Celebrating Excellence

Read about all the winners and finalists of the 2025 Honor Awards event!

A Tribute to Leadership: Honoring Sascha Wagner

This year’s Leadership Award was presented to Sascha Wagner, President & CEO of Huntsman Architectural Group. A respected voice in the industry and longtime member of IIDA, Sascha’s contributions to our community are wide-reaching—from his time as Northern California Chapter President to his leadership as IIDA International Board President. His work continues to reflect a deep commitment to creating human-centered environments that inspire.

Sascha was introduced by Brian Graham—designer, friend, and former Honor Awards co-host—whose words underscored the impact of Sascha’s mentorship and vision.

On March 20, the IIDA Northern California community gathered once again for a night that honors design excellence in our community. The 2025 Honor Awards, held at The Masonic Auditorium in San Francisco, celebrated the creativity and innovation of our region’s design professionals and students, recognizing outstanding projects across a wide range of categories.

A Night Led by the Board

For the first time, all presenters at the Honor Awards were members of our IIDA Northern California Board. Their presence on stage brought a sense of pride and purpose to the evening, reminding us that this event is truly built by our community, for our community.

And the Honors Go To…

Across all categories—HEAL, JEWELBOX, LIVE, PLAY, SERVE, and WORK (Small, Medium, Large)—this year’s winning projects pushed the boundaries of innovation, beauty, and function. We also recognized standout achievements with our CRAFT, LONG VIEW, and JURY’S CHOICE Awards. Congratulations to this year’s winners:

🏆 And for the first time, our Jury wanted to give a special recognition with the JURY’s CHOICE Award that went to San Francisco’s FORGE for San Mateo Science Center.

For more information on the winners and their projects, visit our awards page.

Student Design Awards

We’re proud to spotlight the next generation of design leaders. Congratulations to our 2025 student winners:

🥇 First Place: Leta Pham — San Jose State University
🥈 Second Place: Lufan Yang — California College of the Arts
🥉 Third Place: Amy Nicole Zumout — San Jose State University

The Celebration Continued…

New this year: the first-ever Honor Awards After Party, held at Fifth Arrow in San Francisco. Presented by Principal Builders and Two, with additional support from One Workplace, Insidesource, Pivot, CRI, and NOVO Construction, the after party kept the celebration going into the night. We’re grateful to our sponsors for helping us foster connection and community—on and off the stage.