MVRDV co-founder Nathalie de Vries is among 50 women to be included in the Forbes 50 Over 50: Europe, Middle East, and Africa 2023 list. Building on the inaugural 2022 edition, the list is intended to honor “foundations, business, and political leaders, scientists, and vanguards leading the way throughout Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.”

“Dutch architect Nathalie de Vries puts the “DV” in Rotterdam-based design firm MVRDV,” Forbes writes. “A founding partner of the firm, De Vries has designed everything from three Dutch national monuments to co-working spaces and hotels to the unique, multi-use Baltyk Tower in Poland—one of the many major projects she’s completed after turning 50. Her urban designs focus on sustainability and innovation and have won awards such as the Amsterdamprijs and architecture’s prominent Architizer A+ Award.”

"Being named to this list really came out of the blue, and it's fun to think that I have gone from the 40 under 40 list for architects to a 50 over 50 list for leading women in Europe," de Vries told Archinect. "Being named in Forbes is of course also an indicator of the strength of a business, so in that sense, I can also thank the whole team at MVRDV. On a serious note, it's heartening to see an architect represented in a list like this. Visibility for women in architecture is crucial to improving equality in our profession, so it's an honor for me to be able to fulfill that role."

Also named in the list is Nigerian textile artist Nike Davies-Okundaye, whose work has been permanently displayed at the Smithsonian National Museum of African Art, and fellow Nigerian Amina J. Mohammed, who began her career working for architects designing schools and healthcare buildings before going on to become Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations.

News of de Vries’ inclusion in the list comes weeks after MVRDV produced a catalog for cities facing sea level rise as part of a Vancouver competition. 2023 has also seen the firm reveal its competition-winning 'canyon of books' library in Wuhan, China, as well as its competition-winning resilient water network in Taiwan.

In December, MVRDV collaborated with GRAS Reynes Arquitectos on the completion of a mixed-use district in Mallorca, Spain. In November, meanwhile, the studio launched a digital tool to demonstrate the design possibilities for Rotterdam’s rooftops while also completing the renovation of a mixed-use scheme in Paris.