Competitions Deadline 6 April, 2026 Published on 20/11/2025

International VELUX Award for students of architecture

Light of Tomorrow by VELUX 2026

About Light of Tomorrow by VELUX 2026

The competition and award challenges students to explore the theme of daylight – to create a deeper understanding of this ever-relevant source of energy, light, and life.

Every second year since 2004, the VELUX Group has invited students of architecture to participate in the Light of Tomorrow by VELUX, formerly known as the International VELUX Award for students of architecture. The competition and award seeks to challenge students to explore the role of daylight in architecture and inspire new thinking. The aim of the competition and award is to engage with students of architecture about how to use sunlight and daylight as main sources of energy and light and how to ensure health and well-being of the people who live and work in buildings.

Since the launch, it has grown into the largest competition and award of its kind with students from 800 schools, from 130 countries of all continents, submitting more than 6 000 projects on the theme “Light of Tomorrow”.

The competition and award is global and open to any registered student of architecture backed by a teacher from a school of architecture.

The total prize money is up to 7 000 Euros per winner. The jury, comprising internationally renowned architects, will find eight winners – five regional winners plus three special prize winners. Regional and special prize winners will enjoy an expenses-paid trip to Europe to attend a workshop and an architectural event where one global winner will be found after presenting projects live to the jury.

Light of Tomorrow by VELUX 2026 is arranged in close collaboration with the International Union of Architects (UIA) and acknowledged by the following educational organizations: The European Association for Architectural Education, The American Institute of Architecture Students, the Architectural Research Centers Consortium, and the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture.

The competition and award

The competition and award celebrates and promotes excellence in completed study works. It welcomes projects that celebrate the privilege of being a student; with curiosity and with the willingness to think “out of the box” – exploring the theme of daylight in the widest perspectives and understanding of the subject, considering the social, sociological, and environmental dimension of light.

The competition and award is not restricted to the use of VELUX products. Innovative thinking and use of specific VELUX components as daylight providers will however be within the scope and the jury will be allowed to give prizes to the best projects in the following topics:

Natural light in new buildings ;
Daylight in building transformation ;
Daylight investigations.

The competition and award wants to acknowledge not only the students but their teachers as well. Therefore, teachers of the projects also receive prize money and recoginition.