Green Solutions Awards 2022-2023: find out the winners of the international platform
C21 France La rédaction
Of the 219 applicants this year, 29 projects were in the running on the international platform. Located in Canada, Scotland, Denmark, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Spain, the United Kingdom, Jordan, Germany, Italy, Switzerland, Portugal, the Netherlands and Senegal, these projects provide a good overview of the sustainable solutions implemented in these countries. So, which winners did the jury choose? Which buildings, districts and infrastructures have qualified for the international phase?
Find out below!
Infrastructure User’s Choice
Winner: Re:Crete Footbridge
Contractor: État du Valais
Construction Manager: École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Laboratoire d'exploration structurale (SXL)
Companies: Diamcoupe SA; Freyssinet SA; Sika Suisse SA; Emil Egger Romandie SA; Bridgology SA
Building User’s Choice
Winner: Louly's Canteen
Contractor: Immaculée Conception de Mbour
Construction Manager: Ga2D
Designer: Association Khadjir
Company: Yadenne Construction
Earth Specialist: Elementerre
Construction Company: Residents of the village of Louly
Building User’s Choice (Germany)
Winner: Alnatura office building
Designer & Architect: haascookzemmrich STUDIO 2050
Contractor: Transsolar GmbH
Construction Manager: BGG Grünzig Ingenieurgesellschaft
Sustainable Infrastructure Grand Prize
Winner: Re:Crete Footbridge
Contractor: État du Valais
Construction Manager: École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Laboratoire d'exploration structurale (SXL)
Companies: Diamcoupe SA; Freyssinet SA; Sika Suisse SA; Emil Egger Romandie SA; Bridgology SA
The jury's verdict: This project demonstrates the feasibility of re-using non-prefabricated concrete elements in load-bearing structures.
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Ex-aequo m
ention: The 5th generation heating and cooling grid of Plymouth!
Project Manager: Plymouth City Council
Owner of the Grid: Plymouth City Council
Installer: Vital Energi
Supplier: SunGift Solar
Tester:WJ Groundwater
The jury's verdict: This is a good way to decrease the energy consumption. The project can be replicated.
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Ex-aequo mention: The 5th generation heating and cooling grid of Glasgow!
Operator : Clyde Gateway
The jury's verdict: Same. NB: These two similar projects count as one project
Mention: Irrigation of the Green Garden Concept
Contractor: Greater Jerash Municipality
Partners: Regional Environmental Centre - Sweden (REC); International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN)
The jury's verdict: The project integrates the reuse of rainwater and grey water.
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New Construction Grand Prize
Winner: The Danish Nature Agency's official residence in Thy
Contractor: Naturstyrelsens, NST Bygningscenter
Construction Manager: Bjerg Arkitektur A/S
The jury's verdict: This is a wooden house that includes wood fibre insulation, and a good project regarding energy consumption.
Mention: Alnatura office building
Designer & Architect: haascookzemmrich STUDIO 2050
Contractor: Transsolar GmbH
Construction Manager: BGG Grünzig Ingenieurgesellschaft
The jury's verdict: The building is made with clay, and there are a lot of good solutions from an environmental point of view.
Renovation Grand Prize
Winner: CasaClima Class A - House B in Sacile
Contractor: Lorenzon srl
Construction Manager: Lorenzon srl
Windows & Frames: Finestra Moderna
Controlled Mechanical Ventilation: Ventilazione casa
Energy Design:DomoPrestige.it
The jury's verdict: This project is not particularly innovative, but it includes everything that a good intervention requires, plus its energy consumption is low.
Mention: Townfield Head Farm
Contractor: Mark Woodward
Construction Manager: Greendirections
Companies: Rotary Engineering; Fraser Whelan
The jury's verdict: We like this project because it’s all electric, with renewable energy. it respects the environment.
Hot Climates Prize
Winner: Malicounda High School
Contractor: G2C
Construction Manager: G2C
Developer: Ministry of Education of Senegal - Malicounda Public High School
Investor: Enfance et Nature Association
Designer: IN SITU Architecture
The jury's verdict: This building has a very low primary consumption.
Mention: Thermic renovation of a guard house with baked clay
Contractor: Eiffage Senegal
Construction Manager: Entreprise d'Ingénierie et de Construction (EIC)
Thermal Consultancy Agency: EMASOL
Architect: CAWD
The jury's verdict: It is a very small project, but very interesting.
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Circular Economy Prize
Winner: The Phenix
Contractor: Lemay
Construction Manager: Entreprise de construction T.E.Q. inc
Engineers: Martin Roy and Associates; Dupras Ledoux; ELEMA
The jury's verdict: It’s a very good renovation of an industrial heritage!
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Low-Tech Prize
Winner: Charles Lepierre French highschool of Lisbon
Contractor: Agence pour l'Enseignement Français à l'Étranger
Construction Manager: Méandre etc'
Designer: MA. TERIA
Other Consultancy Agencies: LAIII; Panorama Paysage; Acoustique Vivie et Associés; Rio Plano
Thermal Consultancy Agency: Alto Ingenierie
Other: Veritas
The jury's verdict: This highschool deserves the low-tech prize thanks to natural techniques that are used to avoid mechanical ones.
