The 2024 World Habitat Awards celebrated innovative and impactful global housing projects, awarding Gold, Silver, and Bronze prizes to initiatives that address critical challenges such as climate change, housing insecurity, and community development.
These projects represent the best housing innovation, from sustainable retrofitting to emergency housing for displaced populations. Here’s a breakdown of the winners in each category.
Gold Award Winners
Energiesprong (Netherlands): The Energiesprong initiative revolutionises how homes are retrofitted to meet net-zero energy standards. Utilising prefabricated insulated panels, solar technology, and intelligent energy systems, this project significantly reduces energy consumption, cutting costs by up to 80%. With over 10,000 homes retrofitted across Europe and North America, *Energiesprong* primarily focuses on social housing, making energy-efficient living more accessible to low-income communities. Its scalable model transforms how older buildings can be upgraded with minimal disruption to residents while addressing energy poverty and climate change.
Housing Rights in Jakarta (Indonesia): This grassroots initiative fights for residents’ housing rights in Jakarta’s informal settlements, known as kampungs. The project has mobilised local communities to prevent forced evictions and secure legal protections, ensuring housing stability for thousands of vulnerable families. Through collective action and policy advocacy, *Housing Rights in Jakarta* has halted numerous evictions and inspired broader regulatory changes across the city to safeguard informal housing communities. This project models how community-driven efforts can influence national housing policies and provide long-term solutions to urban displacement.
Silver Award Winners
Rural Habitability Programme (Chile): The Rural Habitability Programme, run by the government of Chile, has made a significant impact by addressing the housing needs of remote rural communities. Since its inception, the program has built or renovated more than 10,000 homes, improving the quality of life for over 40,000 people. This initiative ensures that rural populations, often overlooked in urban-centric housing policies, have access to safe, dignified living conditions. It also includes sustainable building practices and infrastructure improvements that adapt to the unique environmental challenges of rural Chile.
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La Ciguë Student Housing Cooperative (Switzerland): La Ciguë is a student housing cooperative based in Geneva, Switzerland, offering affordable accommodation in a city where living costs are notoriously high. Since its founding in 1986, the cooperative has expanded to manage nearly 740 rooms, providing much-needed housing for students in prime city-centre locations. This cooperative model offers an alternative to expensive private rentals, allowing students to live affordably while contributing to the governance of their housing. La Ciguë promotes financial relief and social cohesion among students by fostering a community-driven, cost-sharing approach.
Bronze Award Winners
CO-HATY Emergency Housing Project (Ukraine): The CO-HATY project addresses the urgent housing needs of internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Ukraine, a country deeply affected by conflict. The initiative converts abandoned and unused buildings into temporary shelters for those who have been displaced. CO-HATY offers a quick, cost-effective solution to sheltering thousands of people in the context of ongoing war and a severe housing shortage. By repurposing existing structures, the project also helps revitalise neglected urban areas while providing a vital lifeline to families needing secure housing.
DARAJA Weather Forecasting Service (Kenya & Tanzania): DARAJA is a weather forecasting service that empowers residents of informal settlements in Kenya and Tanzania by providing reliable, localised weather information. Given the heightened vulnerability of these communities to extreme weather events caused by climate change, *DARAJA* offers timely alerts and advice on how to respond to weather-related risks. By improving early warning systems and climate resilience, the project helps residents safeguard their homes, livelihoods, and health. This service has become a critical tool for climate adaptation in underserved communities.
The 2024 World Habitat Awards highlight the diversity and creativity of housing solutions being implemented worldwide. These Gold, Silver, and Bronze winners exemplify how innovative thinking can address some of the most pressing challenges in housing, from climate resilience and energy efficiency to displacement and affordability.
Each of these award-winning projects not only improves the physical structure of housing but also enhances the lives of residents by focusing on sustainability, social equity, and community empowerment.
The World Habitat Awards continue to set the standard for excellence in housing, inspiring further innovations in building and sustaining tomorrow’s homes.
