The Lynn S. Beedle Lifetime Achievement Award recognizes an individual who has made extraordinary contributions to the advancement of tall buildings and the urban environment during his or her professional career. These contributions and leadership are recognized by the professional community and have significant effects, which extend beyond the professional community, to enhance cities and the lives of their inhabitants. The individual’s contributions may be well-known or little-known by the public, and may take any form, such as completed buildings, research, technology, methods, ideas or industry leadership.
Safdie is an architect, urban planner, educator, theorist and author. Over a celebrated 50-year career, he has explored the principles of socially responsible design with a distinct visual language. A citizen of Israel, Canada and the United States, Safdie graduated from McGill University. After apprenticing with Louis I. Kahn in Philadelphia, Safdie returned to Montréal to oversee the master plan for the 1967 World Exhibition.
In 1964, he established his own firm to undertake Habitat ’67, an adaptation of his undergraduate thesis and a turning point in modern architecture. Author of four books and a frequent essayist and lecturer, Safdie’s global practice includes projects in North and South America, the Middle East, the developing world and throughout Asia and Australia. Projects span a range of typologies, including airports, museums, performing arts, libraries, housing, mixed-use and entire cities.
