Sustainability

The University of Houston officially began construction on the Innovation Hub in April of 2026. Designed for seamless connectivity by Page (now part of Stantec), the 78,000-sf facility will house the Wolff Center for Entrepreneurship, the Energy Transition Institute, and the Dakri Center for Economic Inclusion. Advanced laboratory space for science and engineering will enable critical work in fields such as health, energy, security, and sustainability.

When the University of Pittsburgh set out to renovate Hillman Library, the project began with a relatively modest goal: Remove asbestos from the plenum space above the ceilings. What followed over the next decade was something far more ambitious—a four-phase transformation that reimagined what a 21st-century academic library could be, and in doing so, reshaped the university’s relationship with its campus, its students, and its surrounding neighborhood.

Georgia Tech opened the Thomas A. Fanning Student-Athlete Performance Center in May of 2026 in Atlanta. Designed by SLAM, the leading-edge facility spans over 100,000 sf and serves all 17 of the Yellow Jackets’ sports programs. The institution’s first-ever sports science lab features markerless motion-capture cameras, force plates, and advanced gait-analysis technologies.

The University of California, Santa Cruz is planning to construct Heller Student Housing South to provide bed capacity for 1,290 upper-division students. Designed by WRNS Studio, the vibrant complex will comprise four buildings that range from five to seven stories in height. Catering to a range of lifestyle preferences, units will be available in a mix of singles, triple studios, two- and four-bedroom apartments, and co-living accommodations. Amenities will include a market, a mailroom, laundry venues, and additional multipurpose areas.

The University of Massachusetts Amherst opened the $43 million School of Public Health and Health Sciences Hub in May of 2026 to drive innovation, interdisciplinary discovery, and student success. Consolidating the school’s six departments from seven disparate locations across campus, the 26,800-sf facility was designed by Leers Weinzapfel Associates to support contemporary approaches to team-based learning. Flexible classrooms of varying sizes are accompanied by seminar rooms, open collaboration areas, and advising offices.

Harwell's 70,000-sf speculative laboratory complex at its Science and Innovation Campus in the United Kingdom reached practical completion in May of 2026. Designed by Scott Brownrigg, Tech Foundry 3 comprises six mid-tech units ranging upwards in size from 5,800 sf that can accommodate advanced and industrial manufacturing settings, R&D space, and both wet and dry laboratories. These flexible, self-contained units offer private entrances, grade-level access loading doors, and a minimum clear internal height of 32 feet.

When Yale University set out to reinvest in its sciences, the challenge was as much logistical as architectural. The university is constrained by finite capital budgets and an urban campus in New Haven, Conn., that is dense with heritage buildings. Several interlocking institutional initiatives shaped the approach, including the Yale Sustainability Plan, the Yale Planetary Solutions program, and a Science Strategy Committee report issued in 2018. That report identified five high-priority areas: integrative data science, quantum science, neuroscience, inflammation, and environmental and evolutionary sciences. Two projects—the Kline Tower and Kline Geology Laboratory—directly addressed the data science and environmental and evolutionary sciences priorities.

The University of California, Berkeley held a ribbon-cutting ceremony in May of 2026 to celebrate the approaching completion of the Barbara and Gerson Bakar Gateway building. The $557 million facility will house the College of Computing, Data Science, and Society (CDSS) and bring together approximately 1,325 faculty, students, and staff to elevate education and accelerate AI-driven discovery.

The University of Louisville broke ground in April of 2026 on the Health Sciences Building to advance discovery and provide the critical infrastructure needed to prepare the next generation of healthcare providers in Kentucky and beyond. Designed by Champlin | EOP and Perkins&Will, the $280 million facility will act as a nexus for the schools of medicine, nursing, public health, information sciences, and dentistry.

Providence Health Care is constructing the new St. Paul’s Hospital at the Jim Pattison Medical Campus in Vancouver. Designed by HDR and Stantec, the CAD 2.18 billion (USD 1.59 billion) building will integrate leading-edge technology to expand access to care and elevate patient outcomes.

Louisiana State University (LSU) opened the Our Lady of the Lake Health Interdisciplinary Science Building in April of 2026 in Baton Rouge. Serving as a vibrant nexus for scientific inquiry, STEM education, and industry collaboration, the new home of the College of Science drives innovation in the five key focus areas of geology and geophysics, chemistry, biological sciences, mathematics, and astronomy and physics.

TerraPower broke ground in April of 2026 on the flagship Natrium plant's Kemmerer Unit 1 in Wyoming. Anticipated to be the first utility-scale advanced nuclear power plant in the United States, the pioneering facility will feature a 345-MW sodium-cooled fast reactor with an integrated molten salt-based energy system. Each Natrium reactor will have the capacity to increase output to 500 MW for over five hours in response to peaks in demand, supplying the equivalent energy needed to power 400,000 homes.

Central Washington University is constructing the North Academic Complex in Ellensburg as a unified home for the College of Arts and Humanities. Designed by Opsis Architecture and NAC, the $108 million facility will house a 240-seat lecture hall with state-of-the-art technological capabilities, 21 active learning classrooms, and 109 faculty offices.

Southern Illinois University Edwardsville opened the Health Sciences Complex in April of 2026 to provide leading-edge facilities for the School of Pharmacy and the School of Nursing. The $117.4 million project encompassed the construction of a three-story, 106,000-sf structure that links two renovated and expanded buildings via an activated two-story atrium.

The University of Florida opened the Whitney Marine Research Center in April of 2026 in Marineland, Fla. Designed by Lord Aeck Sargent and TTV Architects, the $41.2 million facility more than doubles the available research space for the Whitney Laboratory for Marine Bioscience while expanding capacity for education and conservation efforts. The 38,000-sf building features 12 leading-edge labs, a dedicated microscopy area, aquaculture venues, and a maker space equipped with 3D printers and laser cutters.