Brazil’s Mendes da Rocha Wins Pritzker
Brazilian architect Paulo Mendes da Rocha was named the winner of the 2006 Pritzker Architecture Prize on April 9. The purpose of the Pritzker Architecture Prize, established in 1979 by the Hyatt Foundation, is “to honor annually a living architect whose built work demonstrates a combination of those qualities of talent, vision and commitment, which has produced consistent and significant contributions to humanity and the built environment through the art of architecture.” The formal presentation ceremony will be held May 30 in Istanbul, when Mendes da Rocha will receive a bronze medallion and a $100,000 grant.

AIA Memphis Bestows Annual Honors in the River City
AIA Memphis honored some of the city’s top architecture firms for their contributions to excellence in design, the profession, and the community. The awards ceremony took place March 4 at the AIA Memphis’ annual black tie “Celebration of Architecture” Gala at the Peabody Hotel. The 2006 design awards jury, from Philadelphia, included: Robert Venturi, FAIA, Venturi, Scott Brown & Associates; Gary Hack, dean, Penn Design, University of Pennsylvania; James N. Kiser, consulting principal, Kiser Straw & Colander; and Ingra Saffron, architecture critic, Philadelphia Inquirer.

Achieve Program Management Success
Program management involves overseeing multiple projects that share a common goal. When those projects involve building facilities, architects with exceptional management skills are in a position to provide these services to building owners. In an excerpt from his chapter in The Architect’s Handbook of Professional Practice Update 2006, David Daileda, FAIA, explains key points to success in program management, qualifications requirements, and the major responsibilities.

RUDC Invites You to May 12–14 Rebuilding New Orleans Roundtable
This year, the AIA Regional and Urban Design Committee (RUDC) will devote its spring roundtable, May 12–14, to working with local leaders on planning and design issues central to rebuilding the great American city of New Orleans. The roundtable, to be held in the Crescent City, will include meetings and work sessions with prominent state and city elected officials (AIA New Orleans has invited Senator Mary Landrieu), prominent educators, local architects, and other leaders; an area tour; and roundtable discussions on next steps the RUDC and AIA should take to support recovery and rebuilding. The RUDC welcomes wide participation and is committed to follow up the Conference on Recovery and Rebuilding that the AIA Center for Communities by Design helped organize in New Orleans last November. For more information, visit the RUDC Web site. (Discounted hotel rates run through April 20.) (Photo by Daniel Lobo.)

Security Partnership Launches Guide for Regional Disaster Resilience
The Infrastructure Security Partnership (TISP) has launched a new Guide for an Action Plan to Develop Regional Disaster Resilience. The Guide—which was developed by a TISP task force of more than 100 practitioners, policymakers, and technical and scientific experts, including from the AIA—shares strategies to allow communities to develop the necessary level of preparedness to manage major manmade and natural disasters. The Guide offers key definitions and 12 categories of typical “needs” gleaned from lessons learned. It also recommends short- and longer-term activities to address preparedness gaps via a Web site providing best practices. TISP is making the Guide available for external review and will update it and the accompanying best practices/solutions as required to reflect new information on needs and activities.

Project watch
Latrobe’s Baltimore Basilica to Celebrate 200th Birthday
Event marks restoration of America’s masterful first cathedral
Benjamin Henry Latrobe’s Baltimore Basilica will celebrate its grand reopening this November with $32 million in donations for a birthday present to mark its 200th anniversary. The funds are paying for a top-to-bottom restoration of Latrobe’s masterpiece, from its original domes and skylights to establishing access to the undercroft, site of masterful architectural and engineering elements. Historic preservation architect John G. Waite Associates, Albany, N.Y., with contractor Henry H. Lewis, Baltimore, are conducting the restoration, which is revealing the basilica’s layers of significance as a major symbol of the Catholic Church.

Your Kiplinger Connection (members only, AIA.org login required)
U.S. economy: Growth will slow, but, by fall, so will inflation.
Business costs: Developers are asking for waterless urinals.
Energy: As oil tops $70 a barrel, expect $3 a gallon of gas by Memorial Day.
AIArchitect offers AIA members exclusive access to three stories a week to help them manage their practices and plan for the coming year. Nonmembers may subscribe to The Kiplinger Letter.

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Hot off the Press: The Architect's Guide to the U.S. National CAD Standard by Dennis J. Hall, FAIA, and Charles R. Green, AIA (John Wiley and Son, 2006) is endorsed by the AIA and offers clear and succinct explanations of concepts and options in the NCS, a step-by-step approach to implementation, and strategies to take best advantage of the NCS requirements. The book lists for $70; AIA members may purchase it for $63. Order online or phone 800-242-3837, option #4.

There’s No Place Like . . . In the “The Shape of the New American Home” eClassroom distance learning program, instructors Jeremiah Eck, FAIA; Kevin Ireton; Charles Miller; and Sarah Susanka, FAIA, offer their expert opinions on residential design and construction trends that offer both opportunities and challenges. This two-hour course is available through April 21 at a 10-percent-off discounted price, $118.75 AIA members/$121.95 nonmembers (regular price: $131.95 AIA members/$161.95 nonmembers) and offers 2 HSW LU-hours.

Register for the Convention by May 3 and Save! Register for the full convention by May 3 to save $65 and increase your chances of getting the workshops, tours, special events, programs, and travel and hotel accommodations you want.

Introducing quality at AIA/CES: Meet Debra Grandy, your new CES Quality Programs Manager.

Master MASTERSPEC: AIA members receive a discount on their MASTERSPEC licenses and have access to free continuing education opportunities offered exclusively to MASTERSPEC Licensees. Call 800-424-5080.

Save Time! AIA.org now features a trouble-shooting Knowledge Base to address your AIA Contract Documents software questions quickly and efficiently.

Integrated Practice: Technological change is one catalyst accelerating radical improvement through the entire construction industry, from owner to architect to contractor to facility manager, through the full length of the project and building lifecycle. Learn more about how this change will transform architectural practice into Integrated Practice at www.aia.org/ip.

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Family Insurance:Consider 10-Year Level Term Life Insurance for Your Family: The AIA Term Life Insurance Plan lets you purchase or add more protection to your life insurance portfolio easily and inexpensively. Click here for specific information about this program. For more information about all AIA Trust programs, visit their Web site.