Organised by the UIA Architecture & Children Work Programme since 2011, the Award accepts nominations in four award categories:
1. Audio-visual Media (films, audio-visual educational material, web sites…)
2. Written Media (books, magazines, non audio-visual educational tools)
3. Institutions (organisations, institutions, museums…)
4. Schools (directors, teachers, students)
During the National phase, each UIA National Member Section participating in the Award will organise a selection process and nominate one entry for submission for the International Awards.
In the International phase, the International Jury will evaluate the Nominated Entries and select one UIA Architecture & Children Golden Cubes Award in each category. Note that this cycle will be entirely digital on international level, and projects must be submitted to the UIA Prize Platform.
Awards will be presented at the 28th UIA Congress ‘UIA 2023 CPH’.
Take a look at the brief here
Key dates
Prizes
The prize for each winner in the International Awards is a Certificate and/or a Trophy. Winning and special mentioned entries will be included in the UIA Architecture & Children Work Programme exhibition at the UIA Congress in Copenhagen, July 2023.
Winning and special mentioned entries will be exhibited in the UIA Architecture & Children Work Programme exhibition at the UIA Congress in Copenhagen and, together with the Jury’s Report, will be published on the UIA BEE Website. The results will be published in UIA Newsletters and promoted through the international press and media.
Reference documents
Theme and objectives
The Golden Cubes Awards (GCA) honour people and organizations that help children and young people to develop a better understanding of architecture and the built environment. Entrants will be invited to submit entries describing activities or products designed to teach children and young people, from pre-school up to and including the age of 18, about architectural design and the processes by which our environment is formed.
The Awards recognise, encourages, and supports individuals and organisations that lay the foundations of an architectural culture and help children and young people, from pre-school up to and including the age of 18, to understand architectural design and the processes by which our environment is shaped. This will help them, as adult citizens, to participate effectively in the creation and intelligent use of high quality architecture that is humane, sustainable and respectful of its context.
Key criteria
The following issues should be considered by the entrants in preparing their submissions. Not every criterion must be met.
- Are the educational objectives – what the children will learn and what skills they will acquire – clearly stated?
- Does it increase their understanding of architecture?
- Does it support their understanding of social, economic and ecological sustainability?
- Does it encourage sensitivity, creativity or critical thinking?
- Isitfun?
- Does it have the support of the educational authorities or of the community?
- Does it involve collaboration or interdisciplinary partnerships?
- Can it be implemented on a continuing basis?
Eligibility
The UIA Architecture & Children Golden Cubes Awards invites competitors to present submissions relating to an activity, which is currently active, or to a product produced, or an event which has taken place.
Entries should mirror activities or publications digital or physical performed or produced during the 2020 to 2023.
Jury Members
The International Jury (below) will evaluate the entries at the International Phase:
Carla Rinaldi (Italy), Professor, President of Fondazione Reggio Children
Angela Uttke Million (Germany), Professor
Krisztina Somogyi (Hungary), PhD – Communication Specialist, UIA A&C WP member
Jorge Raedo (Colombia), Media specialist
Heba Safey Eldeen (Egypt), Professor, UIA WP Architecture & Children Co-Director
Ken-ichi Suzuki (Japan), Professor, Nagoya City University
Peter Exley (USA), American Institute of Architects (AIA) 2021 President, Architecture is Fun
Results
- Institutions Category
Laureate:
Kultur & Spielraum e.V. – Conny Beckstein, Margit Maschek-Grüneisl, Gerd Grüneisl, Hans-Jörg Polster, Marion Schäfer, Sarah Schrenk, Joscha Thiele, Joschi Baudach, Max Conradi, Odysseas Deutsch, Felix Ganzer, Thomas Kretschmar, Jakob Purreiter, Lewis Ryan Thompson, Davida Zimmer, Katharina Matzig, Dr. Maximilian Urban, Melanie Hammer, Prof. Birgit Dietz, Prof. Rasu Watanabe, Elisabeth Merk
Play City Mini-Munich (Architecture and urban planning with children) (Germany)
“Through a simple holiday game that engages children, families, experts and different city institutions, the playing practices offer children a variety of role in which they have various planning and design decisions to make.”
Honourable mentions:
ArkiPlay – Architecture is for all! – Maria Teresa Penas, Eliana Nuñez, Victor Sousa, Sabrina Silveira, Monica Pinto, participating children
Let’s renovate our garden and make bridges out of walls (Portugal)
“This participatory project succeeds to alter the abandoned locations into sustainable, joyful, playful, amiable, edutainment spaces for kids, setting an example to be followed in many parts of the world.”
Arkibag – Charlotte Carstensen, Julie Dufour
Architecture building kits for hospitalized children (Denmark)
“Through playing with the architecture kit, the children’s enthusiasm, imagination and creativity are amplified, leaving them with brighter hopes for their roles as cocreators of their built environment upon departing the hospitals.”
