The Bullitt Center Project, the first urban building to satisfy all of its own energy, water and waste needs and commonly regarded as ‘the greenest office building in the world, was submitted for the 2014 Global Awards for Excellence! Finalist will be notified this month.

The ULI Global Awards for Excellence program is a timely reminder of the key difference that responsible land use can make in terms of community longevity and sustainability.

—Patrick L. Phillips, ULI CEO

A guiding principle of the Urban Land Institute (ULI) is that the achievement of excellence in land use practice should be recognized and rewarded. Since 1979, ULI has honored outstanding development projects in both the private and public sectors with the ULI Global Awards for Excellence program, which today is widely recognized as the development community’s most prestigious awards program.

ULI Awards for Excellence recognize the full development process of a project, not just its architecture or design—although these elements play an important role in the overall project. Each award is presented to the development project. Nominations are open to all, not just to ULI members. Juries of ULI full members, chaired by trustees, choose finalists and winners. Jury members represent many fields of real estate development expertise, including finance, land planning, development, public affairs, design, and other professional services. They also represent a broad geographic diversity.

ULI began the Awards for Excellence program in 1979 with the objective of recognizing truly superior development efforts. The criteria for the awards include factors that go beyond good design, including leadership, contribution to the community, innovations, public/private partnership, environmental protection and enhancement, response to societal needs, and financial success. Winning projects represent the highest standards of achievement in the development industry—standards that ULI members deem worthy of attainment in their professional endeavors. All types of projects have been recognized for their excellence, including office, residential, recreational, urban/mixed-use, industrial/office park, commercial/retail, new community, rehabilitation, public, and heritage projects, as well as programs and projects that do not fit into any of these product categories. Since 2012, the ULI Global Awards for Excellence have honored development projects from around the globe in a single competition, rather than separate winners by region.

The international competition is overseen by a jury composed of ULI members from around the world who are recognized leaders in their fields. In its 36th year, the ULI Awards program is the centerpiece of the Institute’s efforts to identify and promote best practices in all types of real estate development. Finalists and winners are celebrated at awards ceremonies held in conjunction with the ULI Fall Meeting. Each winner receives a jewel-quality cube trophy, engraved with the jury’s official statement about the winning project. Further recognition of winners and finalists includes case studies in ULI publications, as well as press releases and announcements in Urban Land magazine and on the Institute’s website.

ULI Awards for Excellence through the Years: A Comprehensive Listing of Winners Since 1979