The TERRAFIBRA Award was born out of the success of both the TERRA Award 2016, the first international prize for contemporary earthen architecture, and the latter FIBRA Award 2019, the first international prize for contemporary plant fibre architecture.

The construction sector is the biggest consumer of resources and energy in France. It is responsible for 46% of the national energy consumption, it is one of the biggest producers of waste and the greenhouse gas emissions of the construction sector amount to 25% of national emissions. Faced with this reality, the transition towards a more sustainable way of building is regarded as necessary by today’s public opinion. The collective effort to preserve resources and significantly reduce the environmental footprint of existing and future buildings has seen the emergence of new sustainable architectural practices that aim to develop and take advantage of local bio- and geo-sourced resources. These resources are often at arms length or even right under our feet.

Appropriating the intelligence of the vernacular and its age-old know-how means re-anchoring the act of building in a landscape and steering towards a more territorial way of building.

There are already many examples of earthen and plant fibre architectures across the five continents that are of great technical, regional and aesthetic value.

The widespread use of these energy efficient and readily available resources helps to reduce the use of non renewable resources and limits the energy needs over the life cycle of buildings.

Using these readily available materials also leads to a reinforcement of regional economies as they can be locally sourced and therefore lead to the creation of new jobs closer to the construction site. Therefore leading to a more democratic and optimistic way of building for a post-carbon future and are essential for the socio-ecological transition.

This international award for earthen and/or plant fibre contemporary architecture aims to value the environmental gains, the constructive advantages and the aesthetic properties of 40 buildings.

The goal of the TERRAFIBRA Award is to distinguish remarkable projects while underlining the courage of the project owners who have chosen bio- and geo-sourced materials, the creativity of the designers and the know-how of the craftsmen and contractors. Following on from the first TERRA Award, organised in 2016, and the first FIBRA Award, organised in 2019, this prize also aims to promote the mix of materials in a logic of constructive intelligence.

The 40 finalist buildings will be described in detail on the TERRAFIBRA Award website and will benefit from a large communication campaign relayed by our numerous partners. Their presentation in a travelling exhibition and publication in a book will ensure international visibility.

The TERRAFIBRA Award 2021 will strengthen the worldwide network of players initiated by the TERRA Award 2016 and the FIBRA Award 2019 and will thus contribute to the dynamism of the earth and/or plant fibre construction sectors.