The 4th International Holcim Awards – Your Choice voting competition ran from March 16 until May 19, 2015 to find the favorite “Next Generation” sustainable construction projects and received more than 120,000 votes. The Holcim Foundation launched a community voting competition dedicated to the “Next Generation” winning projects that made you the jury. The winning projects were honored at the first ever "Next Generation" Awards Lab – a one-day workshop on sustainable construction for all “Next Generation” prize winners of the regional Holcim Awards 2014. The Lab was held on September 24, 2015 in New York City, USA.

The design proposes a post-earthquake reconstruction of Xueshan in the Chinese province of Sichuan, a historic village known as the hometown of the panda. Focusing on the unique local characteristics of the site, the project uses bamboo as the main building material and revives traditional construction techniques.

Approximately 50 houses will be rebuilt and a small number of new structures erected, including a hotel, panda museum, memorial hall and raised platforms for panda watching.

Read project feature in 4th Holcim Awards 2014/2015 (flip-book)

Zhe Peng from the Graduate School of Design (GSD) at Harvard University says his “Next Generation” 1st prize-winning project tries to incorporate modern living and preservation of historical and natural environments. “Panda-Watching: Historic village reconstruction” in Xueshan, China proposes a post-earthquake reconstruction of a historic village known as the hometown of the panda in China.

The winning projects of the Holcim Awards 2014 Asia Pacific show how building with sustainable construction in mind can enhance the region’s human, natural and economic performance. A bird sanctuary in Thailand, a locally-adapted orphanage in Nepal, and a community library in Sri Lanka received the top prizes.

Is history a construct? What measures must be taken when dealing with historic preservation? To what degree can contemporary architecture refer to the past? These are some of the questions wisely posed by the project, both conceptually as well as through design. The proposal aims at a subtle balance between “the old” and “the new”, at times adhering to pure historic reconstruction based on the study of archival material, while at other moments taking greater liberties when interpreting vernacular form. The jury praises the clarity and beauty of the submitted drawings which intelligently refer to the tradition of classical Chinese painting, while acknowledging the present.

The design proposes a post-earthquake reconstruction of Xueshan, Sichuan, a historic village known as the hometown of the panda in China. Focusing on the unique local characteristics of the site, the project uses bamboo as the main building material and revives traditional construction techniques. Approximately 50 houses will be rebuilt and a small number of new structures erected, including a hotel, panda museum, memorial hall and raised platforms for panda watching.