The Australian Urban Design Awards were created by Prime Minister Paul Keating’s Urban Design Taskforce in 1996 and were inaugurated with the Australia Award for Urban Design. The program was established to recognise contemporary Australian urban design projects of the highest quality and to encourage cities, towns and communities across the country to strive for best practice in all projects. Over the past decade the program has communicated the critical role of good urban design in the shaping of the nation and the collaborative relationships that underpin the successful development of the built environment.
The Australian Urban Design Awards are convened by the Planning Institute of Australia with the support of these peak organisations: Australian Institute of Architects, Australian Institute of Landscape Architects, Green Building Council of Australia, Consult Australia, Engineers Australia, Australian Sustainable Built Environment Council and Urban Design Forum. The current Awards patron is Lucy Turnbull AO and from 2016 the Awards will be delivered by Architecture Media, a cross-platform publishing and events company focused on the built environment.
The Australian Urban Design Awards facilitates professional recognition and exposure of urban design work to a national audience. The intent and scope of the Australian Urban Design Awards is wide-ranging, and attracts entries for initiatives, built projects and publications that will make a significant difference to the places, spaces, buildings and infrastructure of our cities and towns.
Awards Categories
- Delivered outcome – large scale
- Delivered outcome – small scale
- Policies, programs and concepts – large scale
- Policies, programs and concepts – small scale
- Australia Award for Urban Design (selected from the winners of the previous four categories)
2016 Awards Timeline
| 1 July | Call for registrations |
| 11 July | Entries open |
| 9 September | Entries close |
| 13 October | Awards presentation in Melbourne, co-located with the 2016 Kemsley Oration by Sarah Hill, CEO, Greater Sydney Commission |
