In 2022, architects built what was dubbed the world’s first “upcycled” skyscraper.
The owners of Sydney, Australia’s AMP Centre wanted to replace the original 1970s structure with a bigger, better, and more energy-efficient building.
But instead of demolishing the high-rise, which comes with significant environmental costs, they asked architects to build a new skyscraper without demolishing the old one.
Firm 3XN was the pick for the job, and once completed, the “new” building, renamed the Quay Quarter Tower, now stands 676 feet tall and retains 95% of the original building’s core. The new building also retained 65% of the original building’s structure, including beams and columns.
“The tower was coming to the end of its life, in terms of viability … but the structure and the ‘bones’ can actually last a lot longer,” Fred Holt, a partner at 3XN, told CNN in 2022.
“You can’t always retain everything. But if you can retain the structure — and that’s where the majority of your embodied carbon is — then you’re lowering your footprint.”
Lauded for the major achievement, the Quay Quarter Tower was named World Building of the Year in 2022. But it’s still receiving accolades today.
In fact, the building itself has been named one of 15 finalists for Prince William’s fifth annual Earthshot Prize, a coveted competition launched in 2020 that celebrates big ideas aimed at tackling climate change.
A 10-year project, Earthshot aims to “ensure, for the first time in human history, the natural world is growing — not shrinking — on our planet” by 2030.
To support and uplift solutions that get closer to this goal, five total finalists from five different categories are each awarded £1 million to further develop their ideas every year.
These are the five categories:
- Protect & Restore Nature
- Clean Our Air
- Revive Our Oceans
- Build A Waste-Free World
- Fix Our Climate
The Quay Quarter Tower is the first-ever building to be nominated for the award and is one of three finalists in the Build a Waste-Free World category this year.
“Quay Quarter Tower is the world’s first fully ‘upcycled skyscraper’ and the most comprehensive building transformation ever attempted at this scale,” the Earthshot Prize described.
“It proves that retrofitting buildings that have stood for decades offers a commercially viable and scalable solution to decarbonizing the built environment.”
According to 3XN, the entire process of building the “upcycled” tower saved more than 12,000 tonnes of embodied carbon, the equivalent of 35,000 flights between Sydney and Melbourne.
They hope it can serve as a blueprint for other ways to navigate a growing world and a changing climate.
“The demolition cycle is one of the greatest threats to our global climate goals. Quay Quarter Tower proves that transformation at significant scale is possible and, critically, commercially viable,” Holt said in a statement for the prize.
“We hope that our approach can help redefine urban development, offering a blueprint to meet low-carbon ambitions as our cities worldwide continue to grow.”
An Earthshot title would undoubtedly help that mission reach new heights.
“We see it as a reflection of both architecture's impact and its potential,” 3XN told Dezeen about being named a finalist for the award.
Prince William, too, seems eager to honor this year’s finalists.
“As we reach the halfway point of the Earthshot decade, I am truly inspired by this year's finalists, which embody the urgent optimism sitting right at the heart of our mission,” he said in an announcement of the 2025 finalists.
“In just five years, The Earthshot Prize has shown that the answers to our planet’s greatest challenges not only already exist, but that they are firmly within our grasp.”
The Quay Quarter Tower was selected among nearly 2,500 nominees to reach the stage of 15 finalists vying for one of five awards. One winner will be selected by Prince William and an award council later this year.
“The people behind these projects are heroes of our time, so let us back them,” the prince concluded.
“Because, if we do, we can make the world cleaner, safer and full of opportunity — not only for future generations, but for the lives we want to lead now.”
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Header image by Adam Mork for 3XM
