The LafargeHolcim Foundation for Sustainable Construction was created in 2003 (as the Holcim Foundation for Sustainable Construction) to raise awareness of the important role that architecture, engineering, urban planning and construction have in achieving a more sustainable future – and to globally encourage critical interdisciplinary and long-range perspectives.
Following the completion of the merger that gave birth to LafargeHolcim in 2015, the Foundation also changed its name. The primary objective of the Foundation is to select and support a range of initiatives that extend beyond technical solutions to promoting sustainable construction approaches and solutions that embrace architectural excellence and enhanced quality of life.
USD 2 million Awards competition for sustainable construction
The LafargeHolcim Awards is the most significant global competition in sustainable design. It seeks leading projects of professionals as well as bold ideas from the Next Generation that combine sustainable construction solutions with architectural excellence.
Organised by the LafargeHolcim Foundation for Sustainable Construction, the competition identifies the ideas with the highest potential to tackle today’s challenges to increasing urbanisation and to improve quality of life.
The 5th International LafargeHolcim Awards for projects and visions in sustainable construction attracted 5,085 entries by authors in 121 countries. Eleven prizes were presented to the authors of the best entries in each of the five geographical competition regions.
LafargeHolcim Forum symposiums
The LafargeHolcim Forum is a series of symposiums conducted by the Foundation, together with its partner universities, to advance the academic discussion of sustainable construction. Every three years, around 300 experts from around the world meet to discuss challenges of today’s urbanization processes and built environment.
The conferences are complemented by the release of technical publications, and offer architects, engineers, building professionals and experts from all generations and geographic locations an interdisciplinary academic platform for exchanging ideas and information.
The 6th International LafargeHolcim Forum for Sustainable Construction will be hosted by the American University in Cairo, Egypt, and take place from April 4 to 6, 2019. It will be dedicated to the topic of “Re-materializing Construction”, and the format of the event will be similar to the previous symposiums. The Academic Committee of the LafargeHolcim Foundation is responsible for content, contributions and the outline of the Forum.
Publications on exemplary buildings
Through its activities, the Foundation has developed a close-knit global network of stakeholder groups, and it has grown to assume the role of information hub. The Foundation publishes booklets on exemplary sustainable construction projects, as well as maintaining a comprehensive Internet presence and Social Media engagement.
In addition to the monograph series, the Foundation recently released a special issue of AA: L’Architecture d’Aujourd’hui dedicated to the self-supporting structure of compressed earth bricks examines the multiple layers where sustainability is embedded by leading architects and designers. Beyond the architectural form of the geometrical vault, the Droneport illustrates the advantages of interdisciplinary thinking to address the challenges of supplying medicines and other urgent aid to communities lacking adequate transport infrastructure.
Banner image
Floating University in Bangladesh won the LafargeHolcim Awards Bronze 2017. Australian architect Richard Hassell and Mun Summ Wong of WOHA, Singapore won the prize for their BRAC University campus in Dhaka.
