The American Institute of Architects (AIA) Committee on the Environment (COTE) is announcing this year’s recipients for its highest honor—the COTE Top Ten Awards.

COTE bestows the award annually on 10 design projects that have expertly integrated design excellence with cutting-edge performance in several key areas. In order to be eligible, project submissions are required to demonstrate alignment with COTE’s rigorous criteria for 10 measures that include social, economic, and ecological values. The five-member jury evaluates each project submission based on a cross-section of the 10 metrics balanced with the holistic approach to the design. This year’s Top Ten Awards recipients are as follows.

• Albion District Library; Toronto, Ontario, Canada | Perkins+Will
• Georgia Tech Engineered Biosystems Building; Atlanta, Ga. | Lake|Flato in collaboration with Cooper Carry
• Mundo Verde at Cook Campus; Washington | Studio Twenty Seven Architecture
• Nancy and Stephen Grand Family House; San Francisco, Calif. | Leddy Maytum Stacy Architects
• New United States Courthouse - Los Angeles; Los Angeles, Calif. | Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP
• The Renwick Gallery of the Smithsonian American Art Museum; Washington | DLR Group
• San Francisco Art Institute - Fort Mason Center Pier 2; San Francisco | Leddy Maytum Stacy Architects
• Sawmill; Tehachapi, Calif. | Olson Kundig
• Sonoma Academy’s Janet Durgin Guild & Commons; Santa Rosa, Calif. | WRNS Studio

Jurors also designated one project as a Top Ten Plus recipient for its exceptional post-occupancy performance data. This year's recipient is:
Ortlieb's Bottling House; Philadelphia | KieranTimberlake

Complete details for each project are available on AIA’s website. Award recipients will be honored in June at the AIA’s Conference on Architecture in New York City.

Visit AIA’s website for more information on the COTE Top Ten Awards program.