2025 AIA COTE Competition – AIAS Member Irina Chemencedji Wins Top 10 for Students
Competitions are an integral part of architectural education and practice. They push students and professionals to test new ideas, experiment with material and environmental systems, and rethink how design responds to the planet’s changing conditions. The American Institute of Architects Committee on the Environment (AIA COTE) Design Competition stands at the forefront of that pursuit, recognizing work that advances sustainability, resiliency, and ecological awareness in the built environment.
Each year, the student sector of the competition—jointly supported by the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture (ACSA) and the AIA—invites architecture students across the country to submit projects that demonstrate environmental innovation through design. A member of AIAS, Irina Chemencedji, is one of the select few that won the 2025 AIA COTE Competition – Top Ten for Students. A student at the Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD), Chemencedji’s project Symbiosis captured the jury’s attention for its “strong and thoughtful architectural vision.”
“Symbiosis reimagines co-living and recreation as a collective act of environmental and communal interdependence. The project transforms a former mill site in Nederland, Colorado, into a regenerative campus that responds to the town’s affordable housing shortage and supports the seasonal workforce of the nearby Eldora Ski Resort,” explained Chemencedji.
By combining co-housing, recreation, and landscape restoration, Chemencedji designed an ecosystem rather than a singular building—one that merges environmental performance with social vitality.
When asked what first inspired her to join the competition, Chemencedji explained that it began as part of her senior capstone studio. “Everyone in our studio had to sign up for the competition or tailor their projects toward it,” she said. “I was actually happy about that. I specifically signed up for that studio because I knew we were going to do the COTE competition.”
Working within the structure of an academic studio gave the project focus, but the compressed timeline presented its own hurdles. SCAD’s quarter system operates through ten-week sessions, and the capstone spanned two quarters—just twenty weeks in total. “With any architectural project that takes a holistic approach, there are just so many decisions that affect ten other things,” Chemencedji reflected. “Design, sustainability, the city’s vernacular, code, landscape integration—you’re constantly going back and forth. My biggest struggle was keeping a consistent pace because new problems kept showing up. But I think that’s just natural in the process.”
The result was a project that balanced ecology with aesthetics. Symbiosis extends beyond the constraints of typical sustainability metrics by integrating regeneration into the site’s life cycle. “We had to meet all ten of the top sustainability standards,” she said, referencing the COTE competition’s rigorous framework. “But I wanted every design decision to have multiple purposes.”
For example, Chemencedji designed an adaptable amphitheater that doubled as an ice-skating rink in winter. “I asked myself, ‘What happens to the wood decking when it turns into an ice rink?’” she explained. “I decided to reuse the decking as market stalls. Seasonal adaptability became a big theme.” She also designed with the site’s steep topography in mind. To meet height restrictions while accommodating a climbing gym, she carved the structure twenty feet into the earth, an approach that improved both thermal performance and energy efficiency. “Instead of checking boxes,” she said, “I found intertwined solutions that addressed multiple standards at once.”
When Chemencedji learned that Symbiosis had been selected as a winning project, the moment was unforgettable. “I was about to go to dinner with a friend, got an email on my phone, and started screaming,” she said, laughing. “I called my mom first, but since I’m from Romania and there’s a seven-hour time difference, she was asleep. So, I called my best friend instead and screamed for a while.”
If realized, Chemencedji sees the recreational center as the project’s natural starting point. “It has the amphitheater, ice rink, climbing gym, yoga studios—spaces that I’d personally want to use,” she said. “For the site, I think it would best serve the community’s needs.”
For future participants, Chemencedji offered some simplistic yet elegant advice “Choose something you enjoy,” she said. “I love designing with wood and exposed timber structures, so that’s what I focused on. There’ll always be challenges and a lot of work but enjoy the process and remind yourself why you love architecture.”
Reflecting on the experience, Chemencedji emphasized the importance of community—even in an individual submission. “At the start, I didn’t think I had a chance,” she admitted. “It was an individual project and knowing that others competed in teams was intimidating. But taking that leap matters, you never know. Collaboration was huge for me: critiquing each other’s work, sharing skills, talking to professors. Getting a range of perspectives made a big difference.”
The AIA COTE competition continues to highlight how student work can challenge traditional architectural conventions and propose actionable models for a more sustainable future. Through Symbiosis, Chemencedji demonstrates that regenerative design is not only about environmental stewardship but also about nurturing the social and spatial relationships that allow communities to thrive.
*This feature was made possible by our 2025-2026 Media & Marketing Committee Members: Connor Reakes, Kellie Murray, and Leanna Scanlan. Please check out the video feature on Instagram!
