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| 27 Oct 2026 | |
| Design Award Winners |
Congratulations to Ben Willis AIA, LFA, NCARB on receiving the 2026 Young Architect Award!
The Young Architect Award, presented by AIA Philadelphia's Steering Committee of Fellows, seeks to recognize registered architect(s) between the ages of 25 and 39 for their contribution to the categories of leadership, practice, and service.
Ben Willis AIA, LFA, NCARB
Ben helps create places that empower communities and ecosystems to thrive.
Since 2014 he has been a part of Union Studio, drawn to their mission-driven work at a variety of scales and their commitment to the civic & environmental responsibility of buildings. In 2019, he and his husband relocated to Philadelphia, where Ben initiated the launch of Union’s mid-Atlantic office and now leads a thriving studio there.
He has stewarded award-winning work spanning attainable housing, missing middle infill, adaptive reuse, and net-zero design. Portfolio highlights include a first-in-the-nation mixed-income, net-zero neighborhood; a rehabilitated 1880s livery building now serving as a neighborhood food hub for an urban agriculture nonprofit; a supportive housing community integrating families and people with intellectual and developmental disabilities; and the renovation of the nationally-registered Henry Ossawa Tanner House.
An occasional writer, he has contributed essays to Common Edge, a national website that connects the public to pressing issues in the built environment. When not behind a computer screen, he’s a runner, sings with the Chestnut Street Singers, serves on the board of the Community Design Collaborative, and as a vestry member at St. Peter’s Church.
Celebrate Ben with us by joining in for the 2026 Design Celebration on Thursday, November 12.
