August 11, 2025
Chicago, IL — The Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH) today announced the winners of its 2025 Lifetime Achievement Awards: Peter Murray, Co-founder of New London Architecture (NLA), recipient of the Lynn S. Beedle Lifetime Achievement Award; and SawTeen See, structural engineer and former Managing Partner of Leslie E. Robertson Associates, recipient of the Fazlur R. Khan Lifetime Achievement Award. Both will be honored at the CTBUH 2025 International Conference, “From the Ground Up: Tall Buildings and City-Making,” 6–9 October, in Toronto, Canada.
“This year’s awardees represent two deeply influential figures who have shaped how we design, build, and communicate about cities,” explained CTBUH CEO Javier Quintana de Una. “Peter Murray has spent decades advocating for better urban design and more accessible dialogue around the built environment, influencing generations of professionals and the public alike. SawTeen See has advanced the structural design of supertalls with elegance and rigor, playing a central role in some of the world’s most iconic high-rise projects. CTBUH is proud to honor their extraordinary contributions to the global urban landscape.”
Lynn S. Beedle Lifetime Achievement Award
This award recognizes an individual who has made extraordinary contributions to the advancement of tall buildings and the urban environment. These contributions significantly enhance cities and the lives of their inhabitants and may take any form, including completed buildings, research, technology, methods, ideas or industry leadership.
2025 Lynn S. Beedle Lifetime Achievement Award: Winner
Peter Murray OBE is one of the UK’s most respected voices in architecture, planning, and city-making. A trained architect turned journalist and curator, Murray co-founded New London Architecture (NLA)–a center for knowledge-sharing, debate and innovation focused on the future of London and global cities. He has served as editor of the Royal Institute of British Architects’ Journal and Building Design, chaired the London Society and founded the London Festival of Architecture. He was also design advisor to two Mayors of London. Through writing, exhibitions, events and leadership, he has made the urban realm more legible and engaging for both professionals and the public. He was awarded the Order of the Bristish Empire (OBE) by Queen Elizabeth II for “leadership in arts, architecture, city planning, design, publishing and charity.”
“Cities are collective achievements–ongoing conversations between planners, architects, engineers and the communities they serve,” according to Murray. “I’ve always believed in the power of dialogue to shape better urban futures, and I’m honored that CTBUH recognizes the role of communication, advocacy and collaboration in advancing the quality of tall and dense cities.”
Murray will deliver the conference’s closing keynote, exploring the importance of public engagement and interdisciplinary collaboration in the evolution of dense, vertical cities.
View all previous Lynn S. Beedle Lifetime Achievement Award Winners.
Image of Peter Murray
Fazlur R. Khan Lifetime Achievement Award
This award recognizes an individual for proven excellence in technical design and/or research that makes a significant contribution to the design of tall buildings and the built urban environment. These contributions may be demonstrated as specific technical advances, innovations, design breakthroughs, building systems integration or innovative engineering systems.
2025 Fazlur R. Khan Lifetime Achievement Award: Winner
SawTeen See, a long-time managing partner at Leslie E. Robertson Associates (LERA), has led the structural design of some of the tallest and most technically demanding buildings in the world, including the Shanghai World Financial Center; Merdeka 118 in Kuala Lumpur; Bank of China Tower in Hong Kong; and Lotte World Tower in Seoul. Her work combines structural clarity with poetic expression, advancing both the performance and aesthetics of tall buildings.
“A well-engineered building is not only efficient and resilient, it speaks a language of purpose and possibility,” stated See. “Throughout my career, I’ve been fortunate to collaborate with architects and owners who push boundaries and to mentor young engineers eager to carry this discipline forward. This recognition from CTBUH is deeply meaningful.”
See will also deliver a keynote presentation at the event, reflecting on the evolution of supertall design and the future of high-rise engineering.
View all previous Fazlur R. Khan Lifetime Achievement Award Winners.
Image of SawTeen See
