Throughout history, humans have created landmarks—from pyramids to cathedrals to skyscrapers—to unite communities, showcase progress, and spark inspiration. Now, Shift, a new social venture founded by Dutch entrepreneur Don Ritzen, aims to construct a landmark specifically designed to inspire climate action and which looks to attract over one million annual visitors. To turn this ambitious vision into reality, Shift is launching an international architecture competition on January 15, 2025, with a total prize pool of 250,000 EUR.
Supported by a network of Dutch strategic partners and impact financiers, the first Shift landmark will be in the Netherlands, where 55% of the land is at risk of flooding due to rising sea levels and river flooding. From architects and activists to scientists and entrepreneurs, Shift envisions a dynamic space where stories of passionate climate and sustainability pioneers converge, aiming to inspire its visitors on a large scale. “While 75 percent of Europeans are concerned about climate change, only 10 percent are taking meaningful action,” Ritzen points out. “We want to create a space of wonder, hope, and possibility that inspires everyone to take action.” Within this new space, a permanent program curated by Shift will encourage and nurture sustainable behaviors. Using immersive experiences, it will highlight the authentic stories of climate and sustainability champions. The ambition is to build landmarks across the globe.
About the competition
In their brief to architects, Shift emphasizes that the landmark should envision the next level of sustainable architecture. The first phase of the competition is open to architects worldwide. After the first phase, five architectural firms will be selected for the second phase where they will develop their concept in more detail. The five finalists will receive 40,000 EUR each and the winning concept will receive an additional 50,000 EUR. Two of the five finalist spots will be firms Shift has approached directly—one globally renowned architecture firm and one innovative smaller firm. This way, Shift wants to signal the range and caliber of desired talent to its key stakeholders.
The remaining three spots will be chosen from an open international competition overseen by DVDL, a New York-based agency of cultural planners and competition advisors, and a jury drawn from the fields of architecture, impact investing, biodiversity, academia, real estate and the cultural sector: Aric Chen (Nieuwe Instituut), Astrid Leyssens (We Are Impact Collective), Ben van Berkel (UNStudio), Clemens Brenninkmeijer (Redevco), Géke Roelink (Nemo), Dr. Lewis Akenji (Hot or Cool Institute), Lodewijk Hoekstra (NL Greenlabel), Mireia Luzárraga (TAKK), Nicole Maarsen (Social Value Foundation).
The competition has light submission requirements and maximum freedom for creativity of participating teams. Furthermore, the intellectual property of the non-selected teams remains with the architects. With the competition, Shift’s founder Ritzen hopes to bring inspiration and innovation to the architecture, engineering, and construction field.
To find out more, head over to the competition website. / Media kit available for download here. / For all other inquiries, reach out to: competition@shift.world.