Mention: Louly's Canteen
Contractor: Immaculée Conception de Mbour
Construction Manager: Ga2D
Designer: Association Khadjir
Company: Yadenne Construction
Earth Specialist: Elementerre
Construction Company: Residents of the village of Louly
The jury's verdict: Very interesting building, with low investment costs. The material and human resources used are local. The project can be widely replicated.
Read the case study
Health & Comfort Prize
Winner: Rådhuslunden City hall grove
Contractor: Domea
Construction Manager: Bjerg Arkitektur A/S
The jury's verdict: This modular building can adapt to any future use.
Mention: Fjord View - energy efficient social housing
Contractor: Bjerg Arkitektur A/S
Construction Manager: Bjerg Arkitektur A/S
Mechanical Engineer: Erasmus & Partnere
SPAIN
Due to the large number of Spanish projects, buildings in this country were assessed in parallel.
Building User’s choice
Winner: Hotel 'Mas Torre del Marqués'
Contractor: Elecnor S.A
Construction Manager: Elecnor S.A
Designer: EDRA arquitectura km0
Developer: Proyectos e Inversiones del Matarraña SL
New Construction Grand Prize
Winner: GreenSpace Gijon
Contractor: Gesyges
Construction Manager: Gesyges
Designer: Emase Arquitectura
Facility Manager: SvR Ingenieros
The jury’s verdict: It's a very good project in many aspects, incorporating both passive and active measures. It's the only positive energy candidate. Particular attention has been paid to indoor air quality. The building is LEED certified.
Mention: I+D+I SORIA CAMPUS
Contractor: Unión Temporal de Empresas (UTE) Duques de Soria- Arcor - Herce
Construction Manager: Unión Temporal de Empresas (UTE) Duques de Soria- Arcor - Herce
Contractor Representative: Arancha Sogo
Developer: Universidad de Valladolid- Vicerrectorado de Patrimonio e Infraestructuras
Designer: Francisco Valbuena García- Juan José Ventura Pons- Unidad Técnica de Arquitectura
Other Consultancy Agencies: Carlos Herguedas Pastor-Unidad Técnica de Arquitectura; Daniel Pérez; Luis Ignacio Díez; Ana I.Jiménez; Maria de la O.García; Gonzales Díaz; M. Jesús; Juan José Ventura Pou
Health & Safety Coordinator: David Ramos - Soria prevención
Construction Companies: J. Manuel Muñoz Martín / Jesús Vaquer; Javier Jiménez (GEOTER, Geothermal Energy, SL)
Others: José Emilio Nogués / Diego Tamayo
Structures Calculist: Pejarbo S.L.
Thermal Consultancy Agency: Daniel Pascual, Architect
Environmental Consultancy: Cristina Gutiérrez Cid, Arquitecta
The jury’s verdict: Two important points guided our choice: the use of healthy materials and the flexibility of the building's occupancy.
Read the case study
Renovation Grand Prize
Winner: ShowPass
Contractor: Energiehaus
Construction Manager: Energiehaus
The jury's verdict: This project has everything a good renovation project should have. Energy consumption is low and so are the costs.
Read the case study
Circular Economy Prize
Winner: Hotel 'Mas Torre del Marqués'
Contractor: Elecnor S.A
Construction Manager: Elecnor S.A
Designer: EDRA arquitectura km0
Developer: Proyectos e Inversiones del Matarraña SL
The jury’s verdict: Local materials and workers are being employed. An LCA has been carried out, showing that the environmental impact is lower than for new construction.
Low-Tech Prize
Winner: Learnlife Eco Hub: pop-up learning space
Contractor: Learnlife
Energy Consultants: Praxis Resilient Buildings
Developer: Learnlife
Certification Company: ZEPHIR
The jury's verdict: The jury paid close attention to the social aspect of the spaces, an aspect that should be taken into much greater account. It is also important to note the non-permanent structure, which blends in with nature and its architecture is not so impactful.
Selection methods
Experts and the public helped to decide between the competing projects.
The experts
6 experts from the sector analysed the submissions and came up with a consensus award list. Many thanks to Christian Brodhag, President of Construction21 International, for chairing the jury, and to the entire panel:
- Jean-Marie Hauglustaine, University of Liège – Belgium
- Chong Meng, CABR – China
- Marco d’Egidio (engineer), Heineken – Italy
- Mohammed Ahachad, Faculty of Sciences and Technology of Tangier – Morocco
- Maita Fernandez Armesto, Barcelona City Council – Spain
Online voting by the public
Using the same principle, online users were able to vote for the projects they supported.
Qualification for the international final
Beyond the recognition at national level, the winners and mentions have also qualified for the international final. These projects will then go through another selection stage, where they will face the champions from other countries (Belgium, France, China, Morocco).
A panel of experts from around the world will select the international winners, who will be announced at an Awards ceremony to be held during COP28 in Dubai in December. The winning projects will provide concrete solutions that illustrate the institutional discourse.
