Link to original post (in french) : https://archicree.com/2025/06/18/imaginer-la-ville-en-reseau-vers-une-nouvelle-ere-des-infrastructures-urbaines/
ArchiCREE is a French quarterly magazine dedicated to contemporary architecture, design, and urban planning. It focuses on innovation, materials, and aesthetics, featuring in-depth articles, project showcases, and interviews with both renowned and emerging architects. The publication stands for creative exploration and editorial independence, publishing both in print and online at archicree.com, with active social media presence.
Here is the english translation (by infravision) of the post:
As cities become denser, more digital, and face unprecedented environmental challenges, thinking of urban infrastructure as merely functional tools is no longer enough.
This is the context in which InfraVision 2025 was launched — a unique international competition for students around the world, initiated by the InfraVision think tank, an initiative of Vauban Infrastructure Partners, in collaboration with Altermind.
A Call to Reimagine the City as a Living Network
The 2025 theme is ambitious: “The City as Network: Reimagining Urban Infrastructure.” This competition goes beyond technical innovation or architectural design — it aims to rethink how infrastructure networks (transport, water, energy, telecommunications, waste management) interact systemically over a 30-year horizon.
The premise is clear: like a living organism, the city should be viewed as an interconnected system, where physical infrastructure, digital flows, economic models, social uses, and governance are woven into a collective dynamic.
A Student Competition: Open and Multidisciplinary
InfraVision 2025 is open to students from all academic backgrounds, enrolled in a higher education institution during the 2024–2025 academic year. Applications can be individual or in teams (up to five members), with strong encouragement for interdisciplinarity: architects, urban planners, engineers, sociologists, economists, designers, political scientists, computer scientists, ecologists, or legal experts are all invited to collaborate.
Submitted projects must be based on a concrete urban case — existing or speculative — and propose a profound transformation of the chosen infrastructure. The goal is not just to “repair” or “modernize,” but to re-enchant infrastructure in terms of design, governance, impact, and interaction with the city.
Between Foresight and Feasibility: A Demanding Framework
Projects will be evaluated through five key dimensions:
- Design & Planning: What urban and architectural languages for tomorrow? How can infrastructure be made visible without being overpowering?
- Stakeholder Engagement: How can citizens, local governments, and businesses be involved in co-designing these transformations?
- Technological Innovation: What breakthroughs or novel uses of technology can reinvent urban networks?
- Decarbonization & Resilience: How can infrastructure be a lever for sustainability and resilience in the face of climate or social crises?
- Systemic Interconnection: How can traditionally siloed urban functions be linked together?
Participants must submit either a 10-page memo or a PowerPoint presentation of around 30 slides, optionally supplemented with visuals, sketches, diagrams, models, or prototypes.
Judging Visions of the Future
The high-profile jury gives the competition international stature. It is chaired by Sadie Morgan, co-founder of the UK architectural firm drMM and member of the UK National Infrastructure Commission. Other jury members include:
- Dominique Alba, urban architect (Jean Nouvel workshops), former director of APUR
- Dario Nardella, former mayor of Florence
- Paulo Moura, director of the Mediterranean Institute for Risk, Environment and Sustainable Development (IMREDD)
- As well as public decision-makers, investors, researchers, and sustainable city professionals.
Projects will be judged based on strategic relevance, originality, technical rigor, and their ability to inspire public and private action.
A Major Intellectual and Professional Launchpad
The prizes reflect the ambition:
- 1st prize: €10,000
- 2nd prize: €7,000
- 3rd prize: €3,000
Beyond the awards, winners will have the opportunity to present their projects during Paris InfraWeek 2025, the leading international event on sustainable infrastructure, gathering investors, decision-makers, and experts from around the globe.
Strategic Timeline
- April 1, 2025: Official opening of applications
- July 30, 2025: Project submission deadline
- July–September 2025: Review and deliberation phase
- November 2025: Results announced and prizes awarded during Paris InfraWeek
To apply, students must email:
???? contact@infravision-thinktank.com
with the following info: names and schools of team members, program of study, expected graduation date, working title of the project, brief description (3 lines), and contact details of a faculty advisor.
Thinking of Infrastructure as Culture
InfraVision 2025 marks a paradigm shift: infrastructures are no longer hidden elements beneath our feet but cultural and political actors. They shape our lifestyles, urban rhythms, and collective imagination. The competition’s ambition is to foster a new generation of urban thinkers, capable of blending creativity, technical excellence, and systemic vision.
The message is clear:
The city of tomorrow won’t just be smart. It must be integrated, inclusive, alive, and poetic — a true network of human, material, and symbolic interactions.
For more information and detailed application rules, visit: https://infravision-thinktank.com/2025-competition
