About the AILA Landscape Architecture Awards Program

The AILA Landscape Architecture Awards program provides a key vehicle for the promotion of the achievements and work of landscape architects in Australia.

The Awards process is an opportunity for public and peer recognition of landscape architect’s work, and demonstrates to industry, business, government and the wider community the positive impact the profession has on Australian lives through the planning and design of the built and natural environments.

For questions please contact your local Chapter for State Awards programs, and [email protected] for the National Awards program.   

Enter the Awards

$380 + GST
2024 entries open 6 February
Entries close at 11:59pm AEDT, 13 March 2024

Stage 2: National Awards

Winners of the Chapter awards programs will be proceeding to the National Awards program.

International entrants are announced in the national program.

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2024 NSW Landscape Architecture Awards

ShadeSmart Award

New NSW Award Category

AILA’s partnership with the Cancer Council NSW & Cancer Institute NSW to advance the ShadeSmart Program is an important opportunity for Landscape Architects to lead quality planning and design for Shade and UV skin cancer prevention in Australia through the delivery of sustainable public spaces and healthy communities.

LEARN MORE
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2022 AILA NSW ShadeSmart Award | NSW Urban Tree Canopy - targets and controls | Gallagher Studio with Studio Zanardo | On Country (All traditional owners in NSW) | Photo: Gallagher Studio

Awards Information

Enter the Awards

Entrants must complete an online entry form and pay the entry fee.  For full entry requirements view the Entry Guide.  Should your entry win at Chapter level, it will automatically progress to the National Awards. 

Key awards dates

Don’t miss an important upcoming Awards date. View all the Chapter and National important events: entries opening, entry deadlines, and Awards presentations.

NSW Awards Jury

The Landscape Architecture Awards jury serves an important role in determining Awards in recognition of exceptional Landscape Architecture practice. The jury awards practices and members in confirmation of talent, commitment, and design excellence.

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Awards Categories

16 National Awards categories across varying disciplines are awarded Landscape Architecture Awards and Awards of Excellence in recognition of outstanding work in these areas. The National Awards program includes a category of International.

Awards Guides & Policies

To assist in your preparation of your submission, please read important Landscape Architecture Awards program documents.

Past Landscape Architecture Awards

Reflect on historical Awards programs, listing all National and Chapter winners.

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2022 AILA NSW Award of Excellence for Play Spaces | Gosford Leagues Club Park | Turf Design Studio | Darkinjung Country | Photo: Guy Wilkinson

View the 2022 NSW Awards Press Release

Take a look at the official press release from this year’s NSW Awards


READ NOW

AILA NSW 2022 Awards in the Media

Explore the media coverage from the 2022 NSW Awards


EXPLORE NSW AWARDS IN THE MEDIA

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2022 AILA NSW Award of Excellence for Infrastructure | AILA NSW Regional Achievement Award for Northern NSW | Byron Bay Bus Interchange | DesignInc Sydney | Arakwal people of Bundjalung country | Photo: Brett Boardman

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2022 AILA NSW ShadeSmart Award | NSW Urban Tree Canopy - targets and controls | Gallagher Studio with Studio Zanardo | On Country (All traditional owners in NSW) | Photo: Gallagher Studio

ShadeSmart Award

New NSW Award Category

AILA’s partnership with the Cancer Council NSW & Cancer Institute NSW to advance the ShadeSmart Program is an important opportunity for Landscape Architects to lead quality planning and design for Shade and UV skin cancer prevention in Australia through the delivery of sustainable public spaces and healthy communities.

LEARN MORE

 

Awards Categories

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2020 AILA SA Award of Excellence for Health and Education Landscape | 2020 Healthy Parks Healthy People SA Award Winner | Paringa Park Primary School | Peter Semple Landscape Architects | Kaurna | Photo: Jason Tyndall

Health and Education Landscape

Projects in this category are constructed landscape projects in and surrounding institutional spaces including educational, health or aged care facilities. Projects in this category demonstrate how the design contributes to the usability and operation of the facility and the wellbeing of the user.

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2022 AILA National Landscape Architecture Award for Civic Landscape | 2022 AILA QLD Landscape Architecture Award for Civic Landscape | Mollison Park | RPS | Turrbal and Yuggera people | Photo: Scott Burrows

Civic Landscape

Projects in this category are constructed urban landscape projects that are public in nature and capture and contribute to the culture and amenity of the urban environment around them. Projects will demonstrate how the landscape architecture has contributed to the overall outcomes.

