The American Institute of Architects (AIA) Committee on the Environment (COTE) is announcing this year’s recipients for its highest honor, the COTE Top Ten Awards. Complete details for each project are available on AIA’s website.
COTE bestows the award annually on 10 design projects that have expertly integrated design excellence with cutting-edge performance in ten key areas. The COTE Top Ten winning projects illustrate the solutions architects provide for the health and welfare of our communities and planet.
In order to be eligible, project submissions are required to demonstrate alignment with COTE’s rigorous criteria, 10 measures that include social, economic, and ecological values. The five-member jury evaluates each project submission based on the effectiveness of their holistic design solution and metrics associated with the 10 measures. This year’s COTE Top Ten Awards recipients are as follows:
- Austin Central Library, Austin, Texas | Lake|Flato Architects + Shepley Bulfinch Joint Venture
- U.S. Land Port of Entry, Columbus, New Mexico | Richter Architects
- Etsy Headquarters, New York | Gensler
- Ford Foundation Center for Social Justice, New York | Gensler
- John W. Olver Design Building, Amherst, Massachusetts | Leers Weinzapfel Associates
- Keller Center - Harris School of Public Policy, Chicago | Farr Associates (Design Lead & Architect of Record) and Woodhouse Tinucci Architects (Collaborating Architect, Interior Designer)
- Marine Education Center at the Gulf Coast Research Laboratory, Ocean Springs, Mississippi | Lake|Flato Architects in association with Unabridged Architecture
- The Six, Los Angeles | Brooks + Scarpa
- UPCycle, Austin, Texas | Gensler
Jurors also designated one project as a Top Ten Plus recipient for its exceptional post-occupancy performance data. This year's recipient is:
- Environmental Nature Center and Preschool, Newport Beach, California | LPA, Inc.
Visit AIA’s website for more information on the COTE Top Ten Awards program.
In conjunction with COTE, the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture (ACSA) has selected the COTE Top Ten for Students, honoring exceptional student design projects showcasing innovation in sustainability. View the winning designs on ACSA’s website.
“The students being honored should be commended for their work and design intelligence. They provide great hope that future architects will have the skills and solutions to make our world better by integrating beautiful design with equitable climate action for human and ecological health,” said Julie Hiromoto, AIA, chair of COTE. “The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted how necessary and valuable innovative design solutions are for healthy built environments.”
Since committing to environmental stewardship last year, architects have made notable progress in the climate action fight. Visit AIA’s website to learn more about all the climate action progress being made, including our first Climate Action Plan.
Related Stories
| Jan 6, 2015
Construction permits exceeded $2 billion in Minneapolis in 2014
Two major projects—a new stadium for the Minnesota Vikings NFL team and the city’s Downtown East redevelopment—accounted for about half of the total worth of the permits issued.
| Jan 6, 2015
Snøhetta unveils design proposal of the Barack Obama Presidential Center Library for the University of Hawaii
The plan by Snøhetta and WCIT Architecture features a building that appears square from the outside, but opens at one corner into a rounded courtyard with a pool, Dezeen reports.
| Jan 5, 2015
Another billionaire sports club owner plans to build a football stadium in Los Angeles
Kroenke Group is the latest in a series of high-profile investors that want to bring back pro football to the City of Lights.
| Jan 5, 2015
Beyond training: How locker rooms are becoming more like living rooms
Despite having common elements—lockers for personal gear and high-quality sound systems—the real challenge when designing locker rooms is creating a space that reflects the attitude of the team, writes SRG Partnership's Aaron Pleskac.
| Jan 2, 2015
Illustrations of classic architecture bring in the new year with style
New York-based designer Xinran Ma has illustrated a New Year's greeting card that assembles pieces of various brutalist and modernist architecture.
| Jan 2, 2015
Construction put in place enjoyed healthy gains in 2014
Construction consultant FMI foresees—with some caveats—continuing growth in the office, lodging, and manufacturing sectors. But funding uncertainties raise red flags in education and healthcare.
| Dec 30, 2014
A simplified arena concept for NBA’s Warriors creates interest
The Golden State Warriors, currently the team with the best record in the National Basketball Association, looks like it could finally get a new arena.
| Dec 30, 2014
The future of healthcare facilities: new products, changing delivery models, and strategic relationships
Healthcare continues to shift toward Madison Avenue and Silicon Valley as it revamps business practices to focus on consumerism and efficiency, writes CBRE Healthcare's Patrick Duke.
| Dec 29, 2014
High-strength aluminum footbridge designed to withstand deep-ocean movement, high wind speeds [BD+C's 2014 Great Solutions Report]
The metal’s flexibility makes the difference in an oil rig footbridge connecting platforms in the West Philippine Sea. The design solution was named a 2014 Great Solution by the editors of Building Design+Construction.
| Dec 29, 2014
HDR and Hill International to turn three floors of a jail into a modern, secure healthcare center [BD+C's 2014 Great Solutions Report]
By bringing healthcare services in house, Dallas County Jail will greatly minimize the security risk and added cost of transferring ill or injured prisoners to a nearby hospital. The project was named a 2014 Great Solution by the editors of Building Design+Construction.
