Mauro Marinelli Wins 2025 Wheelwright Prize for Research on Mountain Architecture Across the Alps, Andes, and Himalayas
Mauro Marinelli. Image © Francesca Dusini with Courtesy of Harvard Graduate School of Design
Harvard University Graduate School of Design (GSD) has announced Maura Marinelli, co-founder of franzosomarinelli, as the winner of the 2025 Wheelwright Prize. The annual $100,000 grant supports emerging architects in pursuing investigative research that addresses contemporary architectural challenges with a global perspective. Marinelli's winning proposal, "Topographies of Resistance: Architecture and the Survival of Cultures," explores how architecture can sustain and revitalize rural, mountainous regions that confront climate change, infrastructure limitations, and cultural erosion. His research aims to develop design strategies that promote autonomy, sustainability, and local identity by comparing contexts in the Alps, Andes, and Himalayas. Through fieldwork and analysis, the project seeks to propose architectural approaches that empower communities and challenge urban-centric perspectives.
