Twelve buildings from around the world have today been announced as winners on the first day of the World Architectural Festival (WAF) Awards 2011. The presentation of the WAF Awards is taking place during the largest global celebration of architecture - the World Architecture Festival, which is being held in Barcelona (CCIB) this week.

Speaking at the WAF Awards 2011 Paul Finch, WAF Programme Director, said: “The World Architecture Festival is the world's largest, live, truly inclusive and interactive global architectural awards programme. Attracting entries from internationally renowned practices to small local architects, the stellar quality of this year’s designs demonstrates their commitment to designing the world’s most exciting buildings. This year we’ve attracted more entries than ever before, with more than 700 submissions from 66 different countries. Our congratulations go to the winners for truly accomplished projects.” 

The WAF Awards day one winners are as follows:

World Holiday Building of the Year: 
Raas, Jodhpur, India, The Lotus Praxis Initiative, India
A luxury boutique hotel in the old city of Johhpur, which features 17th and 18th century period structures that have been restored using traditional crafts and materials, to provide visitors with a sensual contemporary experience. 

World Production, Energy, & Recycling Building of the Year: 
Waste Treatment Facility, Barcelona, Spain, Batlle & Roig Architects, Spain
This facility consists of two large treatments at different levels, under one roof, which aims to integrate with the land.

World Villa of the Year: 
InBetween House, Nagano, Japan, Koji Tsutsui & Associates, Japan
Surrounded by Japanese larch trees in a mountainous region of Karuizawa, Japan, this 178sqm house sits on an artificially levelled area of the site created thirty years ago and left unused. 

World Landscape Project of the Year: 
A Mother River Recovered - The Sanlihe Greenway, Qian’an City, China, Turenscape, China
Transformation of a former garbage dump and sewage drainage facility into a ecological landscape and habitat for native biodiversity, integrating pedestrian and cycle paths for recreation and commuting uses.

www.worldbuildingsdirectory.com/project

World Transport Building of the Year: 
Kurilpa Bridge, Brisbane, Australia, Cox Architecture/ Cox Ryaner Architectects, Australia
Kurilpa Bridge provides a new pedestrian and cycle connection across Brisbane’s river but also forms a new public space, as well as a symbol for art, science, technology and healthy living. 

World House of the Year: 
Small House, Sydney, Australia, Domenic Alvaro, Australia
The ultra-compact vertical house is located in an urban setting and features an outdoor room on the top floor. It was designed by Alvaro not only to be his own home, but also to test a development model for downtown urban living as an alternative to the ubiquitous luxury apartment. 

World Civic and Community Building of the Year: 
Saint Nicholas Antiochian Orthodox Christian Church, USA, Marlon Blackwell Architect.
The church is the result of a transformation of an existing metal shop building into a sanctuary and fellowship hall in anticipation of a larger adjacent sanctuary on the same site. The simple original structure is enveloped by a new skin, obscuring and refining the original gabled form. 

World New & Old Building of the Year: 
Puzzle Piece, Canary Islands, Spain, Romera y Ruiz Arquitectos, Spain
A cover for a patio in a nursery school for children to protect their play area from sun and rain, allowing all-weather play. The cover is shaped like a puzzle piece with gaps allowing light in.

World Learning Building of the Year: 
Sainsbury Laboratory, Cambridge, UK, Stanton Williams, UK
The Sainsbury Laboratory is an 11,000 sq.m. plant science research centre set in the University of Cambridge’s Botanic Garden, and brings together world-leading scientists in a working environment of the highest quality. The design reconciles complex scientific requirements with the need for a piece of architecture that also responds to its landscape setting.

World Office Building of the Year: 
Media-ICT, Barcelona, Spain, Cloud 9, Spain
The project was commissioned by The Consortium of the Zona Franca CZFB and @22Barcelona, an experimental district in the city. The architects were extremely interested in the digital city model based on information, communication and technology, with the idea of a city where what matters is knowledge, added value and patents. 

World Culture Building of the Year: 
Shima Kitchen, Tonosyotyo, Japan, Architects Atelier RYO ABE, Japan
An arts centre and restaurant situated on a rural island in Western Japan. The building features an awning made of charred timber shingles, which are tied loosely to the main frame of the building to create an illusion of shimmering feathers in the wind.

World Sport Building of the Year:
Speedskating Stadium Inzell – Max Aicher Arena, Inzell, Germany, Projektarbeitsgemeinschaft Behnisch Architekten Pohl Architekten, Germany
Intelligent roof free of interior columns, built over pre-existing speed-skating track, which allows athletes and spectators continuous panoramic views over the Bavarian Alps.