Words Gabrielle de la Cruz with Mede Studio
Images Mede Studio and WAF 2025 delegates
“Great job, guys. You put us back on the map. Bravo,” said architect Jorge Yulo in a large World Architecture Festival Viber group created by Kanto editor-at-large Judith Torres. It was Day 1 of WAF 2025, and we started strong with a record-breaking performance of two category wins for the Philippines! The Filipino architecture and design community, GROHE Philippines, and Kanto were sending their cheers to Plontur Group (WAF 2025 Winner, Future Projects, Leisure-led Development) and Avally Design Studio (WAF 2025 Winner, Future Projects, Sports), who both made their debut at the festival this year.
Shortlisted this year alongside Plontur and Avally are Kanto WAF 2025 correspondents, Mede Studio, alongside first-time finalists Istilo Architectural Design, Nazareno Architecture + Design, and VSA Design. WAF veteran WTA Architecture and Design Studio was this year’s sole returning finalist. Nazareno Architecture + Design also made a mark with their entry, Dambana ng Paghilom, which was a candidate for Future Project of the Year.
We also had another batch of shortlisted student teams for the Global Student Charette, with Batangas State University, Saint Louis University, Baguio, and Don Honorio University Pampanga, having one team each. Unfortunately, the students did not make it to Miami to present their entries due to Visa restrictions, but WAF programme director Paul Finch said they will be invited back to the festival once conditions ease up!
From Manila to Miami
Team Philippines’ WAF journey has been very fortunate thus far, and that’s not only because we managed to bring home wins this year and in the past, but because we always had steady and full support. The traditional practice crits, hosted by GROHE Philippines since 2015, continued this year. Following the change from WAF 2024, this year’s crits consisted of not one, but multiple sessions to test and refine everyone’s presentation skills and slides.
Led by LIXIL Philippines’ Marketing and Retail Leader Emily Besavilla and Leader-GROHE Brand Philippines Arian Zaragoza, this year’s crits had a minimum of at least three practice sessions, be it physical or virtual. Aldo Mayoralgo of LV Locsin, Anna Sy of CS Design Consultancy, Bong Recio of RCHITECTS, Ivy Almario of Atelier Almario, Jorge Yulo of Jorge Yulo and Associates, Joseph Javier of Javier Design Studio Manila, Manny Miñana of Emmanuel A. Miñana Architects, and Paulo Alcazaren of PGAA Creative Design were this year’s generous mock jurors, helping every finalist build confidence in telling their project stories. They were even open to having each finalist message them for more advice or feedback!
Miñana, the first Filipino WAF finalist in 2014, reminded the delegates that the comments given to them are also in aid of their actual projects, like bonus design lessons! In anticipation of a Western-dominated jury in Miami, Team Philippines was also given a chance to have Swiss-American architect Tobias Guggenheimer and DP Architects London director Frven Lim as foreign practice jurors, who provided a different perspective for each project.
Torres, who initiated the crits with Miñana in 2015, continued to lend her time to make sure everything is covered, organized, and well-thought-out for the crits. She even went out of her way to help the finalists polish their scripts!
Towards the days leading up to WAF 2025, Besavilla was always among the first ones to send her well wishes to all Pinoy finalists. She would reply to the large Viber group, react to finalists’ posts and stories on social media, and sometimes even comment just to say “good luck!” one more time. She even sent Mede Studio another good luck on Day 2, as they were the last Pinoy category crit presentation.
Miami moments
Mede Studio arrived in Miami as both WAF delegates and Kanto’s eyes and ears at the festival! Our Pinoy WAF 2025 finalists were a long way from home and the Philippine heat, but this batch brought warmth to Miami’s unexpected cold weather by having their families, clients, and friends with them in the festival.
Christine Buyco-Sy of Avally Design Studio was supported by four of her clients, one being 80 years old!. She candidly said that her category win might boost the project’s groundbreaking soon. Anthony Nazareno was accompanied by his daughter, Bea, who constantly shared WAF photos with our Viber group. Team Philippines also met Pinoy WAF delegate Eugene Gonda, who joined in insightful conversations about local design scenes.
