The Bridge Alumni Awards

Since 2021, The Bridge Alumni Awards have recognised alumni who have given their time, energy, and expertise to support students and help our wider alumni community grow and connect.

With hundreds of nominations each year and almost 60 winners so far, the awards have brought together alumni and University staff to celebrate the contributions of Dundee graduates.

Our new The Bridge Alumni Awards

The new The Bridge Alumni Awards shine a light on the many ways our graduates are making a difference, including leading businesses, championing sustainability, and embodying the University’s values of innovation, collaboration, and social purpose.

New categories

Our all-new award categories include:

Trailblazer in Enterprise Award - This award will recognise alumni who have demonstrated outstanding innovation, leadership, or impact in business, entrepreneurship, or enterprise.

Rising Star Award - This category will celebrate early-career alumni who are making exceptional contributions in their field and showing great promise as future leaders or changemakers.

Transforming Lives Award - This award will continue to honour alumni who have made a significant difference to the lives of others through their professional work, community service, or humanitarian efforts.

Sustainability Champion Award - This category acknowledges alumni who are leading the way in advancing sustainability, through research, practice, or advocacy; inspiring positive environmental or social change.

Lifetime Achievement Award - This award will recognise alumni whose long-term commitment, excellence, and leadership have had a profound and lasting impact in their profession, community, or on society.

The Bridge Award - Finally, this category will celebrate alumni who are connecting the world of academia with the world of work, demonstrating the intrinsic value of their Dundee degree.

The Bridge Alumni Awards are now evolving into a bigger celebration of the extraordinary achievements of Dundee alumni across the globe.

They will build on the success of the Transforming Lives Award category, which recognises alumni who support the University’s commitment to transform lives; inspiring change and making a positive difference within their local community, region or on a global scale. 

This award category saw us celebrate the impact of alumni like John Fyffe MBE (Teaching in Primary Education, 2003), Dave Tipping (Architecture, 2005) and David Cunningham (Psychology, 1999).

Get inspired by our previous winners

The Dundee Tapestry

John Fyffe MBE and his wife Carolyn, also a University of Dundee graduate, conceived the idea of a Dundee Tapestry. Together with Dr Francis Stevenson and Andrew Crummy MBE, the designer of the Great Tapestry of Scotland, John organised funding and resources to progress the idea. 

John's contribution to the community saw 140 stitchers from across Dundee come together to tell the city’s story.  Not only did this provide many community spaces for people to come together, but it showcased Dundee's fascinating history. 

Kids Operating Room

Kids Operating Room, a global health charity set up in part by David and Dave, has provided nearly 100 paediatric operating rooms in low-and-middle income countries around the world, ensuring as many children as possible have access to the surgery they need. 

They also train local surgeons and paediatric teams in country, advocate for global health, and work with Ministries of Health in country to make lasting change.  

They pioneered the concept of solar surgery to address the ongoing issue of regular black outs, which frequently interrupts lifesaving surgery particularly in sub–Saharan Africa. The solar surgery system was developed by David and Dave and is run entirely from a warehouse hub in Dundee.