International Union of Architects facts for kids

The International Union of Architects (often called UIA) is a special group for architects from all over the world. It's the only international organization that represents architects, who design buildings and cities. There are about 3.2 million architects globally, and the UIA connects them. Its name in French is Union internationale des Architectes.

About the UIA

The UIA was started on 28 June 1948 in Lausanne, Switzerland. It was formed when two older architect groups joined together. Today, its main office is in Paris, France.

Many parts of the United Nations see the UIA as the main global group for architecture. These include UNESCO (for education and culture) and the World Health Organization (WHO). The current president (from 2021 to 2023) is José Luis Cortés from Mexico.

The UIA has members in over 100 countries and areas. These are grouped into five main regions:

• Region I: Western Europe
• Region II: Eastern Europe
• Region III: North and South America
• Region IV: Asia and Oceania
• Region V: Africa

How the UIA is Run

The UIA has different groups that help run it:

• The Assembly: This is the highest group in the UIA. It includes people from all the UIA's member countries.
• Council: This group manages the UIA's work between the big Assembly meetings. It has 4 members from each of the five regions.
• Bureau: This is a smaller group that includes the President, the past President, the Secretary General, the Treasurer, and a Vice-President from each region.

Past Presidents

Here are some of the people who have led the UIA as President:

• Sir Patrick Abercrombie, United Kingdom (1948–1953)
• Jean Tschumi, Switzerland (1953–1957)
• Hector Mardones Restat, Chile (1957–1961)
• Sir Robert Matthews, United Kingdom (1961–1965)
• Eugene Beaudouin, France (1965–1969)
• Ramon Corona Martin, Mexico (1969–1972)
• Georgui Orlov, USSR (1972–1975)
• Jai Rattan Bhalla, India (1975–1978)
• Louis de Moll, USA (1978–1981)
• Rafael De La Hoz, Spain (1981–1985)
• Georgi Stoilov, Bulgaria (1985–1987)
• Rod Hackney, United Kingdom (1987–1990)
• Olufemi Majekodunmi, Nigeria (1990–1993)
• Jaime Duro, Spain (1993–1996)
• Sara Topelson, Mexico (1996–1999)
• Vassilis Sgoutas, Greece (1999–2002)
• Jaime Lerner, Brazil (2002–2005)
• Gaetan Siew, Mauritius (2005–2008)
• Louise Cox, Australia (2008–2011)
• Albert Dubler, France (2011–2014)
• Esa Mohamed, Malaysia (2014–2017)
• Thomas Vonier, USA (2017–2021)
• José Luis Cortés, Mexico (2021–2023)

UIA World Congresses

The UIA World Congresses are big meetings where architects from all over the world come together. They share ideas and learn from each other. Thousands of people attend these events. Each congress focuses on a different topic about architecture, cities, or building.

These meetings include talks, displays, tours, and chances to meet other architects. They are great places for experts, students, and anyone interested in architecture to connect.

A UIA member country hosts each Congress. Countries wanting to host a Congress apply to the UIA General Assembly. The host city is chosen six years before the event.

List of congresses from 1948 to 2026

USSR stamp and souvenir sheet of 1958 dedicated to the 5th World Congress of Architecture

Nr.	Year	Location	Theme
1st	1948	Lausanne	Architecture Faced with its New Tasks
2nd	1951	Rabat	How Architecture is Dealing with its New Tasks
3rd	1953	Lisbon	Architecture at the Crossroads
4th	1955	The Hague	Architecture and the Evolutions of Building
5th	1958	Moscow	Construction and Reconstruction
6th	1961	London	New Techniques and New Materials
7th	1963	Havana	Architecture in Underdeveloped Countries
8th	1965	Paris	The Training of Architects
9th	1967	Prague	Architecture and the Human Milieu
10th	1969	Buenos Aires	Architecture as a Social Factor
11th	1972	Varna	Architecture and Leisure
12th	1975	Madrid	Creativity and Technology
13th	1978	Mexico City	Architecture and National Development
14th	1981	Warsaw	Architecture, Man, Environment
15th	1985	Cairo	Present and Future Missions of the Architect
16th	1987	Brighton	Shelter and Cities - Building Tomorrow's World
17th	1990	Montreal	Cultures and Technologies
18th	1993	Chicago	Architecture at the Crossroads - Designing for a Sustainable Future
19th	1996	Barcelona	Present and Futures. Architecture in Cities
20th	1999	Beijing	Architecture of the 21st Century
21st	2002	Berlin	Resource Architecture
22nd	2005	Istanbul	Grand Bazaar of Architectures
23rd	2008	Turin	Transmitting Architecture
24th	2011	Tokyo	DESIGN 2050 Beyond disasters, through Solidarity, towards Sustainability
25th	2014	Durban	Architecture otherwhere
26th	2017	Seoul	Soul of City
27th	2020	Rio de Janeiro	All Worlds. One World. Architecture in the 21st Century.
28th	2023	Copenhagen	Design for a Sustainable Future
29th	2026	Barcelona	One day, One tomorrow

World Capital of Architecture

The UIA and UNESCO (a part of the United Nations) work together to name a "World Capital of Architecture." This special title is given every three years. The city that wins this title also hosts the UIA World Congress that year.

Cities apply to be the World Capital. The UIA World Congress then chooses one city from the applications. The head of UNESCO officially announces the winner. So far, Rio de Janeiro was the World Capital in 2020, Copenhagen in 2023, and Barcelona will be in 2026. The chosen city holds many events and programs about architecture throughout that year.

UIA Gold Medal

Since 1984, the UIA has given out the UIA Gold Medal. This award honors an architect (or a group of architects) who has done amazing work. It celebrates their professional skills and how they have helped people and society through their designs.

Here are some of the architects who have received this award:

UIA Triennial Prizes

The UIA also gives out five other important awards every three years:

• The Patrick Abercrombie Prize: This is for great work in city planning and design.
• The Auguste Perret Prize: This award is for using new technology in architecture.
• The Jean Tschumi Prize: This prize is for excellent writing and thinking about architecture.
• The Robert Matthew Prize: This is for creating buildings and places that are good for people and the environment.
• The Vassilis Sgoutas Prize: This award is for architecture that helps people who are poor or in need.

International Design Competitions

The UIA helps manage big international competitions for designing buildings. Here are some famous projects that came from these competitions:

• Georges Pompidou Centre in Paris
• Indira Gandhi Centre in New Delhi
• Bibliothèque Nationale de France (National Library of France) in Paris
• National Museum of Seoul
• Prado National Museum in Madrid (for its renovation and expansion)
• Opera House in Sydney

See also

In Spanish: Unión Internacional de Arquitectos para niños