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2021 AILA National Landscape Architecture Award for Parks and Open Space | 2021 AILA WA Award of Excellence for Parks and Open Space | Bina Parkland | Ecoscape | Whadjuk Nyoongar | Photo: Michael Macaulay

Parks and Open Space

Projects in this category are constructed public parks and open space, or strategic open space projects that balance the demand for recreation, culture and the environment.

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2020 AILA National Landscape Architecture Award for Play Spaces | 2020 AILA SA Landscape Architecture Award for Play Spaces | Para Wirra Nature Playspace | TCL | Kaurna Nation | Photo: Emily Taylor

Play Spaces

Projects in this category are constructed play spaces or strategies which promote the notion of active play and embraces the temporal elements of the active play space.

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2020 AILA National Landscape Architecture Award for Infrastructure | 2020 AILA QLD Landscape Architecture Award for Civic Landscape | Aerodrome Road Intersection | Hassell | Gubbi Gubbi / Kabi Kabi | Photo: Christopher Frederick Jones

Infrastructure

Projects in this category are constructed landscape infrastructure projects, landscape strategies or works associated with civil infrastructure that demonstrates the successful integration of landscape values and which contribute to a future sustainability.

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2020 AILA National Landscape Architecture Award for Cultural Heritage | 2020 AILA WA Award of Excellence for Cultural Heritage | UWA Cultural Heritage Mapping | UDLA | Whadjuk Nyoongar | Photo: Jason Thomas

Cultural Heritage

Projects in this category are constructed projects or strategies that demonstrate the restoration, conservation, enhancement, maintenance, or adaptive reuse of culturally significant sites.

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2022 AILA NSW Landscape Architecture Award for Land Management | University of Newcastle - Delprat Garden | University of Newcastle, School of Architecture & Built Environment | Awabakal Country | Photo: Miranda Cunningham

Land Management

Projects in this category are constructed projects or strategies for the restoration, conservation or management of significant landscapes that demonstrate a tangible physical outcome. The project may recognise and reconcile the natural and cultural values of communities and the landscape in which they are placed.

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2022 AILA National Landscape Architecture Award for Tourism | 2022 AILA Victoria Landscape Architecture Award for Tourism | Lake Tyrrell Tourism Infrastructure Design | Thomson Hay Landscape Architects | Wergaia Peoples (Boorong clan) | Photo: Anne Morley

Tourism

Projects in this category are constructed or strategic projects that demonstrate excellence in landscape design and demonstrate a tangible contribution to tourism, either nationally or in the local region that significantly enhances the profile of the area.

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2020 AILA National Landscape Architecture Award for Urban Design | 2020 AILA WA Award of Excellence for Urban Design | The Rocks Laneway | UDLA | Yamatji | Photo: Josh Monagan

Urban Design

Projects in this category are constructed or strategic projects that demonstrate how the design, construction management and built outcome of the landscape, contributes to the wellbeing of the urban setting through the improvement of social interaction, economic activity, liveability, accessibility and safety. Projects will have a specific focus on how landscape architecture has contributed to the urban design outcome.

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2020 AILA National Landscape Architecture Award for Landscape Planning | 2020 AILA Victoria Landscape Architecture Award for Infrastructure | Maribyrnong Waterfront IWM | REALMstudios | Kulin Nation | Photo: REALMstudios

Landscape Planning

Projects in this category are constructed or strategic projects and include strategic design and guiding policy documents and visual assessments for urban development, residential and planned communities, local community and rural or regional planning.

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2020 AILA National Landscape Architecture Award for Research, Policy and Communications | 2020 AILA QLD Landscape Architecture Award for Research, Policy and Communications | Sunshine Coast Design Strategy and Book | Sunshine Coast Council | Jinibara and Kabi Kabi people | Photo: Andrew Maccoll

Research, Policy and Communications

Projects in this category include published works in research and or practice that extend the knowledge base and advocacy of landscape architecture.

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2020 AILA National Landscape Architecture Award for Community Contribution | 2020 AILA WA Award of Excellence for Community Contribution | Saint Joseph’s Nature Play Master Plan | Ecoscape Australia Pty Ltd | Miriwoong | Photo: Nicole Croudace

Community Contribution

Projects in this category included constructed projects or strategies delivered either: As a pro bono service (or significantly reduced fee) to the community OR have positively impacted a disadvantaged individual or group of users who wouldn’t normally have access to design expertise Entrants should be able to clearly demonstrate the benefit provided by the project to the communities, cultural groups and/or neighbourhoods in which they are located in or serve (e.g. through client letters of support explicitly referring to benefits gained).

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2020 AILA National Landscape Architecture Award for Small Projects | System Garden Rainforest Walk | SBLA Studio | Wurundjeri | Photo: Wade Trevean

Small Projects

Projects in this category include those considered to be 'small' in terms of size or budget. Projects are recognised that have been constrained by size or budget restrictions but have achieved a level of invention and creativity beyond these constraints.

