Winner 2025

Award for
regenerative design using indigenous knowledge, materials and construction techniques for maximum social impact.

Project description

This off-grid timber visitor centre in Maine’s Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument draws from indigenous knowledge and uses local materials throughout. Built with community collaboration, the structure blends furniture, architecture, and climate response into a cohesive, regenerative public space — setting a new bar for sustainable civic design. All Wabanaki Cultural Knowledge and Intellectual Property shared within this project is owned by the Wabanaki Nations.

Judge’s comments

A bold and principled project that places indigenous knowledge, local materials, and community leadership at the heart of structural design. The team stayed true to a clear regenerative vision, resulting in a structure shaped by social purpose and environmental care. It’s a compelling example of how engineering can respond to local context with humility, integrity, and lasting impact.
 

Project overview

Structural Designer

  • Atelier One

Client Name

  • Friends of Katahdin Woods & Waters, Elliotsville Foundation

Location

  • Maine, USA

Architect

  • Saunders Architecture

Principal Contractor

  • Wright-Ryan Construction

Key Contractors

  • Surveyor, civil engineer, and structural engineer of record: Haley Ward


    Architect of record: Alisberg Parker Architects

    Environmental and energy consultant: Transsolar KlimaEngineering

    Landscape architect: Reed Hilderbrand LLC Landscape Architecture

    Creative project management: Erin Hutton Projects

Year Submitted

  • 2025

Key attributes

  • Planet, People