Building Beyond Borders honoured at March Materials Awards
At the end of 2025 'Building Beyond Bricks', a project of our postgraduate Building Beyond Borders, was nominated for the March Materials Awards 2025.
Today we are proud to announce that this project takes home not just 1 but 2 recognitions!
These are the words from the organizers of the March Materials Awards:
‘Building Beyond Bricks’ by Building Beyond Borders takes home not just 1 but 2 recognitions!
This collaborative project impressed both our international jury AND the audience of over 20.000 voters. With an astonishing 1826 votes during our public voting in September, they receive a ‘People’s Choice Top 10’ Award.
2. ‘Building Beyond Bricks’ was nominated by our judges as a FINALIST. Meaning they were one of the runners up to receive a first prize.
‘Building Beyond Bricks’ by Building Beyond Borders (faculty of Architecture and Arts - Hasselt University) reactivates the grounds of an abandoned vicarage in Belgium with a pavilion and earth oven that tell a story of circularity and community.
Photographed by @oooolmoooo, this project balances low-tech construction techniques with high-impact thinking. With reclaimed timber, local chestnut, and compressed earth blocks, @leem.works, students and locals collaboratively built a space that embodies ecological responsibility and place-based learning.
In Dominik Campanella’s words, CEO of @concular.de and judge: “This project includes bio-based, geo-based, and reclaimed materials, and with that shows what these sustainable materials can create a unique aesthetic.”
The team of designers and builders personally salvaged the materials from nearby abandoned homes and construction sites, making this a hands-on and empowering experience in circular construction.
At present, the postgraduate certificate Building Beyond Borders 25|26 and the Global Perspectives Studio are ongoing. You can find out more about this on their website: www.buildingbeyondborders.be.
