Celebrating Sustainable Timber Construction
The WoodPoP Dara Award 2026 celebrates outstanding achievements in timber architecture and engineering at pan-European level. The first edition honours projects that demonstrate innovation, sustainability, and aesthetic appeal in timber design, as well as contributions to policy and societal impact in alignment with the WoodPoP’s principles. The competition will highlight existing projects that showcase timber as the primary building material, whether in new buildings, renovations, infrastructure or extensions.
Selected projects will be honoured during the 5th High-Level Meeting of the European Wood Policy Platform in November 2026 and promoted across WoodPoP’s digital platforms.
Project Eligibility Criteria
Projects must be nominated by country representatives to qualify.
Nominated projects must:
- Be completed by 31 March 2026.
- Feature timber as the primary building material.
- Be located in a participating country or elsewhere outside Europe, provided that the building has essentially been completed by an entity or company legally based in a participating country.
- Showcase architectural and/or engineering excellence, outstanding craftsmanship, innovation, sustainable building practices and aesthetic appeal.
Eligible Project Categories
Residential Buildings
Private and public, single-family houses, multi-storey buildings, retirement homes and group housing
Non-residential buildings
Buildings used for purposes other than residential, such as offices, nurseries, schools, businesses, hospitality and recreational properties, warehouses, public spaces, agricultural buildings, shopping centres, industrial properties, swimming halls, sports-halls, stadiums, etc.
Infrastructure
Bridges, airport terminals, bus or railway stations, port and ferry terminals, walkways, viewing platforms, filling stations, parking garages, service infrastructure, resting areas, etc.
Renovation, extension project and/or build-on-top
Construction or architectural interventions on existing buildings and infrastructure. For examples, see the previous three categories above.
Important Note: The number of awards will be at the discretion of the jury, aiming to have at least one awardee per category
How will Projects be assessed?
Design & Construction
What are the project's most striking aesthetic and architectural features? Does the project express a clear conceptual vision, and if so, what is the central message?
How effectively does the project integrate structural, functional and economic considerations?
Wood Use & Innovation
How does the project encourage and exemplify the sustainable and efficient use of wood in construction?
How does the project anticipate future needs through innovative and distinctive approaches while demonstrating potential for scalability and replication in timber construction?
Sustainability
Are measures implemented to ensure energy efficiency and reduce environmental impact throughout the building's lifetime?
Are the principles of circularity and sustainable resource management integrated throughout the project’s life cycle?
Policy Contribution & Societal Impact
Does the project align with the principles of the European Wood Policy Platform (as outlined in the Policy Paper)?
Does the project support a European wood culture, including the values of the New European Bauhaus — namely sustainability, beauty and inclusivity?
Does the project include considerations on offering sustainable and affordable housing for citizens?
How will Projects be assessed?
Design & Construction
What are the project's most striking aesthetic and architectural features? Does the project express a clear conceptual vision, and if so, what is the central message?
How effectively does the project integrate structural, functional and economic considerations?
Wood Use & Innovation
How does the project encourage and exemplify the sustainable and efficient use of wood in construction?
How does the project anticipate future needs through innovative and distinctive approaches while demonstrating potential for scalability and replication in timber construction?
Sustainability
Are measures implemented to ensure energy efficiency and reduce environmental impact throughout the building's lifetime?
Are the principles of circularity and sustainable resource management integrated throughout the project’s life cycle?
Policy Contribution & Societal Impact
Does the project align with the principles of the European Wood Policy Platform (as outlined in the Policy Paper)?
Does the project support a European wood culture, including the values of the New European Bauhaus — namely sustainability, beauty and inclusivity?
Does the project include considerations on offering sustainable and affordable housing for citizens?
1. Project Nomination
Country representatives of the European Wood Policy Platform are invited to nominate up to two completed timber-based projects. A third nomination is allowed if it represents a distinctly different building typology than the first two.
Country representatives are invited to organise a pre-selection process, and are encouraged to leverage existing regional, national or international awards to identify their most qualified candidates.
2. Project Submission
How to submit the projects?
All entries must be submitted online via the official submission portal.
The submission form will be available in English only.
Postal submissions will not be accepted.
Each submission must include:
- Consortia description
- Project summary and response to guiding questions (e.g., innovation, sustainability, design intent, etc.).
- Key project details (location, size, wood products used, CO₂ equivalent stored, etc.).
- High-quality photographs and, on voluntary basis, videos cleared for exhibition and publication.
- Basic architectural documentation (floor plans, sections, etc.).
- Contact information for the country representative and the project representative.
Participation rules
By entering the submission process, the project representatives grant the WoodPoP Dara Award permission to use any submitted content for exhibitions and promotional material.
All data and images must comply with GDPR and copyright regulations.
Projects benefiting the following individuals will not be accepted:
- Jury Committee members, including partners and close relatives, employees and freelance collaborators, etc.
- Any other individuals with a conflict of interest
All individuals involved in organising, selecting and preparing the publication of the WoodPoP Dara Award, including organisers, Jury Committee members and third parties, are obligated to maintain strict confidentiality until the ceremony.
In order to maintain impartiality and fairness in the evaluation process, projects from the representative’s own countries shall not be assessed by the Jury Committee member from that country. Jury Committee members will assess each project based solely on its architectural and technical merits.
Selection of Awardees & The Hall Fame
WoodPoP Hall of Fame
All shortlisted projects will be inducted into the WoodPoP Hall of Fame.
Public Voting
Shortlisted projects will be published online in summer 2026 for public voting as part of the Dara Public Award.
Selection
In parallel, the Jury Committee will choose the awardees.
Deadline for Submission
All entries must be completed by 31st March 2026, 24:00 CET, via the online portal.
Supporting Documents
To assist with the submission process, a sample PDF of the submission form is provided below. The Declaration of Honour is also below, please print, sign, and upload it with your application form within the Evalato portal.
The WoodPoP Dara Award Registration Portal
Once the guidelines have been reviewed and the project nomination confirmed by the respective country representatives, proceed with registration below to begin the application.
Please note: Completing the application form may take at least 30 minutes. Please note that you can save your progress and return to it any time prior to the closing date, 31 March 2026.
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