The SOM Foundation supports individuals with the highest aspirations to enhance the design of the built environment.
2025 Research Prize
Visioning Eco-Connectivity with Youth in the Rio Grande Valley
Maggie Hansen
Miriam Solis
Cyclists enjoy the bike trail at Estrero Grande State Park, one regional precedent for our work. © Maggie Hansen.
Ali Fard
2025 Research Prize
Through the Cloud: Remapping Mobility in the Technical Landscapes of Northern Virginia
Development timeline along the Washington and Old Dominion Trail. © Ali Fard.
2025 European Research Prize
Coastal Register: Disrupting the Corridor: Water/Ground Mobilities Across the Adriatic
Water stories. © Simonetta Armondi.
Simonetta Armondi
Agim Kërçuku
2025 Robert L. Wesley Award
Jenae Edwards
“Siren City.” © Jenae Edwards.
2025 Robert L. Wesley Award
Israel Jimenez
Braced Communal Platform. © Israel Jimenez.
2025 Robert L. Wesley Award
Nekelle Thomas
Examine the Existing. © Nekelle Thomas.
2025 China Fellowship
Rising Tides, Resilient Lives: Reimagining Vulnerable Communities in the River Deltas of Kampung Melayu, Jakarta
Hao Chang
Reclaiming the Negative Space. © Hao Chang.
2025 China Fellowship
Reconstructing the Power Order of the “Human-Water Relationship” Along China’s Grand Canal
Lu Ming
Axonometric drawing of the inner part of the city wall in the waterfront area. © Lu Ming.
2025 China Fellowship
Four Dimensions of Water Security: Availability, Accessibility, Resilience, and Sustainability
Zhang Nan
Scene of the transformation of the space under the viaduct in the Discover Eco-corridors project. © Zhang Nan.
2025 Researcher-in-Residence
A Permeable Atlas
Pablo Castillo Luna
A Tent for Lovers, A Garden for Pollinators, 2022. © Pablo Castillo Luna.
2025 Structural Engineering Fellowship
Reef Resilience: Designing Modular Solutions for Coastal Protection
Rebecca Henig
Coral Rubble at Moore Reef after MARRS star installation. Courtesy of Mars Incorporated and GBR Biology.
Supporting Lafayette International High School Students Interested in Architecture
Gordon Bunshaft. © SOM.
Robert L. Wesley (1937–2026)
Robert L. Wesley, Chicago, 1996. © SOM.
Call for Applications
Structural Engineering Fellowship Applications Now Open. Deadline: March 13, 2026
Researcher-in-Residence Applications Now Open. Deadline: April 3, 2026
China Fellowship Applications Now Open. Deadline: April 24, 2026
Featured Fellow
Architecture, Infrastructure, and Urban Design and the Emerging Role of Infrastructure Design in the Modern City
2017 China Prize
Yue Wu
Tongji University
Department of Architecture
Umeda Sky Building. © Yue Wu.
Guest House at Kyoto. © Yue Wu.
Speculation of Mega Infrastructure. © Yue Wu.
Past
Block by Block: Decoding New American Dreams of Housing
Organized by De Peter Yi, Assistant Professor of Architecture at the University of Cincinnati DAAP and director of Rebuild Collective, Block by Block is an exhibition that explores the design potential of accessory dwelling units, upzoning, lot splitting, single stair exits, and mass timber construction in housing. Read
Recent News
2026 China Fellowship Opens
The SOM Foundation is pleased to announce the opening of the 2026 China Fellowship. The $15,000 China Fellowship is awarded annually to one student in the last two years of either an undergraduate or graduate program in architecture, landscape architecture, interior architecture, or urban design in the People’s Republic of China to conduct independent travel and research that contributes to the SOM Foundation’s current topic, “Exploring the Potential of Mobility Corridors.” The China Fellowship was created in 2006 to support emerging design leaders to broaden their education and contribute to their future professional and academic careers.
2026 Researcher-in-Residence Opens
The SOM Foundation and the MAK Center for Art and Architecture are now accepting applications for the 2026 Researcher-in-Residence. A fully funded summer residency program based in Los Angeles, the Researcher-in-Residence program provides an architect, artist, and/or researcher dedicated space and time for innovative work that addresses pressing issues related to the built environment. This year’s topic is “Exploring the Potential of Mobility Corridors,” which corresponds to the SOM Foundation’s 2025–2026 research topic. The Researcher-in-Residence will receive a $5,000 stipend and a four-to-six-week summer residency at R.M. Schindler’s Mackey Apartments in Los Angeles.
Iker Gil to Step Down as Executive Director of the SOM Foundation
Iker Gil, Executive Director of the SOM Foundation since 2019, announced today that he will step down from his position in August 2026 coinciding with the end of the current awards cycle.