Architecture Media has launched a new and unique award aimed at highlighting the potential of design practice to make difference in the lives of people.
The ArchitectureAU Award for Social Impact is the only accolade of its kind in Australia and was established to reward practice that prioritizes empathy over aesthetics and empowers its end users.
Rory Hyde, jury convenor and associate professor at Melbourne School of Design, said, “Architecture has always been about social impact, about making change for people and society. And yet this aspect of architecture is too often overshadowed by the aesthetic and the visual. This award is long overdue as a way to recognize and celebrate the outstanding projects that make a difference to the public, to local communities, and underrepresented groups.”
Submission to this award may relate to issues such as social cohesion, racial justice, inclusive housing, accessibility, equity, and social sustainability. The judging criteria will focus on demonstrable social benefit.
“In this way, it is also about celebrating new ways of working and new forms of practice,” Hyde said. “Did the designer help to raise the funds? Did they shape the brief to raise the ambition? Did they work with the community to conceive and construct it? Are they advocating for those voices normally not invited to the table?
“It’s my hope that this award can change the conversation of the role and purpose of the design professions, and to recognize those clients and practitioners who are working hard to create change.”
The inaugural jury comprises Troy Casey (director of Blaklash Creative), Esther Charlesworth AM (co-founder and executive director of Architects Without Frontiers), Ben Gauntlett (disability discrimination commissioner, Australian Human Rights Council), Jeremy McLeod (founder of Breathe), and Katelin Butler (editorial director of Architecture Media).
Entry to the award is open to architects, interior designers, planners, landscape architects, urban designers and other built environment professionals. Only completed, not speculative, projects are elegible for entry.
Entries close 10 March 2023. The winner will be announced on ArchitectureAU.com on 27 June 2023. A cash prize of $5,000 is offered. To enter, click here.
The ArchitectureAU Award for Social Impact is presented in partnership with the Melbourne School of Design and supported by Latitude, Peptolab, and NHO.
Source: Architecture - architectureau
