Credit: GRI InstituteWhat defines the GRI Awards? Honouring excellence as Europe Real Estate nominations open
Discover the principles, history, judging process, and timeline behind GRI Institute’s most prestigious real estate honours and their impact on the industry
March 19, 2026Real Estate
Written by:Rory Hickman
Executive Summary
“The GRI Awards is one of the rare instances where recognition is earned through merit, not purchased. We don’t just reward the biggest players; we reward the best initiatives.
Whether large or small, we seek projects defined by excellence in quality, innovation in solutions, and a genuine impact that generates value for both the market and the community.”
Diego Tavares, Senior Partner & Managing Director - Europe, GRI Institute
Whether large or small, we seek projects defined by excellence in quality, innovation in solutions, and a genuine impact that generates value for both the market and the community.”
Diego Tavares, Senior Partner & Managing Director - Europe, GRI Institute
► Welcome to the GRI Awards 2026
With the opening of nominations for the GRI Awards Real Estate Europe 2026, we wanted to share the foundational ideals, values, and objectives on which the GRI Institute’s most prestigious honours are built, while also taking a look back at the origins and past editions of the Awards and detailing the processes and timeline of the upcoming celebration.► Submit your nominations for the GRI Awards Real Estate Europe 2026 here.
► The Heart of the GRI Awards
Created in 2019 to honour excellence not as a matter of visibility alone, but as a standard proven through quality, leadership, integrity, and market relevance, the GRI Awards exist to recognise the people, projects, and organisations that move real estate and infrastructure forward.Across regional and global editions, the Awards celebrate those who do more than succeed within conventional boundaries - they elevate industries, shape cities, strengthen communities, and set new benchmarks for what responsible growth can achieve.
At the heart of the GRI Awards is the belief that true distinction must be earned through both rigour and recognition from one’s peers. Every finalist and winner represents more than technical achievement - they reflect vision, discipline, innovation, and a clear commitment to creating value for society as well as for the market.
Through a transparent process that combines expert evaluation with open voting, the Awards affirm credibility, reward excellence, and give deserved prominence to organisations and individuals whose work demonstrates transformational quality in development, investment, architecture, infrastructure, sustainability, and leadership.
More than a celebration, GRI Awards is a platform for progress. Their purpose is to highlight best practices, inspire new ideas, foster meaningful connections, and encourage the advancement of businesses that generate enduring value across the built environment.
In recognising outstanding achievement, the Awards help spread knowledge, strengthen trust, and reinforce the standards that define a more innovative, sustainable, and globally connected industry.
This is the enduring intent of the GRI Awards - to honour excellence, to legitimise merit, and to inspire the leaders shaping the future of real estate and infrastructure.
The expansion of the GRI Awards across the globe brought the same rigorous evaluation and celebration of excellence to the European real estate market in 2024. (GRI Institute)
► Past Edition Highlights
Brazilian Origins
The GRI Awards began in 2019 in Brazil, launched to address a clear gap in the Brazilian real estate market for a credible, sector-led honours programme. The inaugural edition recognised the most outstanding projects, companies, and personalities in Brazilian real estate across 12 categories.The selection process combined industry nominations, online voting by market professionals, and audit oversight, giving the Awards an early reputation for transparency, relevance, and industry endorsement ahead of the winners being announced and celebrated at a gala dinner in São Paulo on 3rd December 2019.
► See full details on the latest edition of the GRI Awards Real Estate Brazil 2026 here.
Regional Expansion
Building on this early success in Brazil, the GRI Awards expanded in 2024, launching new editions across European, APAC, and Latin American real estate markets with the launch of GRI Awards Europe, GRI Awards India, GRI Awards Mexico, and GRI Awards Andean & Central America.Bringing the same rigorous evaluation and celebration of excellence to the European real estate market, the first GRI Awards Europe culminated in its first ceremony on 10th September 2024 in Paris, where fifteen winners were announced across key categories spanning sustainability, innovation, and transformative built‑environment impact.
“It's a great recognition from the GRI community, which I think is the most important one in real estate in Europe,” shared Brad Greenway, Head, APAC & EMEA Debt & Structured Finance at JLL, following JLL & Blackstone winning the Refinancing Deal of the Year Award in 2024.
