365: AIGA Year in Design is a annual industry award recognizing excellence in Design. Organized by AIGA, the professional association for design, it covers the North America region. Established in 1924.
AIGA, the professional association for design, recognizes designers and design-driven work through programs including the AIGA Medal — the highest honor in American design, awarded since 1920 — and competitions and showcases run nationally and through AIGA's chapter network.
The AIGA Medal honors lifetime achievement and is conferred by nomination, placing recipients like Paula Scher, Massimo Vignelli, and Milton Glaser in design's permanent canon. Chapter and national programs (such as juried design competitions and fellowships) recognize current work and emerging talent.
For working designers, AIGA recognition carries peer-review weight: judging and selection are done by the professional community itself rather than media editors.