Charter Awards 2010 Entry Forms and Procedures

How To Enter

Download the entry materials in PDF or Word format below. The file will contain further instructions, submission requirements and all forms necessary to enter the Charter Awards. Please note that entries must be postmarked by January 18, 2010.
Note: Forms downloaded before early January 2010 do not reflect extended deadline. Be assured that deadline to submit is January 18th, even if your form mentions an earlier deadline. Additionally, since January 18 is the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday, submissions sent by January 19 will also be accepted.

Charter Awards 2010 Submission Forms and Instructions PDF file
Charter Awards 2010 Submission Forms and Instructions Microsoft Word

The academic Charter awards have unique entry forms and a different submission fee. Visit the academic awards page for more information.

2 Complete an Entry Form and assemble a bound entry booklet as directed for each project you are submitting. List all entities that participated in the project team on the second page of the Entry Form.

3 Attach the Entry Form and entry fee to your completed submission binder and ship or postmark by January 18, 2010 to:

CNU
The Marquette Building
140 S. Dearborn, Suite 404
Chicago, IL 60603

We ask that all overseas entrants use Air Mail or an express courier service (with delivery confirmation) to ensure delivery within one week of the submission deadline. CNU will send a confirmation e-mail after your submission materials have been received; we will not respond to inquiries about receipt of materials.

Deadline and Fees

The entry fee is $200 per project for CNU members and $300 per project for non-members. Academic submissions are $50 per project, which includes a one-year CNU student membership.

Sample Submissions

Below are some sample submissions that have won Charter Awards in past years.
Campus Plan - Santa Barbara, California PDF (1.4 MB)
Downtown Memphis, Tennessee PDF (900 KB)
Urban infill in Castellamare di Stabia, Italy PDF (1.6 MB) [student submission]

Read more about past winners of the Charter Awards on the Awards Page or in the annual publication profiling winners.

Eligibility

Anyone involved in the execution of a project, from design professionals and developers and government officials to representatives of civic institutions, are eligible to enter the awards program. If any member of the 2010 jury, or members of their firm or organization, are or were part of a project's professional team or a participant in its implementation process, that project is ineligible for submission this year. Both the project's principal designer and its owner must approve of its submission to the awards program. Please see the FAQ below for more information about project eligibility.

Read more about past winners of the Charter Awards in the annual publication profiling winners.

If you have questions about the submission process or problems downloading, viewing, or printing these materials, please check the FAQ below. If necessary, please contact CNU via email at cnuinfo@cnu.org. Please mention "Charter Awards" in the subject line. You may also get questions answered by calling 312-551-7300.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

We strongly recommend that you carefully read the instructions and forms twice, as many questions are answered therein.

Q. When is the deadline again?

A. Entries should be postmarked or shipped on January 18, 2010 in your local time. We highly recommend sending your entry via express mail or a courier service that offers delivery confirmation, especially for entries sent a long distance, as submissions need to be processed and ready for juror viewing in late January.

And since January 18 is the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday, submissions sent by January 19 will also be accepted.

Q. What are some key dates to remember?

A. We will receive entries in December 2009 and January 2010. By February 3rd, CNU will acknowledge receipt of your entry by email, and let you know if there has been a problem processing your entry binder -- for instance, if something is missing. Judging will be complete by early February. CNU will announce the winning entries to entrants and the public in March. Winners will receive their awards at a celebration at CNU 18 in Atlanta, GA in May.

Q. How firm are the page requirements? What size of paper should I use? I see that the sample entries have used more space than the guidelines permit.

A. Keep in mind that the jury is pressed for time and strongly prefers succinct, concise, and well-written responses to the requirements. Also keep in mind that the jury will view the images first, and then refer to the text, so focus first on making a good impression with your images (and clarifying their content with concise captions). Any supplemental materials (like manuals) exceeding the page requirements will be discarded. We accept entries on letter and A4 size paper. Also, one "page" refers to one side of a "sheet" of paper. We reserve the right to disqualify or modify entries that noticeably exceed the page limits.

Q. CNU formerly encouraged that each printed entry be submitted in a rigid three-ring binder. Why the switch to a booklet form?

A. Although they are easy to organize, the large, rigid binders take up more space and wind up creating excessive waste. While CNU seeks to encourage more efficient use of resources, it is still important that all materials in the blind submission (not including the entry form, which is kept separately) be securely fastened. So instead, entries can be inserted between flexible covers and bound by a clamping plastic or metal spine. If you have access to them, spiral bindings will also work well.

Q. Why is CNU now requiring PDF files of entire submissions?

A. When the Charter Awards program began 10 years ago, digital files were far less widely used than they are today. Some entries were typed and most images were submitted on photographic paper. Today, the convenience of digital images and PDF documents allows for great portability and easy advance distribution to jurors, if necessary. CNU continues to adapt submission requirements to reflect advances in technology and is exploring ways to reduce use of printed materials on paper.

Q. What size or format should the digital images be in?

A. As we use the digital images on screen (not print), we strongly prefer that each image be a separate JPEG or PNG format file, no larger than 1600 x 1200 pixels in size. We will contact you later if we require higher resolution files. We discourage TIFF and PPT files.

Q. How many images should be on each page?

A. It's up to you. Composite images composed of smaller images (before and after comparisons, for instance) have value, but generally larger and more legible images are more likely to be remembered by jurors. Please refer to the sample entries for examples.

Q. How many copies of the submission should I send in?

A. Just one, please.

Q. Are built projects eligible? Are unbuilt projects eligible?

A. Yes and Yes. Prior Charter Awards have gone to a development completed four years prior to receiving the award, and to several projects which were speculative vision plans done by volunteers. Please see the Awardees Gallery for examples.

Q. Are projects which are codes, manuals, plans, studies, or other documents, not involving any buildings, eligible?

A. Yes. Prior awards have gone to all of these categories, including several pattern books, codes, plans, and books. Please do your best to answer the questions using the format provided, telling us about your project's process and findings, and feel free to use excerpts from the document as your illustrations -- but do not include the actual document; it will be discarded as supplemental material. Please see the Awardees Gallery for examples.

Q. Are projects outside the US, by firms based outside the US, eligible?

A. Yes. Prior awards have gone to projects and awardees on six continents (nothing from Antarctica yet). Please see the Awardees Gallery for examples. We do require payment in US dollars, preferably using a credit card.

If you have further questions about the submissions process or problems downloading, viewing, or printing these materials, please contact CNU at cnuinfo@cnu.org. Please mention "Charter Awards" in the subject line.