Prizes for fantasy: The role of the urban awards industry in validating greenfield eco-cities

A distinct wave of self-proclaimed 'eco-cities' has emerged over the past two decades, claiming to pioneer sustainable urban solutions to a range of environmental challenges by building new cities from scratch. Despite little evidence that such projects succeed in achieving their green aims, a burgeoning awards industry is recognizing eco-city developers for their leadership in sustainable urbanism. In this article, we examine Forest City, a new eco-city project in Malaysia, to make three main arguments. First, we introduce the range of awards Forest City has won, showing how the developer uses these awards to generate publicity and push back against criticism. Second, we outline the damage that Forest City has caused to nearby ecosystems and livelihoods to demonstrate the blind spots of awards committees. Third, we argue that awards for projects like Forest City suggest a troubling conflation of sustainable design with spectacular eco-cities, lending credibility to unproven projects that are far from realizing their stated goals. We suggest that the urban awards industry deserves greater critical scholarly attention regarding the ways in which awards-granting agencies and urban prizes contribute to the circulation of normative eco-city ideals, which are often profit-driven and highly damaging to local environments and social sustainability.