MASS Design Group will be honored alongside the city of Minneapolis by the University of Pennsylvania’s Weitzman School of Design in a public celebration held at the Kleinman Center for Energy Policy this evening. 

The Boston-based firm will receive the prestigious Kanter Tritsch Medal for its “design excellence and commitment to a climate-positive future.”

Likewise, Minneapolis is being honored with the Witte-Sakamoto Family Medal for its comprehensive 2040 resiliency plan that was developed with the help of Buro Happold. 

“MASS and Minneapolis remind us of the central role for design in overcoming seemingly intractable challenges like unequal access to jobs and housing, and mass incarceration,” Weitzman dean Frederick Steiner said in a statement. “Our professions have a lot of work to do to see that entire communities aren’t left out of the design process.” 

The non-profit, non-hierarchical MASS Design Group has demonstrated a unique ability to grasp the impact that architecture and the built environment can have on the prevailing social issues of our time, recently launching projects that include the Rwanda Institute for Conservation Agriculture and the award-winning National Memorial for Peace and Justice in Montgomery, Alabama.

“To receive the Kanter Tritsch award at this time, when the response from the design disciplines is crucial to enrich and elevate our daily lives is deeply moving, and deeply motivating,” MASS Design Group’s Michael P. Murphy said. “The spaces around us are infused with great power, they have the potential to dignify our lives, and yet can cause tremendous pain. To join a growing fellowship of others to ask how we can do more as designers, to improve the spaces we inhabit, to be accountable and creative in our profession, is where myself and my organization MASS have been hoping to collectively orient our futures. I have even more hope for this now.”

The studio’s social commitment is echoed by the work Minneapolis is doing to tackle housing, climate, transportation, and racial justice issues. 

“The competition was really stiff this year. The jury looked at some terrific plans, and in the end, the Minneapolis 2040 plan resonated with all of us,” jury chair Lisa Servon said of the city’s ambitious plan. “It ticked nearly all of the boxes and is well aligned with the values Bill and Keiko hope to highlight with this award.”

This year’s recipients were selected from a group of nominees submitted by Weitzman students. The ceremony will begin at 5:30 in the Fisher Fine Arts Library. A livestream of the event can be found here.