, South Africa, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Switzerland, Taiwan, Trinidad and Tobago, Türkiye, Ukraine, United Kingdom, United States, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, Venezuela, Viet Nam, and Yemen.
OEGlobals goal is to recognize and share all of these seeds. You can explore all nominated people, projects, and resources on their Nominations page. The list of those nominated is always a fascinating glimpse of the open education field around the globe.
After collecting all the seeds of recognition an OEAwards Review Committee selects a Nominee Shortlist. In 2026 the shortlist had 48 finalists.
From the shortlist, winners are chosen across four categories:
The People of Open
Open Assets
Open Practices
Special Awards
A live-streamed ceremony and announcement of the 2026 Open Education Awards for Excellence winners in each of these categories took place on September 1, 2026. I encourage you to check out all the winners:
At the ceremony I learned I was receiving a Special Award as a Visionary Open Education Leader and Strategist!
Oh my, it's special to be honoured in this way by your peers.
I'm thankful for having the opportunity to work with an amazing network of people around the world who together create public good and I’m delighted to still be doing this work.
To continue the arc of nominations as planting seeds of recognition, OEGlobal makes a contribution to One Tree Planted to have trees planted around the world in the name of each award winner as acts of transforming and restoring global landscapes.
It’s a huge undertaking to annually host an awards program. Big thanks to:
The entire OEGlobal team for doing these awards every year
Alan Levine for leading the 2026 effort
Mario Badilla for the awesome OEAwards visuals
Everyone who submitted a nomination
The 42 committee members who read and reviewed the nominations with such care
All the nominees for showing what open education is and the value it creates
As OEGlobal notes in their OEAwards26 Revealed: The Garden Blooms summary, “From seeds, to saplings, to trees — thank you for helping the garden grow.”
I’m thankful to be part of the global open education community working together for public good.
