World Architecture Festival Reveals WAFX 2025 Award Winners

28 Exceptional future architectural and design projects have been selected from the World Architecture Festival’s shortlist as winners of the WAFX 2025 Award.

COMPILED BY Gina Dionisio

Held annually, the World Architecture Festival‘s WAFX Award, selected from shortlisted entries, aims to shine the spotlight and recognise future projects that utilise design and architecture to effectively address major architectural issues faced across eleven key categories including health, climate change, technology, ethics, values, food and more.   

Here are the selected 28 winning projects:  

Ageing and Health 

• Echoes of the Void by Segmento Urbano, in Ilha de São Miguel, Portugal
• Doswell Nexus Recovery Center by HKS inc., in Dallas, United States
• VA El Paso Heathcare Center by HKS Architects (SmithGroup + HKS Joint Venture), in El Paso, Texas, United States
• Health Centre – Polo de Saúde de Évora by CLOU architects, in Évora, Portugal

Building Technology 

• Bond Redux by 5468796 Architecture Inc., in Winnipeg, Canada
• Regenerative Tree by NIKKEN SEKKEI LTD, in Tokyo, Japan
• Floating School by UArchitects / Misak Terzibasiyan, in Shyamnagar, Bangladesh  

Carbon, Energy & Climate 

• Da Nang Waste-to-energy Plant by VO TRONG NGHIA (VTN Architects), in Da Nang, Vietnam 
• Viet Tri House by VO TRONG NGHIA (VTN Architects), in Phu Tho, Vietnam 
• Project Rise – Lumenis by HKS Architects, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia 

Cultural Identity 

• Islamic World District Grand mosque complex by Pinnacle Design Studio, in Madinnah, Saudi Arabia 
• The Woodson African American Museum of Florida by STORYN Studio for Architecture, in St. Petersburg, United States
• Gelephu International Airport by BIG-Bjarke Ingels Group, in Gelephu, Bhutan
• Te Ara Tukutuku by LandLAB + SCAPE as part of Toi Waihanga design collective, in Tāmaki Makaurau, New Zealand
  

Digital Worlds 

• Neural Palate Kueh (Tasting Architecture with AI) by Artificial-Architecture, Singapore University of Technology and Design, in Singapore 
• Rio AI City by Hyphen, in Río de Janeiro, Brazil

Ethics and Values 

• Hatay Masterplan by Foster + Partners, in Antakya, Turkey 
• Canadian School by Sordo Madaleno, in Cholula, Mexico
• Nested Arc, Creative Community no. 1 by Form4 Architecture, in Nevada, United States

Food 

• Kamdhenu (“कामधेनु”) is a Sanskrit / HIndi word that translate to “Divine Cow” symbolizing Abundance. (Reimagining Cow Welfare: A Harmonious Fusion of Tradition, Sustainability & Future Dairy Design) by tHE gRID Architects, in Ahmedabad, India 

Power and Justice 

• “The Other City: Reimagining Gulf Labor Camps as Creative Campuses” by design and more international, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates 
• Shahrzad Mixed-Use Building by Boozhgan Architecture Studio, in Tehran, Iran

Re-Use 

• ONE – The Living Archive by Rawasem Architecture Workshop, in Antananarivo, Madagascar 
• The Truman Brewery by Buckley Gray Yeoman, in London, United Kingdom
• Nova (The New School Museum): Adaptive Reuse of Two Industrial Buildings for mixed use by FractalView Studio, in California, United States
• Cologne Art Tower by TCHOBAN VOSS Architekten GmbH, in Cologne, Germany

Smart Cities 

• Muscat Structure Plan by Broadway Malyan, in Muscat, Oman
• Jieyang City Strategic Masterplan and Huilai County Concept Plan and Urban Design by MORROW Architects and Planners, in Jieyang City, China

As the world’s biggest live-judged architectural awards programme, all 28 winners will present their projects in person on stage at the Festival held in Miami in November this year. Each winner will go head-to-head for the title of the WAFX winner.  

In addition, other project winners will be announced at the live event including World Building of the Year, Landscape of the Year, Future Project of the Year and Interior of the Year. 

World Architecture Festival and Inside World Festival of Interiors will take place at Miami Beach Convention Center, Miami, on 12 – 14 November 2025. | worldarchitecturefestival.com

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