Winners Announced for 2022 Habitat Competition

For Immediate Release:
Washington, D.C., August 26, 2022 – Habitat for Humanity International, Inc., the National Ready Mixed Concrete Association’s Build With Strength Coalition, and the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture (ACSA) are pleased to announce the winners of the 2022 Habitat Design Competition: Climate Positive Concrete Housing. The competition is based on the Habitat for Humanity U.S. Construction standards for affordable, resilient, sustainable and accessible homes. Students were challenged to explore a variety of innovations and tools to improve climate conditions with concrete building materials in the design and construction of an ideal Habitat home. The competition drew over 500 participants and received nearly 200 submissions from 23 colleges and universities across North America.

Architects are in a unique place to envision innovative solutions to the housing crisis as well as to address the impacts of climate change through the design of the built environment. Competition entries were judged on their successful inclusion of low or negative embodied carbon strategies in materials and construction processes as well as creative design concepts that support affordable housing.

The winning projects were selected by a panel of distinguished jurors, including:

Molly Berg, Senior Specialist Building Science, Habitat for Humanity International
Chris Drew, Director of Sustainability, Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture
Paul Holley, Director of the Center for Construction Innovation and Collaboration, Auburn University
Tsz Yan Ng, Associate Professor in Architecture, University of Michigan
Jasmit Rangr, Founder Rangr Studio and Professor in Architecture, University of California, Berkeley

The jurors selected four winners and three honorable mentions with projects in regions across the continent:

West Region Winner:
Project Name & Location: INTER[B]LOCK, Avon, Colorado
Student: Abby Loftus
Faculty Sponsor: Margaret McManus
Institution: Savannah College of Art and Design

Central Region Winner:
Project Name & Location: TILT, Austin, Texas
Students: Stella Coble & Michelle Powell
Faculty Sponsor: Martin Hättasch
Institution: University of Texas at Austin

North Region Winner:
Project Name & Location: NELSON PLAZA + BOX HOUSE EXTENSION, Vancouver, Canada
Student: Bella Scott
Faculty Sponsor: Randall Deutsch
Institution: University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign

South Region Winner:
Project Name & Location: 1717 ANDRY ST. PRECAST PROTOTYPE, New Orleans, Louisiana
Students: Ryan Bramlett & Nikolas Makela
Faculty Sponsor: Matthew Shea
Institution: University of Colorado Denver

Honorable Mentions: 

Project Name & Location: SHELTERED BY CONCRETE, Austin, Texas
Student: Veronica Geschwend
Faculty Sponsor: Przemyslaw Swiatek
Institution: University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign

Project Name & Location: RING’ HABITAT, Avon, Colorado
Student: Sanket Gunjal
Faculty Sponsor: Margaret McManus
Institution: Savannah College of Art and Design

Project Name & Location: PULELEHUA – PRECAST CONCRETE HOUSING, Hilo, Hawaii
Students: Jason Kennell & Lucas Wylie
Faculty Sponsor: Matthew Shea
Institution: University of Colorado Denver

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Habitat for Humanity International, Inc.
Driven by the vision that everyone needs a decent place to live, Habitat for Humanity found its earliest inspirations as a grassroots movement on an interracial community farm in south Georgia. Since its founding in 1976, the Christian housing organization has grown to become a leading global nonprofit working in local communities across all 50 states in the U.S. and in more than 70 countries. Families and individuals in need of a hand up partner with Habitat for Humanity to build or improve a place they can call home. Habitat homeowners help build their own homes alongside volunteers and pay an affordable mortgage. Through financial support, volunteering or adding a voice to support affordable housing, everyone can help families achieve the strength, stability and self-reliance they need to build better lives for themselves. Through shelter, we empower. For more information, visit www.habitat.org.

National Ready Mixed Concrete Association (NRMCA)
NRMCA is celebrating 90 years of representing the producers of ready mixed concrete and the companies that provide materials, equipment, and support to the industry. It conducts education, training, promotion, research, engineering, safety, environmental, technological, lobbying and regulatory programs. For more information, visit www.nrmca.org.

NRMCA’S Build With Strength Coalition
Build with Strength is a coalition of the National Ready Mixed Concrete Association and works with communities, lawmakers, and industry employees to advocate for safer, sustainable building materials. For more information, visit www.buildwithstrength.com.

About ACSA
Founded in 1912 by 10 charter members, the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture is an international association of architecture schools preparing future architects, designers, and change agents. ACSA’s full members include all of the accredited professional degree programs in the United States and Canada, as well as international schools and 2- and 4-year programs. Together, ACSA schools represent 7,000 faculty educating more than 40,000 students. The mission of the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture is to lead architectural education and research. ACSA seeks to empower faculty and schools to educate increasingly diverse students, expand disciplinary impacts, and create knowledge for the advancement of architecture. For more information, visit www.acsa-arch.org.

Additional Partner Organizations who have sponsored this competition include:
The RMC Research and Education Foundation; The National Concrete Masonry Association; Portland Cement Association; Insulating Concrete Forms Manufacturers Association; Concrete Reinforcing Steel Institute; American Concrete Pumping Association; and The National Stone and Gravel Association, visit Habitat Competition Partners.