Jury citation
Ross Langdon, co-founder of Regional Associates, and his partner Elif Yavuz.
Ross Langdon is posthumously awarded the 2014 National President’s Prize. A great Australian and an exceptional world citizen, he was senselessly killed, along with his pregnant partner, Elif Yavuz, in the brutal terrorist attack on a Nairobi shopping centre in September 2013. He was only thirty-two years old. At the time, Langdon and Yavuz were living in Dar es Salaam in Tanzania and working on humanitarian, aid and public projects.
Langdon was born in Brisbane, grew up in Tasmania’s south-east and commenced his first degree at the University of Tasmania. He then transferred to the University of Sydney where he completed a Bachelor of Design in Architecture with honours and received the University Medal. After working with several distinguished Sydney architects, he received a scholarship from the British Council Australia and moved to Europe. In 2008 he co-founded Regional Associates with Campbell Drake and Ben Milbourne. Langdon undertook projects in Norway and Denmark, then in Uganda, Rwanda and Kenya, where he recently completed an AIDS hospital. His work is notable for its community engagement and use of recycled and upcycled materials.
Langdon was a talented architect and an inspirational leader who left a great legacy and example for all in the profession. He was well on the way to shaping a better world future.
National President of the Australian Institute of Architects, Professor Paul Berkemeier LFRAIA.
Ross Langdon’s family established a scholarship fund to assist design students in Tasmania who are passionate about sustainable and locally sensitive design.