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2020 National Landscape Architecture Award for Gardens | 2020 QLD Award of Excellence for Gardens | Domic | James Birrell Design Lab | Kabi Kabi | Photo: Scott Burrows

Gardens

Projects in this category include constructed private and public gardens that contribute to the role and understanding of the garden in contemporary society and culture.

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2020 AILA National Award of Excellence for International | Feng River Park | GVL Gossamer | Sha'anxi Province, China | Photo: GVL Gossamer

International

Projects in this category include constructed or strategic projects that demonstrate a contribution to landscape architecture internationally. Please note the International Awards are part of the National Awards program and are not judged at the state level.

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2022 AILA National Award of Excellence for Tourism | 2022 AILA Victoria Award of Excellence for Tourism | 2022 AILA National Regional Achievement Award | Grampians Peaks Trail (Gariwerd) | McGregor Coxall, Noxon Giffen | Barengi Gadjin Land Council, Eastern Maar Aboriginal Corporation & Gunditj Mirring Traditional Owners Aboriginal Corporation | Photo: Shannon McGrath

Regional Achievement

This is a cross category award given in recognition of landscape architecture that has made a significant difference to improving the healthy communities and/or built and natural environments of regional Australia. Chapter Executives in collaboration with the Chapter Jury will determine the eligible key regions for their Chapter program.

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2016 National Award of Excellence for Civic | 2015 QLD Award of Excellence for Civic | Lady Cilento Children's Hospital | Landscape Architect: Conrad Gargett | Turrbal | Photo: Christopher Frederick Jones

Climate Positive Design

This is a cross category Award given in recognition of landscape architecture projects that have shown significant contribution to climate positive design. Entrants may opt in to this award and provide additional documentation on how their project has shown a strong effort toward climate mitigation, climate adaptation while also contribution to social, environmental and or economic benefits. Refer to the entry guide (page 4) for additional documentation required to submit for this award.

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Image credit coming

NSW Future Leaders Student Award and Graduate Award

These two awards recognise achievement in design, planning, communications and research that is based upon the development of innovative, creative and practical solutions to landscape architectural challenges. Know a student or graduate member that you’d like to nominate?

NOMINATE NOW

Additional Award Categories

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Image credit coming soon

NSW 2024 ShadeSmart Award

Projects in this category will be acknowledged for their contribution to  best practice Shade & UV planning, design, and innovative practice.  The award winners design will reinforce the pivotal role that LA’s play in the design of public spaces and advocating for sustainable and healthy communities and demonstrate leadership in sustainable and climate responsive practice at a time of national and international focus.

The judges will be looking at the following criteria :

• Demonstrated best practice in policy and planning for shade and UV effectiveness,
• Innovative design that delivers structured and natural shade outcomes to support healthy 
living, human wellbeing, and climate responsive solutions,
• Contribution by Landscape Architects to ‘ShadeSmart’ research, education and/or 
community engagement

Enter the AILA NSW Awards and opt into the ShadeSmart Category. The ShadeSmart Award is a NSW Award only that can be given in conjunction of one of the 15 main award category. 

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2024 NSW Awards Jury

VIEW NSW JURY

Suellen Fitzgerald

Jury Chair

A landscape architect by background, Suellen Fitzgerald was, up until 2022, the inaugural Chief Executive of Greater Sydney Parklands, Sydney’s first city wide urban parks agency. She has worked in both the public and private sector in a career spanning more than 30 years, including working in urban and rural environments in the eastern states and across northern Australia. Working as the first director of the Western Sydney Parklands Trust for the NSW Government, Suellen built a professional team to take a start-up organisation to corporate maturity, and then to extend the organisation’s responsibilities to the major regional parks network across Sydney. She has experience in landscape design and planning; governance, strategy and policy; and park management and business sustainability.’  

Adam Cryer

Adam Cryer is a Community Development specialist with 20 years’ experience in program delivery, management, and coordination. He has experience in working with children, families, youth, general community, as well as working with Aboriginal communities. Adam has worked in a number of different environments including state government, non-government organisations, and commercial environments. Adam’s passion is corporate social responsibility (CSR) and he currently runs his own consultancy to support better outcomes for both communities and organisations involved. He has a strong desire to work alongside corporations, governments, not-for-profits and community to develop innovative and sustainable partnerships focused on community capacity building and supporting sustainable connected communities. Adam holds a number of qualifications including; Masters of Management, Diploma Community Welfare Work, Cert IV Training and Assessment, Cert IV Business (Frontline Management). 

