There are prizes totalling $2million up for grabs in this year's prestigious LafargeHolcim Awards, an international green build competition. Entires must be in by 25 February.

With stone keen to emphasise its sustainable qualities, this is an opportunity not to be missed by the industry in the UK and the rest of the world. The Awards are divided into five geographic regions - Europe, North America, Middle East Africa, Asia Pacific and Latin America,

Aggregate Industries, the UK arm of the LafargeHolcim Group, considers itself a champion of British progress on sustainable construction and is urging architects, planners, engineers, project owners, builders and construction firms to be among those putting forward their best practice examples.

Building construction and use accounts for about a third of greenhouse gas emmissions in the Western World, putting sustainable construction high on the climate change agenda and Aggregate Industries urges UK visionaries of sustainable design to submit their entries to the LafargeHolcim Awards.

Winners will share a $2million pot of prize money.

The awards, which are in their sixth consecutive year and are free to enter, have been designed to reward and recognise those projects that truly push boundaries in balancing environmental performance, social responsibility and economic growth.

Guy Edwards, Chief Executive Officer at Aggregate Industries UK, says “Amid the ongoing concerns over climate change, the future of the construction industry will be dependent on the need to balance economic growth with sustainability. In the UK, we’re already seeing great strides being made in finding innovative ways to alleviate environmental impact, meet Net Zero targets and embrace alternative methods and technologies.

“With less than two months to go until entries to the international LafargeHolcim Awards close, we’re issuing one final call to the UK construction industry not to miss the chance to enter this prestigious competition and highlight the great work being done to push the boundaries in sustainable construction.”

The Awards have two categories: The ‘Main Category’ and the ‘Next Generation’ category. While the ‘Main Category’ must include sustainable design entries that have a high probability of being carried out, the ‘Next Generation’ category is for students and young professionals (aged 30 years or less) to submit visionary concepts and bold ideas.

Entries will be judged by a panel of global experts including Jeannette Kuo, co-founder of Karamuk Kuo, Kristiaan Borret, Chief Architect of the Brussels-Capital Region (Belgium), and Nuno Brandão Costa, Founder of Brandão Costa Arquitectos (Portugal).

Submissions will be ranked using the five target issues for sustainable construction: innovation and transferability (progress); ethical standards and social inclusion (people); resource and environmental performance (planet); economic viability and compatibility (prosperity); and contextual and aesthetic impact (place).

There is a comprehensive step-by-step guide explaining the evaluation criteria and details about how to enter the competition at www.lafargeholcim-awards.org.