Six out of the seven shortlisted teams presented on Day One, the same day that Plontur and Avally’s wins were announced! We caught up with Plontur founder Erick Yambao and Avally principal Buyco-Sy after the announcement, who expressed their joy about the win. Yambao even highlighted the practice crits experience, admitting that he initially thought of skipping the session. He thanked GROHE and Torres for respectively hosting and encouraging him to join the crits, saying it was a huge help in shaping his entire presentation.
The live crits experience ended with our presentation on WAF 2025 Day 2, which capped off with a delegate dinner at The Social Club, Kimpton Surfcomber Hotel in Miami Beach. Organized by Nazareno, the fun night allowed us to hear more about our co-finalists’ respective journeys to the festival stage, and it was a night that truly felt like home away from home.
Pinoy WAF 2025 contingent dinner at The Social Club, Kimpton Surfcomber Hotel in Miami Beach
Come WAF Day 3, we wanted to quickly check out the Student Charette before watching Plontur, Avally, and Nazareno face their super juries. We were honestly sad that our students were not able to showcase their projects, but were glad to find out that this year’s winning team from the University of Manitoba, Canada, is composed of three Filipinos!
We got the chance to catch up with Dominico Obmerga IV, Natalie Cole Bajet, and Joanna Babadilla on their winning project, which focuses on filtering wastewater from a river in their locality in Winnipeg while turning sediments into bricks. They share our sentiments on the issues our student teams faced trying to present at Miami, and were equally glad Paul Finch promised to invite them back! We congratulate the whole University of Manitoba for their win and wish them all the best on their graduation!
Above: The winning project for the Student Charrette, SPONGE OF THE KEYS by the University of Manitoba. Below: Erick Yambao of Plontur Group and Christine Buyco-Sy of Avally Design Studio with their WAF Category Winner trophies.
It is worth noting that we saw a diverse spread of winners this year, reflecting WAF and its founding partner GROHE’s commitment to embracing inclusivity in architecture. By welcoming architects from all walks of life and projects from all sorts of contexts, the festival reminds architects like us of what it truly means to design for man, nature, and society.
Throughout the festival, we also met international WAF attendees and had little chats with them about preparations. We often mentioned the practice crit sessions, which surprised most of them with how we prepare as a country. It was during these moments that we were reminded of what a blessing it is to have solid support, and how remarkable the community is that Filipino architects and designers have built together with GROHE Philippines.
All thanks from Mede
As this year’s GROHE Young Visionary Challenge winner, we at Mede Studio would like to thank GROHE Philippines once again for the trust and support they gave us this year! Our dream of sharing our story at WAF will not be possible without their guidance—from the making of our entry boards, the shortlist bid, to finally taking the stage! We also extend our gratitude to the GROHE Young Visionary Challenge jurors: Aldo Mayoralgo, Benjee Mendoza, Joseph Javier, and Paulo Alcazaren. We’re excited for next year’s challenge winner and entrants to experience all of these and encourage young architects to join in!
Constant cheerleaders beyond their coverage duties, we also want to acknowledge the warmth of Patrick Kasingsing and Gabbie de la Cruz always give to WAF finalists. Whether in hot, humid Singapore or the chilly shores of Miami, you will always feel Kanto’s loud support! We are fortunate to have served as this year’s coverage partners, which gave us a more intimate and personal chance to observe our co-finalists’ journeys.
As to our personal thank yous, we want to give our heartfelt thanks to our families, especially our parents, friends, and our client for Limlim Mindfulness Institute for believing in us before we believed in ourselves. Mede Studio won’t be standing proud and confident without our closest of supporters, especially our parents, who took us to and from the airport and never failed to check on us and express how proud they are! We also want to mention our friends, Karl Castro and WAF alumni Keshia Lim and Moreille Muñoz, who made sure that we stayed true to our core, reminding us that this is a rare platform to champion the heart of our work.
We made Pinoy WAF history in Miami! It was another journey that showed how we Filipinos can win big when we dream big, all thanks to the ever-present and growing support from GROHE Philippines and the design community. We especially thank GROHE for nurturing this decade-long relationship by believing in the visions of Filipino architects and providing a steady flow of support beyond numbers. It is through steadfast partners like you that Filipino designers can build structures of opportunity that push the community to climb higher.
You help raise every stage we stand on. •
