The purpose of the Holcim Foundation is thus to promote sustainable construction by enabling the exchange of ideas and innovative approaches, and recognizing outstanding achievements through awards to reach a greater level of sustainability in the built environment.

The Holcim Foundation works with five universities as partners led by the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH Zurich), Switzerland; the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Boston, USA; Tongji University (TJU), Shanghai, China; the University of São Paulo (USP), Brazil and the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits), Johannesburg, South Africa. The universities support the process of evaluating entries in the Holcim Awards, and then applying innovations on the scientific and technical level.

The Advisory Board of the Holcim Foundation ensures that the activities of the Holcim Foundation are conducted in accordance with current interpretations of sustainable construction. It shapes the Holcim Foundation’s activities by identifying the architectural, scientific, cultural, and policy concerns that should be integrated into its initiatives.

The Holcim Foundation is supported by, but independent of the commercial interests of Holcim, one of the world’s leading suppliers of cement, aggregates (crushed stone, sand and gravel), concrete and construction-related services.