The American Institute of Architects (AIA) Committee on the Environment (COTE) is awarding ten design projects with its highest honor—the COTE® Top Ten Awards—for their significant achievements in advancing climate action. Complete details for each project are available on AIA’s website.
For the past 25 years, COTE has bestowed the award annually on ten design projects that have expertly integrated design excellence with cutting-edge performance in ten key areas. The COTE Top Ten 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, which 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 ten measures.
This year’s COTE Top Ten Awards recipients are as follows:
— Arizona State University Hayden Library Reinvention, Tempe, Arizona | Ayers Saint Gross
— Civitas, Memphis, Tennessee | archimania
— Lafayette College Rockwell Integrated Sciences Center, Easton, Pennsylvania | Payette
— Market One, Des Moines, Iowa | Neumann Monson Architects
— Massachusetts Institute of Technology | MIT.nano, Cambridge, Massachusetts | HGA
— Microsoft Silicon Valley Campus, Mountain View, California | WRNS Studio
— Rainier Beach Clinic, Seattle | Mahlum Architects
— Ryerson University Daphne Cockwell Health Sciences Complex, Toronto | Perkins & Will
— The Kendeda Building for Innovative Sustainable Design, Atlanta | Lord Aeck Sargent in collaboration with The Miller Hull Partnership
— University of Washington, Life Sciences Building, Seattle | Perkins & Will
Visit AIA’s website for more information on the COTE Top Ten Awards program.
Related Stories
Mass Timber | May 31, 2024
Mass timber a big part of Western Washington University’s net-zero ambitions
Western Washington University, in Bellingham, Wash., 90 miles from Seattle, is in the process of expanding its ABET-accredited programs for electrical engineering, computer engineering and science, and energy science. As part of that process, the university is building Kaiser Borsari Hall, the 54,000-sf new home for those academic disciplines that will include teaching labs, research labs, classrooms, collaborative spaces, and administrative offices.
MFPRO+ New Projects | May 29, 2024
Two San Francisco multifamily high rises install onsite water recycling systems
Two high-rise apartment buildings in San Francisco have installed onsite water recycling systems that will reuse a total of 3.9 million gallons of wastewater annually. The recycled water will be used for toilet flushing, cooling towers, and landscape irrigation to significantly reduce water usage in both buildings.
Mass Timber | May 22, 2024
3 mass timber architecture innovations
As mass timber construction evolves from the first decade of projects, we're finding an increasing variety of mass timber solutions. Here are three primary examples.
K-12 Schools | May 13, 2024
S.M.A.R.T. campus combines 3 schools on one site
From the start of the design process for Santa Clara Unified School District’s new preK-12 campus, discussions moved beyond brick-and-mortar to focus on envisioning the future of education in Silicon Valley.
Sustainability | May 10, 2024
Perkins&Will’s first ESG report discloses operational performance data across key metrics
Perkins&Will recently released its first ESG report that discloses the firm’s operational performance data across key metrics and assesses its strengths and opportunities.
Sustainable Development | May 10, 2024
Nature as the city: Why it’s time for a new framework to guide development
NBBJ leaders Jonathan Ward and Margaret Montgomery explore five inspirational ideas they are actively integrating into projects to ensure more healthy, natural cities.
K-12 Schools | May 7, 2024
World's first K-12 school to achieve both LEED for Schools Platinum and WELL Platinum
A new K-12 school in Washington, D.C., is the first school in the world to achieve both LEED for Schools Platinum and WELL Platinum, according to its architect, Perkins Eastman. The John Lewis Elementary School is also the first school in the District of Columbia designed to achieve net-zero energy (NZE).
K-12 Schools | Apr 30, 2024
Fully electric Oregon elementary school aims for resilience with microgrid design
The River Grove Elementary School in Oregon was designed for net-zero carbon and resiliency to seismic events, storms, and wildfire. The roughly 82,000-sf school in a Portland suburb will feature a microgrid—a small-scale power grid that operates independently from the area’s electric grid.
Contractors | Apr 26, 2024
AGC releases decarbonization playbook to help assess, track, reduce GHG emissions
The Associated General Contractors of America released a new, first-of-its-kind, decarbonization playbook designed to help firms assess, track, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions on projects. The AGC Playbook on Decarbonization and Carbon Reporting in the Construction Industry is part of the association’s efforts to make sure construction firms play a leading role in crafting carbon-reduction measures for the industry.
Mass Timber | Apr 25, 2024
Bjarke Ingels Group designs a mass timber cube structure for the University of Kansas
Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG) and executive architect BNIM have unveiled their design for a new mass timber cube structure called the Makers’ KUbe for the University of Kansas School of Architecture & Design. A six-story, 50,000-sf building for learning and collaboration, the light-filled KUbe will house studio and teaching space, 3D-printing and robotic labs, and a ground-level cafe, all organized around a central core.
