UF researchers receive international sustainability award

December 16, 2008

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — University of Florida architecture associate professor Donna L. Cohen and visiting professor Claude E. Armstrong received the Holcim Acknowledgement Award in the Africa Middle East Region at a ceremony in November in Marrakech, Morocco, for their design of an integrated theater and orphanage in Tanzania. The ceremony was attended by more than 320 representatives of government, business, architecture and related disciplines from 24 countries.

The Regional Holcim Awards is an international competition by the Holcim Foundation for Sustainable Construction, created by Holcim Ltd. of Switzerland, one of the world’s leading producers of cement and aggregates. The competition celebrates innovative and tangible sustainable construction projects from five regions: Africa Middle East, Asia Pacific, Europe, Latin America, and North America. In total, about 5,000 projects were evaluated this year, and 55 received awards.

The TunaHAKI integrated theater and orphanage, in Moshi, Tanzania was one of 11 in the region awarded for illustrating the broad scope of sustainable construction approaches to the built environment. The project focuses on using local production techniques and materials in an effort to support the local economy. Assisting were Glenn Darling and Rachel Stoudt, master’s students in the School of Architecture in the College of Design, Construction and Planning.

“Armstrong and I are chiefly responsible for the design of the theater, while Finnish firm Hollmen Reuter Sandman Architects are designers of the orphanage, yet the whole project is an intense collaboration. With the help of Architecture for Humanity, we have assembled an international team of like-minded professionals, from Tanzania, Kenya, and Canada. We work together whenever and wherever we can, and send drawings back and forth via the Internet. Certainly, our favorite meetings are when we are with the TunaHAKI children.” said Cohen. “We were honored to receive the Holcim award and invitation to Morrocco, where we contributed to an exhibit and discussions about sustainable design in developing nations, and met future collaborators.”

The Moshi orphanage, started in 1998 by Tanzanian artist David Ryatula and his wife, Mary, has rescued more than 100 children from the streets, giving them food, shelter, medical care, a complete education and the chance to participate in arts such as acrobatics and drama.

The Holcim Awards evaluates projects on the foundation’s five “target issues” for sustainable construction: quantum change and transferability, ethical standards and social equity, ecological quality and energy conservation, economic performance and compatibility, and contextual and aesthetic impact. The competition provides $2 million of prize money per three-year competition cycle.