The European and other regional editions demonstrated the Awards’ growing relevance in recognising companies and projects that push beyond boundaries of design, ESG performance, and leadership in a complex economic context.
Continuous Growth
Alongside new editions of the regional GRI Awards, the evolution continued in 2025 with the introduction of the GRI Awards Global, marking a watershed moment for the programme as it transitioned from strong regional recognition to truly global stature.The first Global edition was held at the Four Seasons Hotel Abu Dhabi on 5th November 2025, aligned with the GRI Global Summit and attended by senior executives from over 100 countries.
This inaugural Global Awards celebrated iconic architecture, urban development, infrastructure, sustainability, and leadership on an international scale, bringing together regional winners from Europe, India, GCC, Brazil, Mexico, Andean & Central America, and beyond to compete for the highest distinction.
► See all of the winners from the GRI Global Awards 2025 here.
The success of the event underscored not only the Awards’ expansion but also their role as a platform connecting global leaders and setting new standards for excellence across the real estate and infrastructure sectors.
► Learn more about the 2026 edition of the GRI Awards Global here.
2025’s Person of the Year winner Jaume Sabater, Founder and CEO of Stoneweg, strongly mirrors the ideals of the GRI Awards, recognising that the honour is representative of his team’s collective efforts. (GRI Institute)
► Past Winners
Previous winners of the GRI Awards Europe already show the breadth and calibre the programme has established in a short time.In its inaugural European edition in 2024, the Awards recognised 15 winners across projects, transactions, and leadership, highlighting themes that continue to define the platform - decarbonisation, regeneration, institutional investment, innovation, and social impact.
Among the standout winners were Worship Square by HB Reavis for Decarbonisation Project of the Year, Park Pilsen West II by Panattoni for Industrial & Logistics Project of the Year, BuildingMinds for PropTech of the Year, and Azora’s Cristina Garcia-Peri as Inspiring Female Leader of the Year.
► See all of the winners from the GRI Awards Europe 2024 here.
The 2025 edition reinforced that trajectory, with winners selected across 12 categories at the Paris ceremony on 10th September 2025.
The honours reflected both architectural ambition and market impact, with Green Coast Hotel - MGallery Collection by BALFIN Group winning Architectural Highlight of the Year, Dolphin Square by AXA Investment Managers winning BTR Project of the Year and Residential Project of the Year, Built AI taking PropTech of the Year, and Neinor Homes winning Transaction of the Year for the largest transaction in the Spanish residential sector in the last decade.
► See all of the winners from the GRI Awards Europe 2025 here.
The 2025 Europe Awards also gave special prominence to leadership through the Person of the Year distinction, awarded to Jaume Sabater, Founder and CEO of Stoneweg.
“Of course, I appreciate the honour, but I don’t feel it belongs solely to me. It reflects the effort, resilience, and passion of everyone at Stoneweg. If anything, the award highlights the strength of the collective, and that’s what I value most,” expressed Jaume.
In the GRI Institute’s post-Awards interview, Jaume framed the recognition not as an individual accolade alone, but as a reflection of the effort, resilience, and passion of the wider Stoneweg team - an idea that closely mirrors the spirit of the Awards themselves, where excellence is recognised not only in completed projects, but also in the leadership and collective vision behind them.
► Read the full interview with GRI Awards Europe 2025’s Person of the Year, Jaume Sabater, here.
► GRI Awards Europe 2026
Nominations for the GRI Awards Real Estate Europe 2026 are now open for submission, offering an exceptional opportunity to showcase the best projects, initiatives, and leadership in the European real estate sector.This year’s awards promise to elevate excellence across a range of categories, recognising achievements in architecture, sustainability, innovation, and more.
Key Dates:
- Nominations Period: 2nd March - 9th May
- Evaluation by Jury: 11-16th May
- Disclosure of the Top 10: 18th May
- Public Vote: May 18th - 27th June
- Disclosure of the Top 3: 29th June
- Winners Announcement: 9th September
As always, the GRI Awards celebrate not just the size or visibility of projects but their true impact - through innovation, leadership, and a commitment to sustainability and positive social change.
This is your opportunity to highlight your achievements, position your company at the forefront of the real estate sector, and gain recognition for the extraordinary work you’re doing for the industry.
► Ensure your place among European real estate’s finest - nominations now open!