Barbara Schaffer

Barbara Schaffer is a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Landscape Architects FAILA and is Principal Landscape Architect for Government Architect NSW. Since graduating in landscape architecture from the University of New South Wales she has held positions in private practice and State Government and is the recipient of state and national awards for her built work and contribution to landscape architecture, education and the landscape architecture profession. With over twenty-five years of experience Barbara has a deep interest in projects and strategies that shape future development and instigate change. She is the project lead for the Sydney Green Grid and Greener Places, design led green infrastructure strategies for metropolitan Sydney and NSW. During this time Barbara has spoken in many forums and is passionate about the role of design and landscape architecture as a catalyst for better built environment outcomes. Barbara also regularly chairs GANSW Design Review Panels for State Significant Developments. 

Dr Kate McCauley 

Dr Kate C. McCauley is an experienced executive and trusted strategic advisor with a strong track record in the successful realisation of integrated urban precincts. Kate is passionate about enhancing the lived experience of people and other living systems. She has been specialising in the planning, design and delivery of integrated urban precincts and infrastructure projects, and in helping to optimise value creation across institutional property portfolios for 20 years. She has degrees in property, law and human geography, and a PhD in the felt sense in urban planning and development. Kate is the Precincts Client Leader, NSW & ACT at Aurecon where she brings multi-disciplinary teams together to work on solutions to help clients deliver on strategic objectives for cities and places; she is also a member of the Circular Australia Precincts and Infrastructure Task Force.

Garry Murray

Garry Murray has over 30 years of landscape architectural experience in Australia and overseas. He has held positions in public and private sectors and has a diverse portfolio of work with an emphasis on the public domain. Garry’s professional experience includes roles at the University of Sydney, Kelsey Associates London, and GeoLINK, Coffs Harbour. In 2012 Garry founded RedBelly, a specialist landscape architectural practice on the NSW Mid North Coast.  He frequently collaborates with other practices to achieve integrated, multi-discipline project outcomes based on sound ethical and environmental values. Garry is passionate about creating attractive, sustainable and connected public spaces.  He is actively involved in local forums and advisory panels and has presented papers to share his experiences and raise the profile and influence of the profession. 

Martin Bryant 

Martin Bryant is a landscape architect, architect, urban designer and Professor whose work spans more than three decades. As a practitioner he has led numerous high-profile practice projects in Australia and New Zealand, and has received numerous high-profile awards for his work, including the Lloyd Rees Award for Urban Design, Supreme awards from the NZIA and NZILA, and the 2013 Rosa Barba Prize. In academia, Martin’s research expertise on urban ecology and resilience is internationally recognised for policy development. He has received various awards for his work, including the Charlie Challenger NZILA award and has exhibited at the Venice Architecture Biennale (2021) and authored the United Nations Habitat III policy paper on urban ecology and resilience (2017).  

Shivani Bhatnagar

Shivani Bhatnagar graduated with Master's in Landscape Architecture degree and works as a Project Landscape Architect in Newcastle, NSW. She currently works in the area of Landscape Visual Impact Assessments for renewable energy projects and has prior experience in master planning, playground design, commercial, industrial and residential landscape design. Shivani continues to engage in academics as an independent researcher and has recently written a chapter for the Routledge Handbook of Cultural Landscape Heritage in the Asia-Pacific.

Entry Process

Entry into the AILA Landscape Architecture Awards program is limited to a person, or a team where the landscape architectural component is under the substantive control or direction of a person, who is a Registered Landscape Architect or Member (financial) and principal of the practice (who is an owner or formal licensee of the copyright in the work being entered).

To be eligible for entry, projects (where applicable) must have at least reached practical completion and be in all other respects complete to the point of enabling proper assessment by the Jury, no later than 31 December 2023. Entries will be considered in the Chapter in which the project is located, regardless of the business address of the entrant. Any project located outside Australia will only be eligible for an award in the International category.

Your entry into the awards is completed by our online platform, Awards Force. Entrants are able to start their entry as in progress before submitting. To assist in your preparation of your submission, please read the important documents

For questions please contact your local Chapter for State Awards programs, and [email protected] for the National Awards program.

Enter the Awards

$380 + GST
2024 entries open 6 February
Entries close at 11:59pm AEDT, 13 March 2024

Entry fee

To enter the Awards you must complete an online entry and pay the entry fee. Should your entry win at Chapter level, it will automatically progress to the National Award and no further fee is required.

Chapter

Fee per entry

NSW, QLD, SA, TAS, VIC, WA & International

$380 + GST

Key dates

Small Chapters ACT, NT, TAS run awards programs once every two years. These programs may be held in collaboration with other States.

VIEW AWARDS DATES NOW

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