WLA AWARDS 2026
University Studio | Award of Excellence
Becoming Birds: Iceland Coexistence
Agricultural University of Iceland
Ivan Juarez & Helena Guttormsdóttir
The academic studio Becoming Birds: Iceland Coexistence, developed by Ivan Juarez and Helena Guttormsdóttir within the Landscape Architecture program at the Agricultural University of Iceland, has been recognized at the 2026 WLA Awards – World Landscape Architecture, receiving the Award of Excellence in the University Studio category.
The recognition acknowledges both the work produced by the students and the collective process of learning, exploration, and experimentation developed throughout the studio.
Becoming Birds: Iceland Coexistence
BECOMING BIRDS explores new ways of understanding and designing landscapes through our relationship with migratory birds. Through observation, direct experience, and collective work, students engaged with the perspective of birds to understand their habitats, migratory routes, and relationships with the territory, translating these experiences into landscape proposals and strategies for coexistence.
Andakíll Bird Sanctuary: Territory & Site Context
Iceland’s fragile landscape is shaped by subarctic conditions and the continuous interaction between water, land, and climate, creating unique ecosystems that provide habitats for numerous migratory bird species.
The studio was developed within the context of Andakíll Bird Sanctuary, a Ramsar wetland located in Borgarfjörður, western Iceland, where glacial rivers meet the Atlantic Ocean. Its location along important migratory routes offered an opportunity to directly explore the relationships between birds, landscape, and human presence.
Pedagogical Approach
The studio brought together students from Landscape Architecture and Environmental and Earth Sciences in an intensive, landscape-based learning experience combining observation, exploration, design, and collective learning.
Becoming Birds: Iceland Coexistence
Agricultural University of Iceland
Landscape Architecture Program
Studio leaders: Ivan Juarez & Helena Guttormsdóttir
21 July 2026
