HOLCIM FOUNDATION FOR SUSTAINABLE CONSTRUCTION

Created by Holcim in 2003, the Holcim Foundation was one of the first organizations to define and promote the key principles of sustainability for the built environment. Today, the independent nonprofit organization is more committed than ever to ensuring that leading-edge thinking and best practice solutions are placed in everyone's hands. Its mission is to support people who are change accelerators for sustainable construction.

Supporting Change Accelerators

The Holcim Foundation fulfills its mission through a range of activities designed to foster the exchange of ideas and best practices across regions and generations. These include the Holcim Foundation Awards – the world’s most significant competition for sustainable design. In addition to its flagship awards program, the Foundation partners with academics and industry-leading practitioners to create educational opportunities, and organizes events to facilitate the exchange of ideas and best practices.

Impact

With a thriving community of over 40,000 social media followers and a global network of engaged subscribers, the Holcim Foundation is driving the conversation on sustainable construction. From webinars that have drawn audiences of 2,000 to physical events hosting hundreds of professionals, we’re building bridges between innovators and practitioners to accelerate the movement for a sustainable built environment.

The Foundation’s Vision

We are convinced that a number of interdependent goals and guiding principles for sustainable construction must be understood, mainstreamed and implemented, if we are to succeed in building a better world.

Transforming the built environment

The Foundation exists to support the architecture, design and engineering innovators who want to change the way the world builds. We aim to accelerate the exchange of ideas and best practices across regions and across generations.

Holcim Foundation Awards

The world’s most significant competition for sustainable design with total prize money of USD 1 million celebrates 20 winning projects across 5 regions. With close to 30,000 entries received from 130 countries over the past two decades, the Holcim Foundation Awards have a significant reach and impact. More than 250 projects have been recognized across the world, and three winning project authors have become Pritzker Architecture Prize laureates.

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Opportunities for aspiring change accelerators

The Holcim Foundation Fellowship, spanning diverse regions, stands as a cornerstone initiative empowering the next generation of building practitioners to become impactful voices of change. The in-person intensive courses cultivate learning from in-design, in-construction and in-use projects, while shining light on best practices that are both regionally specific and globally transferable.

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Democratizing knowledge on sustainable construction

We have made it our mission to democratize and accelerate the global movement for sustainable design and construction by making knowledge accessible to all. We curate and organize events to enable the blue-sky thinking and down-to-earth knowledge sharing that is critical to transform the way the construction sector designs and builds.

BROWSE CURRENT AND PAST EVENTS

Accelerating the global movement for sustainable construction

WOHA’s Wong Mun Summ - BRAC University Campus, Bangladesh

A catalyst for positive urban change, enhancing a community of 20,000 students in Dhaka through "breathing architecture".
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Holcim Foundation Fellowship for North America

Over the course of two weeks, Fellows participated in a structured program of workshops, lectures, site visits, and collaborative projects hosted by the North American Fellowship’s partner firms: Henning Larsen, Arup, and Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM).
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Bjarke Ingels' BIG U, USA:

An ambitious urban-scale initiative creating a more resilient and enjoyable Lower Manhattan waterfront.
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Awards Talks - Berlin

The event gathered leading voices from architecture, engineering, and sustainability to explore the potential of urban infill, with a focus on the Holcim Foundation Award-winning Haus 2+.
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Taller Capital’s La Quebradora Waterpark, Mexico

Addressing critical urban water management challenges in Mexico City.
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Openact Architecture’s Stream Co-Habitat, Turkey

An ecosystem regeneration and urban re-engagement effort that brings nature and people back to an over-developed corner of Istanbul.
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El Sindicato Arquitectura’ Casa Parásito, Ecuador

A tiny house installed on an empty roof in Quito shows that roof space can be a strategic resource for managing urban densification.
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SHAU Microlibraries, Indonesia

A unique approach to providing accessible reading spaces in densely populated urban areas comes courtesy of a series of smart Microlibraries.
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HOLCIM FOUNDATION FOR SUSTAINABLE CONSTRUCTION

Supporting Change Accelerators

Accelerating the global movement for sustainable construction

Building progress for people and the planet