Winners are selected by the Awards Jury through a deliberation process that evaluates the project submissions based on the Awards Criteria. Jury members, composed of 5 to 7 international conservation experts, and a Jury Chair are appointed annually by UNESCO based on their geographical representation and areas of expertise.
Winners will be announced in November 2024 according to the following categories (each category may have multiple winners in any given awards cycle)*: Award of Excellence; Award of Distinction; Award of Merit, Award for New Design in Heritage Contexts, and Special Recognition for Sustainable Development.
The Award of Excellence is the highest recognition in the Awards programme; it is given for projects which display exceptional achievement in all criteria, and which demonstrate a major catalytic impact at the national or regional level.
The Award of Distinction is given to projects which demonstrate outstanding achievement in all criteria, and which have a significant impact at the national or regional level.
The Award of Merit recognizes projects which demonstrate superior achievement in all criteria.
The Award for New Design in Heritage Contexts is given to newly-built projects which demonstrate outstanding design and are well integrated with their historic contexts. Submissions of completed new architecture and designs which enrich an existing heritage setting are encouraged. New annexes, new extensions, new buildings, new public spaces, and new structures – such as bridges – are all eligible for consideration.
The Special Recognition for Sustainable Development was introduced in the 2020 Awards cycle to recognize projects which demonstrate noteworthy achievement in the overall Awards criteria and promise a significant contribution to sustainable development. Projects that are submitted to either the Conservation or the New Design category of the Awards programme are eligible for this recognition.
