GREAT PLACES Awards

The Great Places Awards are sponsored yearly by Places, the Environmental Design Research Association, and Metropolis Magazine. The program reflects the related missions of Places, EDRA, and Metropolis to create an expanded forum for high-quality environmental and urban design that enhances awareness and concern for the public realm.

Winners of the 2009 awards were announced in March. For a summary of winning projects, click here.

The program, now in its thirteenth year, is distinguished by its interdisciplinary focus, concern for human factors in the design of the built environment, and commitment to promoting links between design research and practice. Entries represent the full breadth of environmental design and related social science activity, including architecture, landscape architecture, planning, urban design, interior design, public art, lighting design, graphic design, environmental psychology, sociology, anthropology and geography.

Design Awards recognize completed projects that demonstrate excellence as human environments. Planning Awards recognize projects that make proposals for the future design, use or management of a place. Research Awards recognize projects that investigate the relationships between design and human behavior, culture or experience. Each year a Book Award is also given. The fall 2008 issue of Places (20.3) featured in-depth articles on the 2008 winners. Winners of the 2009 awards will be described in depth in the fall 2009 issue (21.3).

The deadline for entries for the 2010 awards will be Feb. 9, 2010.