The UIC Barcelona School of Architecture student Sandra Bravo and former student Francesca Palandri are winners, along with the architect and associate lecturer at the School of Architecture Anna Gutiérrez, of the second prize at the 15th EUROPAN architecture competition. The winning project retrieves and updates the traditional mas farm system that has structured much of rural Catalonia for centuries.  

With the slogan "Masoveri@", their project sets out the creation of five micro-residential units formed by a main building, the traditional Catalan farmhouse or mas, shared spaces and facilities, as well as private homes located in the metropolitan town of Sant Climent de Llobregat. The group of buildings will be laid out around productive land for the exploitation of natural resources, solar energy and reuse of rainwater. Each unit has one hectare that the residents themselves can exploit. 

The challenge posed by the organisers of the EUROPAN prize focused on how to create residential areas that can boost the productive sector and adapt to social and urban synergies. The project submitted by the team formed by the students and the lecturer Anna Gutiérrez was valued for the development of productive and social landscape, as well as the active engagement of the community in the processes of conversion of the place. 

EUROPAN is the name given to a biennial competition involving architectural and urban-planning initiatives. It aims to increase knowledge and promote research in the field of urban planning and housing by facilitating exchanges between professionals in the European countries that support the initiative.  This year’s competition had entries from 47 locations across 12 countries, for which a total of 901 proposals were submitted. Of these, 36 have received awards.