Photo: Jon Tugores

As part of the proceedings of the UIA General Assembly in Rio de Janeiro, Barcelona has been announced the winner of the bid to host the World Congress of the International Union of Architects (UIA) and be UIA-UNESCO World Capital of Architecture in the year 2026.

In a 147-129 vote, Barcelona carried the day over its only rival, Beijing. Themed ‘One today, one tomorrow,’ the UIA World Congress in Barcelona will use the example of the host city’s relationship with its architecture to spark debate on a feasible and sustainable future. An analysis of the social, environmental, and economic context that would help define architecture’s goals and the instruments for attaining them.

Since 1948, UIA congresses have tackled the challenges confronting society from the angle of the know-how provided by professionals of architecture. They are intended as debate platforms yielding concrete proposals for improving the urban quality of the city, and thus also the quality of life of its citizenry.

Twenty-five years ago, in July 1996, Barcelona was the venue of the 19th UIA Congress, which drew such crowds that one of the sessions had to be held outdoors.

Barcelona’s bid to host UIA Congress

Luis Fernández-Galiano, Jacques Herzog, Joan Busquets, Norman Foster, Peter Eisenman and Daniel Libeskind, at the XIX UIA Congress