Combination of Waste-to-energy Plant and Ski Slope

Brief 

The prestigious World Building of the Year prize has been revealed at the close of this year’s World Architecture Festival. CopenHill, by Bjarke Ingels Group, has won for its inspired combination of waste-to-energy plant and ski slope.

Insight

The winner of the prestigious World Building of the Year prize has been revealed for 2021. CopenHill, by Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG), got the nod for its inspired combination of waste-to-energy plant and ski slope.

The project was recognized on the final day of the three-day World Architecture Festival (WAF) in Lisbon, during an event that also featured the announcement of the Landscape of the Year, Future Project of the Year, and the WAFX Award.

CopenHill (aka Amager Bakke) is one of those ideas that sounds crazy on paper but really does work in practice. The striking building features a facade made up of glass and stacked aluminum bricks. Much of its interior is taken up by the waste-to-energy plant itself, which BIG says transforms 440,000 tons of waste annually into enough energy to deliver electricity and district heating for 150,000 homes.

Elsewhere inside are administrative spaces, an education center, and areas for conferences, workshops and academic tours.

Up on top of the building is a ski slope, a freestyle area, a timed slalom course, and lower slopes for beginners and kids. As well as the skiing, other attractions include the world’s tallest climbing wall, which measures 85 m (278 ft) in height, a rooftop bar, a cross-fit area, and a tree-lined hiking and running trail containing 7,000 bushes, 300 pine and other greenery.

SLA Architects won the Landscape of the Year prize for its Al Fay Park project in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. The public park is filled with over 2,000 native trees and bushes, and is designed to reduce traffic noise and heat in the bustling area of the capital city to a calm and cool “forest-like” environment.