2028 Global Award for Sustainable Architecture
The 2028 Global Award for Sustainable Architecture invites evidence of a sustained architectural practice under the theme Architecture Is Circularity. This is an international recognition award, not a commission to design a new building. Its scope connects resource use and existing buildings with participation, local ecosystems and the capacity to adapt over time.
Brief and eligibility
| Field | Details |
|---|---|
| Format and location | Single-stage, open award; one category and five global laureates. No prescribed project site or regional selection. |
| Eligible applicants | Architects, designers, urban designers and landscape designers worldwide. |
| Eligible work | Built or studied projects, research, writing and experimentation demonstrating an overall body of engagement, rather than one isolated project. |
| Circularity themes | Territory and resource networks; collaborative processes; material life cycles and reuse; transformation of governance, economic models and existing buildings. |
| Assessment | Innovation, design quality and contribution to the UN Sustainable Development Goals. No numerical weighting is provided in the public overview. |
| Conflicts of interest | Organizing-body and jury members, their associates, business partners, employees and close relatives are excluded. Anyone involved in preparing the award may neither enter nor assist an applicant. |
Registration, submission and dates
| Milestone | Date or requirement |
|---|---|
| Call opened | 5 October 2026 |
| Questions / answers | Questions by 20 November 2026; answers by 27 November 2026. |
| Registration | No separate registration deadline is stated in the public overview. |
| Submission closes | 29 January 2027, 22:59 UTC. The hour is converted from the CSCAE professional notice. |
| Jury meeting | 3 May 2027 |
| Results | First half of 2028, at the award symposium in Paris; exact date to be announced. |
| Language and delivery | English, through the official online submission platform using its prescribed template. |
| Boards, dimensions and file formats | Not established from the accessible public overview. The application template could not be inspected; applicants must check quantities, dimensions, formats and upload limits in the platform. |
Fees, recognition and rights
| Item | Published position |
|---|---|
| Entry fee | Not specified in the public overview; free entry has not been verified. |
| Recognition | Five laureates receive a diploma, symposium travel and accommodation, and inclusion in an annual monographic publication and the award community. No cash prize is announced. |
| Implementation | No construction budget or project commission is offered in the published call. |
| Rights, refunds and taxes | Detailed reuse licences, refund terms and any tax treatment could not be verified from the accessible material. Review the submission terms before uploading copyrighted work. |
The official application template was not accessible to this review. This does not mean applications are closed, but technical delivery requirements and contractual terms remain unverified here.
Organizer and jury
Architect and researcher Jana Revedin created the award in 2006; the UIA has endorsed it since 2024. Its 2028 jury includes two previous laureates, providing documented continuity between earlier awards and this selection.
| Juror | Announced role |
|---|---|
| Jana Revedin | Founding president of the award; jury chair. |
| Marie-Hélène Contal | Dean, École Spéciale d’Architecture. |
| Jacopo Galli | Architect, Università Iuav di Venezia. |
| Spela Hudnik | Architect, University of Ljubljana. |
| Deniz Incedayi | Architect, Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University. |
| Ashraf M. Salama | Co-director, UIA Education Commission; UIA representative. |
| Nuno Soares | Co-director, UNESCO–UIA Validation Board; UIA representative. |
| Anupama Kundoo | Architect; 2022 laureate. |
| Andreas Kipar | Architect and landscape designer; 2026 laureate. |
✦ ArchUp Competition Review
The committee reads this call as a portfolio-level assessment. A submission is likely to be more convincing when it connects design decisions to documented consequences: retained materials, adaptable spaces, local resource cycles or meaningful participation. That is an editorial interpretation of the theme, not an additional official criterion.
The jury combines architectural education, practice and landscape design, which is relevant to a brief spanning buildings and territories. Its named membership and published assessment headings support an informed application decision, although they do not reveal how competing forms of evidence will be weighted.
The benefit is professional recognition and exchange, not a promised project or cash return. Applicants should weigh the preparation effort against that distinction, especially while template requirements and publication licences remain to be checked.
Sources checked 15 October 2026: the organizer’s application overview; the UIA’s edition-specific announcement and jury list; the CSCAE call notice for the closing hour.
Related competitions — Editors’ selection
For another recognition format, see the AFEX Grand Prix 2027. For a design challenge focused on solar energy and resilience, compare the ISA-iSUN Design Challenge. These are related editorial readings, not endorsements or confirmation of current availability.
Time remaining to submit
The countdown follows the submission deadline above. The time comes from the Spanish architects’ council notice; the organizer’s overview gives the date without an hour. Confirm the operative time in the application platform.
Official application
Read the organizer’s instructions and follow its application link. Review the platform terms before uploading work.
