We are delighted to introduce the jury for the 2026 BLT Built Design Awards: an international panel of 40 accomplished professionals working across architecture, interior design, urban planning, academia, media, development, and construction.
Their experience stretches from architectural studios and universities to design organisations, editorial platforms and global development companies. Together, they bring the range of perspectives needed to evaluate not only how a project looks, but also how intelligently it responds to its purpose, context and users.
Among this year’s jurors are Kenneth Tracy, Associate Professor of Architecture at American University of Sharjah and Co-Founder at Yogiaman Tracy Design, Ross Barney, Architect and Founder of Tumu Studio; Anne Fougeron, FAIA, Principal of Fougeron Architecture; and Yolande Wong, Senior Freelance Journalist, Chief Content Operating Officer of DESIGNKEEPER and Founder of Beijing Zhijian Cultural Communication Co., Ltd. They are joined by Matteo Cainer, Founder and Design Principal of Matteo Cainer Architecture.
The panel also includes Samantha Lassoudry, Founder and Chief Designer of Lassoudry Architects; Christian Brendelberger, Head of Cost Planning and Member of the Executive Board at Dietziker Partner Baumanagement AG; and Anastasia Ignatova, Urban Planning and Design Expert and Explorer of More-than-Human Participation, Muhammad Habsah, Design Director at U+A, part of 10N Collective; Mona Vijaykumar, Associate Urban Designer at Perkins&Will; Cas Esbach, Founder of KANS and Professor at Savannah College of Art and Design; and Tran Ngoc Danh, Vice President of VDAS Design Association and Founder and CEO of the VMARK Vietnam Design Award. Further perspectives come from Christina Chen-Chiao Kuo, Creative Director and Founder of Kuuo Living Limited; Amir Idiatulin, Founder and CEO of IND; Zhou Yi, Chief Designer at Dayi Design; and Rudi Stouffs, Associate Professor and Assistant Dean for Research at the Department of Architecture, College of Design and Engineering, National University of Singapore.
Remaining on the jury board, Osaru Alile-Abraham, Founder and Creative Director of CC Interiors Studio; Pal Pang, Chief Creative Officer of Another Design International; Juliet Kavishe, Executive Board Member of the Pan Afrikan Design Institute; and Sandra Baggerman, Architect at Trahan Architects and Tutor. The jury also welcomes Des Laubscher, Co-Founder and CEO of Greenside Design Center, College of Design; Hannah Churchill, Founder and Design Director of hcreates interior design; and Stanislas Helou, Founder of Thinking Luxury. They are joined by Sonsoles Vela Navarro, Founding Partner of studioVRA, Associate Director of Architecture and Assistant Professor of Architecture at Tulane University; Eason Zhu, Founder and Design Director of Fununit Design; and Ruben Garcia Rubio, Founding Partner of studioVRA, Associate Professor of Architecture and Urbanism and Director of Sustainable Urbanism at Tulane University.
Also serving on the 2026 jury are Zhiming Xie, Chief Creative and Design Director at Damu Architectural Engineering Design and Vice President of the Architectural Society of China’s Institute of Interior Design; Colleen Cocotos, Senior Lecturer in the Department of Architectural Technology and Interior Design at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology; and Steffen Lehmann, Founding Partner and CEO of si_architecture + urban design and Professor of Architecture and Urbanism at the University of Nevada. Completing the panel are Valeria Senkina, Founder, General Manager and Chief Architect of Dseesion Interiors; Dan Grimshaw, Founder and Principal of BEAM Development Ltd; Kourosh Salehi, Principal Architect at Killa Design; and Lichen Ding, Founder and Chief Designer of DLCA Architects.
They are joined by Dr Anna Grichting, Founder of Solder Bordermeetings and Senior Research Fellow at the University of Vermont; Geoff Wilkinson, Managing Director of Wilkinson Construction Consultants; Murat Soygenis, FAIA, RIBA, Founding Partner of S+ ARCHITECTURE; and Sam Tehranchi, CEO and Principal Architect of Design Core Architects and Urban Designers. The panel also includes Lynn Wang, Head of the Overseas Affairs Department at the Asia Pacific Design Center and Henry Mickleburgh, Founder and Technical Director of Aimeliorate.
Together, this international group will evaluate submissions across Architectural Design, Interior Design, Landscape Architecture and Construction Product Design, bringing professional knowledge, cultural awareness and a genuine curiosity about how the built environment is changing.
Astrid Hébert, Program Director of the BLT Built Design Awards, shared: “What I value most about this year’s jury are the genuinely different ways its members look at the built environment, as we have architects, designers, academics and industry experts from the United States, China, Switzerland, South Africa, Vietnam and many other parts of the world. This means that every project will be considered from several perspectives, from its purpose and context to its creativity, technical thinking and impact on the people who use it. I am very pleased to welcome this remarkable panel, and especially curious to see which projects will inspire the strongest conversations among them.”
This extraordinary group brings together technical expertise, creative vision and a broad understanding of the responsibilities that come with shaping the spaces in which we live, work and connect.