- Schools Category
Laureate:
Architectural studio WORKS, Social Welfare Corporation HITONONE, SAIKAIENGEI, KUSAKANMURI, SAKANTOKURA, Bluemoondesign Office, Machi no Atelier
Workshop centred on building a straw hut (Japan)
“The “Entei” project links the young children with their vegetation and agricultural heritage, and highlights the relationship and aspects with the local building culture and vernacular architecture.”
Honourable mentions:
Great Blessings Christian Learning Centre, Rayfield, JOS – Erekpitan Ola-Adisa, Aniefiok Eteudoh, Peter Agara, Deborah Awodi, Chinyere Chukwudebelu
Thank God it’s Friday, TGIF Assemblies (Nigeria)
“Through art, recycling and repurposing of material with the help of professional technical experts, the project develops the children’s critical thinking and problem-solving skills to find creative solutions while learning about their indigenous culture.”
Secondary School, Cornesti Village, Iasi, Romania – Dimitrie Anghel, DE-A Architectura Association, Zi de Bine Association, A+NOIMA
“They utilised the available material to design and implement an amphitheatre park with customised benches, creating an area for relaxation, a playground, an outdoor classroom and a location that will brings the entire community together in social and cultural events.”
- Written Media Category
Laureate:
GYIK – Műhely Foundation (Creative Art Studio for Children and Youth) – Anna Eplényi PhD, Rita Terbe, Dóra Szentandrási, Gertrúd Schmidt, Fruzsina Barta, Borbála Tóth, Dávid Kara, Gergely Kárpáti, Kristóf Tolonics
LANDSCAPE-SPACE-REPOSITORY+, Creations to boost visual-spatial intelligence (Hungary)
“This well-structured methodical handbook makes landscape education easy through an architecture and art approach. The book starts with providing tasks from abstract spatial concepts gradually and smoothly till actual three-dimensional arts, crafts and design tasks.”
Honourable mentions:
Marta Brkovic Dodig, Milena Vasic, Mina Radic, Marta Nikolic, Tea Ostojic, Andjela Bajic, Ana Andrejevic
Spector – The Sustainability Inspector (Serbia)
“A strategic board game which presents an innovative way of introducing multiple architectural aspects including the UN17 Sustainable Development Goals to children. The game also emphasises the importance of the built heritage.”
Takaguchi Laboratory, Waseda University / Maeda Laboratory, Takasaki University of Commerce / Insplace Inc. – Hiroto Takaguchi, Ketsuka Chen, Mio Sekine, Yuka Senga, Ayano Kasuya, Shoichiro Furuta, Koki Ueda, Mina Umezawa, Ruka Saito, Tomoyo Nishide, Takuo Maeda, Toru Fukuda
Development of SDGs Super City Game: Card game of new concepts for the next generation (Japan)
“Through this challenging game board, children are able to draw and prioritise city planning goals and allocate building typologies along sustainable thinking criteria and considerations.”
- Audio-Visual Media Category
Laureate:
Megawra | Athar Lina – Hadeer Saeed Dahab, Vitor Hugo Costa, Jessica Jacobs, Hana Ayman, Jana Ayman, Fatma AlaaElDeen, Malak AlaaElDeen, Hussein Khaled, Aya Mohammed, Mohamed Abd AlNasser, Jomana Walid, Omar Mohammed, Rodina Mohamed, Mazen Mohamed, Rawan Hany, Roaqiya Ahmed, Youssef Hany, Nour AlHuda Ahmed, Abdulrahman Mahrous, Omar Hany Shehata, Shahinaz Saby Elawady
Al-Khalifa Urban Dreams (Egypt)
“This project captured the youth’s change of their own perspective and relationships to the natural and urban heritage of their vulnerable historic area. The developed personal stories through films acknowledge the social and economic values of their historic districts and enhances awareness of broader environmental issues.”
Honourable mentions:
Insomnia Studio – Nir Cohen, Hadasa Greenberg-Yaakov
“The game route strengthens children’s awareness of the city streets, hidden squares and alleys, while the virtual reality supports farther knowledge of bygone folklore and people of the city.”
Dr. Ipek Türeli, Matt James, Happy Camper Media, Dr. Maija-Liisa Harju, Zhuofan Chen, Audrey Boutot, Sihem Attari, Pastille Rose, Audrey Boutot
“Climate change, fossil fuels, greenhouse gasses, pollution, clean energy, global warming, climatic migration, renewable building, materials, solar gains, etc., are issues introduced to young children through this project.”
The first prize projects will be exhibited at the UIA Architecture and Children Work Programme Exhibition during the 28th UIA World Congress in Copenhagen, Denmark.
Click here to view the Jury report.