A global competition
We award housing innovations from around the world. Click on pins on the map below to visit award winning housing solutions.
Our process
The awards are open for entries from January to March every year. We receive around 125 applications from around the globe.
Our team of housing specialists shortlist up to 12 projects that demonstrate exceptional work.
We then spend several weeks conducting in-depth research into each of the shortlisted projects. From this research, we produce a dossier for the Awards Advisory Group which addresses each aspect of the awards’ criteria, as follows:
- Innovation
- Impact
- Sustainability
- Transferability
- Significance
The Advisory Group select up to four projects for an in-person evaluation visit*, with a view to receiving either a silver or gold award. Following these visits, we present our findings and recommendations back to the Advisory Group who provide guidance on our assessment.
We also consult two external advisors: The Executive Director of UN-HABITAT, Anacláudia Rossbach, and Leilani Farha, who is the former UN Special Rapporteur on Adequate Housing and Global Director of The Shift.
Once a final decision has been made, we give two gold and two silver awards, and up to eight bronze awards.
The entire process takes 12 months, with announcements of the winners coinciding with the call for entries for the subsequent year’s awards.
* World Habitat always conducts in-person evaluation visits when it is practically possible and safe to do so, but there have been occasions where this has not been possible, for instance during the COVID-19 pandemic. In such cases, we conduct the evaluation online with the support of a panel of independent housing experts.
How we work with award winners
Whilst each award winning solution is different, we aim to follow the same three step approach:
Find & Award
The World Habitat Awards, established in 1986, help us to discover practical, high-quality approaches to pressing housing issues.
Previous awardees and partners across the world help share the call for entries and encourage entries from new housing innovators.
Our robust methodology combined with the expertise of our advisors, ensures that every award winning solution is rigorously assessed, impactful, and capable of creating lasting change.
Strengthen & Promote
We support the award-winning solutions to scale up, promoting them to become mainstream practice.
Through communications and events, we increase the visibility of award winning innovations and their organisations.
With 50 years’ experience in housing and our global network of experts, we provide mentoring, capacity building, grants and help build connections between people and ideas.
Transfer & Take up
We promote effective housing solutions in a powerful way, beyond just demonstrating evidence of good practice.
We work with partners to bring about changes in policy so that good practice and innovative solutions can travel to new places.
We support our partners to advocate in their own countries, and assist in the development of national and international networks to help strengthen and amplify the case for change.
The Gold World Habitat Award has been a catalyst for transformation.”
Natalia Martínez, Fundació Habitat3, Spain.
Get an alert when the Call for Entries opens
We’ll email to let you know