Celebrating impact
in the built environment

The Sustainable Initiative of the Year award will go to the single initiative demonstrating successful implementation, showing clear measurements of success, collaboration and outcomes – including Environmental, Social and Governance ESG principles – in its work.  Evidence should focus on the period Jan 2024 – July 2026.

• Evidence of successful initiative (40%)
• Innovation (15%)
• Collaboration (15%)
• Employee and stakeholder engagement (15%)
• Benefits to wider industry (15%)

Open to all building types, situated in the Middle East, South Asia and Africa.  This award recognizes and celebrates the retrofit of a building that most effectively demonstrates high levels of user satisfaction while delivering outstanding measured building performance – the vital adaptation and repurposing of existing buildings, setting a precedent to inspire the industry’s carbon footprint in the process. Please include evidence of significant energy/water savings, improved IAQ and contribution to making the building greener. This applies to projects between Jan 2025 – July 2026.

(Eligible entrants: project owners, building operators, architecture and design firms, main contractors and project management companies)

• High levels of user satisfaction (35%)
• Evidence of carbon emissions reduction (20%)
• Wow factor (20%)
• Contribution to making the building greener (25%)

The Workforce of the Future Initiative award will go to an organization that has successfully implemented a programme to encourage young people into its workforce, improve the skills of its current workforce, focus on worker welfare and introduce processes that enable transition, encourage knowledge transfer and foster innovation.  Evidence should demonstrate employee engagement in digital transformation, data projects, training and development programmes and attracting and recruiting young professionals. Evidence should focus on the period Jan 2024 – July 2026.

• Evidence of successful recruitment/training programme (30%)
• Evidence of successful upskilling programme (30%)
• Successful culture of innovation and knowledge transfer (10%)
• Programme Participation Engagement (15%)
• Leadership, employee, stakeholder, and client engagement (15%)

This category will recognize leading initiatives (across the Middle East, Africa and South Asia) that implement a reduction in embodied carbon during the construction of new infrastructure, or buildings that support carbon net zero aims. The initiative could also be an alternative design, use of new materials or innovative equipment to reduce energy consumption during a project and its lifecycle. The project does not have to be complete, however, evidence is requested that shows the lower or zero carbon impact of the initiative. How the initiative presents a reduction in embodied carbon and the impact of the design on reducing operational carbon should also be demonstrated where possible. (Product suppliers are not eligible). Evidence should focus on the period Jan 2024 – July 2026.

The successful initiative could be an example of reusing materials and/or design for deconstruction to efforts to establish marketplaces for used building materials. Initiatives must show how they are reducing emissions from building materials and the industry’s impact on nature and biodiversity.  Example initiatives could include:  new design approaches and solutions towards the waste-free building, new fabrication, construction and deconstruction strategies enabling circularity, adaptable, upgradeable, regenerative, resilient building technologies and systems, upcycling of building and construction waste materials, product-service systems (PSS) and performance-based contracts, innovative business models for circular building materials, products and technologies, industry 4.0 digital technologies and platforms for circular transition management, circularity-readiness and performance assessment strategies (beyond LCA), applied research, demonstration projects and case studies.

Evidence can be provided on the contribution of gathering, storing, exchanging and using data, including the valuation of the financial and environmental impact of materials and products used. Evidence should focus on the period Jan 2024 – July 2026.

• Evidence of reducing emissions from building materials and/or the industry’s impact on nature and biodiversity (50%)
• Implementation of the business model for circularity (25%)
• Evidence of knowledge transfer and data gathering for results (25%)

This award recognizes examples of:

• Heritage design and architecture. Heritage structures could include cultural, natural and mixed projects or buildings.
• Conservation Management Plans (CMP)
• New projects that have been conceived for the protection and conservation of the surrounding area.
• Methods of restoration, rehabilitation, reconstruction and maintenance of existing historic buildings.

Evidence should focus on the period Jan 2024 – July 2026.

• Evidence of social impact (25%)
• Measurements and results (25%)
• Wow factor (15%)
• Innovation – project/community differentiators (35%)

Liveable City Initiative of the Year award will recognize the initiative demonstrating sustainability and environmental awareness, as well as having a positive impact on the local community and environment.  The best practice of the initiative should directly facilitate cities to realize the goals of safety, health, resilience and sustainability. Examples of the following can be submitted: collaboration, connectivity, reducing environmental footprint and waste, access to healthcare and education, resilience, urban mobility, safety, security and data-driven performance.

Eligible initiatives will be those that have been completed within Jan 2024 – July 2026. Entries may be submitted from government entities, municipalities, developers, consultancies, contractors and architecture firms.

This award is open to organizations (non-technology providers) that can demonstrate how they have successfully implemented sustainable digital transformation in their business. Entrants must show how they have successfully impacted the business by focusing on fixing pain points, team collaboration, operational change and fostering innovation. Examples of improved productivity, digital use cases and positive impact on internal productivity, client projects and engagement should be provided. Evidence should focus on the period Jan 2024 – July 2026.

• Evidence of successful digital transformation implementation (30%)
• Evidence of future digital plan (15%)
• Collaboration (15%)
• Innovation (15%)
• Evidence of improved productivity, and efficiency (10%)
• Positive Impact on Client Projects (15%)