Washington, D.C. – February 20, 2015 – The American Institute of Architects (AIA) selected The Lyceum Fellowship Inc. and Transsolar KlimaEngineering as the recipients of the 2015 Institute Honors for Collaborative Achievement. The award, to be presented at the 2015 AIA National Convention and Design Exposition in Atlanta, recognizes and encourages distinguished achievements of allied professionals, clients, organizations, architect teams, knowledge communities, and others who have had a beneficial influence on or advanced the architectural profession.

The Lyceum Fellowship Inc.
For nearly 30 years, the  Lyceum Fellowship has provided meaningful design, travel, and educational opportunities for architecture students, encouraging their participation in architectural culture and building professional skills and networks among generations of architects. Through its distinctive framework of design competition, jury process, and travel grants to prize recipients, the Lyceum Fellowship engages architects, allied professionals, and schools of architecture in a dialog about design and education and fosters a collective mentorship of the next generation of leaders. Jon McKee, AIA, founded the Lyceum in 1985 and named it after Aristotle’s peripatetic teaching method. McKee had a long history of mentoring emerging architects by inviting them to travel with him, and he envisioned the creation of a program that would provide formal travel opportunities before students graduated. In the years since its founding, the Lyceum has awarded more than $423,000 in prize money to 84 students; more than 100 students have been recognized with merit or citation awards.

Transsolar KlimaEngineering
Starting with the earliest conversations on a project,  Transsolar KlimaEngineering, a climate engineering firm founded in Stuttgart, Germany in 1992, enriches the architectural dialog by examining every aspect of a project in light of the dual objectives of lowering energy consumption while increasing human comfort. For this firm, sustainability is an indispensable component of design that enhances the experience of the built environment. Never willing to accept the notion that a difficult problem is an excuse to relax its demanding process, Transsolar has demonstrated time and again its ability to create empirical models that push the performance goals and test the validity of new concepts, new systems, and new materials.

Transsolar embodies a truly collaborative spirit, partnering with architects to integrate design intent with climate-responsive solutions. These collaborations are often ongoing, creating dialogues of inquiry and influence in the development of multiple projects with leading architects and firms. The firm’s custom work has often resulted in new technologies and product applications that have ultimately been accepted and deployed across the A/E/C market. Transsolar’s collaboration with Solomon Cordwell Buenz at Loyola University Chicago is an outstanding model of a long-term, high-impact collaboration. Beginning with Klarchek Information Commons and continuing with six major projects for different uses, this design partnership has helped the campus reduce its carbon footprint by half.

The jury for the 2015 Collaborative Achievement Award includes: Donald King, FAIA (Chair), DKA Architecture; Hiroshi Jacobs, Assoc. AIA, Studios Architecture; Michael Pyatok, FAIA, Pyatok Architects; David Trevino, AIA, City of Dallas and Karen E. Williams, AIA, PIVOT Architecture. 

About The American Institute of Architects
Founded in 1857, the American Institute of Architects consistently works to create more valuable, healthy, secure, and sustainable buildings, neighborhoods, and communities. Through nearly 300 state and local chapters, the AIA advocates for public policies that promote economic vitality and public wellbeing. Members adhere to a code of ethics and conduct to ensure the highest professional standards. The AIA provides members with tools and resources to assist them in their careers and business as well as engaging civic and government leaders and the public to find solutions to pressing issues facing our communities, institutions, nation and world. Visit  www.aia.org.