Architecture for Humanity Vancouver Chapter has unveiled the winners of "NEXT BIG ONE," an open call for design solutions to high-magnitude earthquake and tsunami events that plague cities around the world. Project teams were challenged to propose a solution that "can mitigate natural disasters while simultaneously providing community permanence."
A jury comprised of leading architects and professionals from Architecture Research Office (Stephen Cassell), Perkins + Will (Susan Gushe), Bing Thom Architects (Eileen Keenan), Scott & Scott Architects (David Scott), and the City of Vancouver (Doug Smith) evaluated the projects. Entries were evaluated based on three key criteria: the exemplification of innovation in disaster design, promotion of community resiliency before and after disasters, and compliance with multi-hazard parameters for worst-case disaster scenarios.
Find out more about the winning projects after the break.
The competition was held in conjunction with the City of Vancouver and University of British Columbia's School of Architecture and Landscape Architecture. Awards were divided into two categories: design professionals and emerging designers, with each category featuring one winner and three honourable mentions. Winning professional and emerging designers will receive $3000 and $1500 Canadian Dollars for their entries, respectively.
Category: Emerging Designers
First Place: The Bing Thom Emerging Designers Award
Project Title: Revive the Moat
Design Team: Yoshihiro Kaneko (Tokyo, Japan)
Emerging Designers Honourable Mention
Project Title: Modular Landscapes
Project Team:Felix Cheong (Toronto, Canada)
Emerging Designers Honourable Mention
Project Title: Aqua-Estate
Project Team: Jakub Senkowski, Agata Palach, Monika Chrapczynska, Teodor Michalski Katarzyna Klimasz (Krakow, Poland)
Emerging Designers Honourable Mention
Project Title: Lost Lagoon
Project Team: Marina Polets, Irola Andoni, Karolina Wieja, Dariusz Dziwak Adam Mierzwa, Jan Borowicz, Wiktoria Wesolowska, Karen Foo (Krakow, Poland)
Category: Design Professionals
First Place: Design Professionals Award
Project Title: Eco-Fort
Project Team: Grant C. LaBossiere, Joseph G. Orobia (Winnipeg, Canada)
Design Professional Honourable Mention
Project Title: Magic Carpets
Project Team: Alejandro Iglesias, Enrique Martin (Madrid, Spain)
Design Professional Honourable Mention
Project Title: Safety Arena
Project Team: Andrea Pauletich, Stephano Cova, Caterina Spangher (Trieste, Italy)
Design Professional Honourable Mention
Project Title: Neuva Valdivia
Project Team: Daniela Sanchez Saez, Albert Castejon (Barcelona, Spain)
Find out more about "Next Big One" on the project website.