Vietnamese architect Vo Trong Nghia was named as winner in the Public Amenity Buildings – Commercial category, with his project Son La Restaurant.

At the 19th Arcasia Forum held in Jaipur, India in late May, Vietnamese architect Vo Trong Nghia was named as winner in the Public Amenity Buildings – Commercial category, with his project Son La Restaurant. The project also received a mention in the Sustainability category.
Born in 1976 in central Quang Binh province, Vo Trong Nghia is putting Vietnamese sustainable architecture on the map by combining local materials and traditional skills with 21st century design.
With a focus on green spaces, his designs range from large urban structures to durable but inexpensive housing for remote communities. His approach to urban design help shape the future of Vietnam architecture and transforming the country’s urban landscape. At the core of his practice, Nghia hopes to use the physical environment to reconnect humans with nature.
The Arcasia Awards for Architecture is aimed at acknowledging exemplary work done by architects working in Asia. In doing so, it encourages the sustenance of the Asian spirit, the development and improvement of the Asian built environment and enhancement of the awareness of the role of architecture and architects in the socio-economic and cultural life of Asian countries.
One of the key feature of Arcasia  is the Arcasia Forum which is a major regional forum held every two years that take the form of a large international forum for fostering intellectual exchange and strategic discussion on regional challenges, initiatives and development amongst hundreds of architects.
Over the past decade, growth rate in Asia region was the highest among the world. Amidst the high living standards and rise in poverty, development of the city is increasingly influenced by resources constraints. High level of urbanization and industrialization involves exploitation of natural wealth, which has become global issue as it starts to threaten the stability and prosperity of the region. Due to such concerns and risks, the concept of creating harmony and balance between economic development and environmental sustainability has emerged.
Besides factors such as growth of population and increase in consumption, decline in natural capital can also cause by poor natural resources management decision. Design and construction process are the crucial elements for green building. Architects, designers and urban planners determine the overall success of the project as they evaluate the surrounding factors to minimize the urban sprawls and needless destruction of valuable land, habitat and green space that are vital to sustainable living.