Geneva, Switzerland – The esteemed Aga Khan Award for Architecture, celebrated for recognizing innovative architectural projects that meet societal, cultural, and environmental needs, has announced its jury for the 2025 competition. Set to convene this January, the Master Jury will assess a plethora of projects submitted globally for the prestigious $1 million prize.
Leading figures in global architecture and academia comprise the nine-member panel for the 16th cycle of the award, ranging from university professors to founders of significant cultural and architectural initiatives. Among them is Azra Akšamija, a cultural practitioner and the Director of the Art, Culture, and Technology Program at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the United States. Joining her on the panel is Noura Al-Sayeh Holtrop, a seasoned advisor for heritage projects with the Bahrain Authority for Culture and Antiquities.
The diversified jury also includes Lucia Allais, Director of the Buell Center at Columbia University’s Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation, and David Basulto, Founder of the acclaimed architectural resource, ArchDaily, which operates from both Santiago, Chile, and Berlin, Germany.
Yvonne Farrell from Dublin, Ireland, who co-founded Grafton Architects and holds a professorship at the Academy of Architecture in Mendrisio, Switzerland, brings European perspectives into the jury’s multinational dialogue. Kabage Karanja, a Kenyan co-founder of Cave_bureau and Assistant Professor at Yale University, adds a sharp lens on both practical and theoretical aspects of architectural design to the group.
Further enriching the panel are intellectual heavyweights like Yacouba Konaté, a Philosophy Professor at the University Félix Houphouët Boigny of Abidjan-Cocody in Côte d’Ivoire, and Mun Summ Wong from Singapore who, apart from his professorial duties at the National University of Singapore, is a leading voice in urban sustainable practices with WOHA.
This diverse assembly underscores the award’s emphasis on inclusivity and the integration of various cultural and technological insights into architecture, aiming at holistic community benefits.
The careful selection by the prestigious panel goes beyond aesthetic judgment, delving into how projects cater to and stimulate the social, economic, and cultural environments. Among the areas examined are how the entries utilize local resources and innovation, possibly setting a precedent for future projects elsewhere.
At the core of the award’s philosophy is the belief that architecture should resonate with and empower communities, blending traditional practices with innovative solutions to pressing modern challenges. This vision is continuously supported by the Aga Khan Development Network through initiatives such as the Aga Khan Historic Cities Programme, enhancing urban culture and development across the globe.
The extensive evaluation process by the jury will culminate in a shortlisting of projects, which will then be subject to on-site reviews by independent experts, majority of whom are leading architects and planners.
The Aga Khan Award for Architecture plays a vital role not only in celebrating architectural excellence but also in fostering a dialogue about the societal role of architecture. Through its rigorous appraisal process and the diverse insights of its jury, the award spearheads a global conversation on innovative and culturally resonant building practices, echoing the broader aims of the Aga Khan Trust for Culture to integrate cultural heritage as a fundamental aspect of development.