Urban planning and design have the potential to dramatically transform collective surroundings, influencing and enabling the way we use public spaces. The Urban Design Challenge 2023 is a competition that invites students from across Canada to come up with design concepts for sites in the National Capital Region. 

The competition is open to students enrolled in an accredited educational institution in Canada. The National Capital Commission (NCC) encourages students to form interdisciplinary teams to consider all aspects of urban planning, site design, architecture, Indigenous planning, and landscape design. 

This year’s competition will focus on repairing and re-stitching the urban fabric in the Core Area of the region. It will address vacant and under-utilized street lots where improvements from an urban design perspective can enhance the public experience.

Students are challenged to propose innovative planning and design ideas for the Sussex Drive Corridor, extending from the National Gallery of Canada to the grounds of Rideau Hall (Ottawa, Ontario).

The winning project team will receive the first-place award of $750 and a trip to Ottawa, Canada’s Capital. The second-place award is $500 for the runner-up team. The winning team will be invited to present their ideas at a special awards presentation session of the NCC’s Capital Urbanism Lab on May 24, 2023.