The Architectural Association and Foster + Partners have today unveiled the recipient of the 2013 Foster + Partners Prize.
The Prize is presented annually to the AA Diploma student whose portfolio best addresses the themes of sustainability and infrastructure. The recipient is selected jointly by the AA and Foster + Partners at the end of each academic year.
This year's prize has been awarded to John Naylor, of Diploma Unit 16, for his project "Bamboo Lakou."
Set in the context of Haiti - a country suffering massive deforestation - the project combines the creation of a sustainable bamboo-growing infrastructure with the development of the vernacular 'Lakou' communal courtyard typology.
The aims of the project are to establish bamboo within the Haitian construction sector, as an earthquake-resistant alternative to concrete, and to set in motion a long-term reforestation strategy.
The themes of sustainability and infrastructure that underpin the award were selected to highlight themes of common interest to the AA and Foster + Partners and for their global significance in contemporary architectural discourse.
"In John Naylor's project we see how social and environmental goals can be complementary," commented Mouzhan Majidi, Chief Executive of Foster + Partners.
"We hope very much that the debate this prize generates will encourage students to address the themes of sustainability and infrastructure, which are of increasing relevance to architecture today."