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YOUNG RESEARCHER BEST PAPER AWARD
The call for the REAL CORP 2026 Award is now open!

CORP – Competence Center of Urban and Regional Planning is delighted to announce that the call for the Young Researcher Best Paper Award 2026 is now officially open.

Introduction

On the occasion of holding the 31^st International Conference on Urban Planning and Regional Development in the Information Society and as CORP starting its fourth decade as one of the most influential professional societies in the domain of planning, a new award will be introduced to appreciate the efforts of young and emerging researchers. The awards will be granted for best paper presented at the conference authored and presented by a young researcher/s. The award will be judged by special committees chaired by Prof. Ali A. Alraouf and includes specialised CORP scholars and experts.

The Main Concept

The award is given in recognition of the best paper submitted to the conference by a graduate student (MA or PhD student) or a junior scholar contribution to the subject of Create a Better Future in the domains of planning and urbanism.

Eligibility

Any fully registered young researcher presenting in the REAL CORP 2026 conference with an age of 35 and less is eligible to submit their research for the award. The registration will be done below where the paper will be submitted with a proof of age (copy of ID or passport) is required. The date of publication must be within the last three years. Hence, all accepted nominations for the award must be published between 1 March 2023 and 25 March 2026.

Deadline

Deadline for submissions is 28 February 2026.

Winners

The jury has the full right to give one or more than one awards according to the level of the submitted papers. The winners will receive the official award certification and full exemption of the coming REAL CORP conference. Special mention will also receive official certification. The winners will be announced during the official ceremony at the REAL CORP 2026 conference in March 2026 in Vienna, Austria.

The Jury (members in alphabetical order)

• Alraouf, Ali A. (Chair), Center for Middle East Architecture and Urbanism, Urban Lab and Design Studio; Washington D. C., USA
• Cagáňová, Dagmar, Newton University, Vice-Rector for Internationalisation; Prague, Czechia
• Goličnik Marušić, Barbara, Urban Planning Institute of the Republic of Slovenia; Ljubljana, Slovenia
• Golubović Matić, Darinka, Union Nikola Tesla University, Belgrade, Serbia
• Gumbo, Trynos, University of Johannesburg, Urban and Regional Planning; Johannesburg, South Africa
• Hurtado, Petra, APA – American Planning Association; Chicago, USA
• Junussova, Madina, University of Central Asia, Graduate School of Development; Almaty, Kazakhstan
• Kaufmann, Hans-Rüdiger, University of Applied Management Studies Mannheim, Germany
• Lorens, Piotr, Gdańsk University of Technology, City Architect Gdańsk, Poland
• Nußmüller, Christian, City of Graz, Executive Office for Urban Planning, Development and Construction; Graz, Austria
• Ryser, Judith, Urban Thinker; London, UK
• Schiller, Andreas, Journalist and Publisher; Göpfritz and der Wild, Austria
• Schrenk, Manfred, Chairman CORP ‐ Competence Center of Urban and Regional Planning, Conference Director; Vienna, Austria
• Vaništa Lazarević, Eva, Professor Emeritus of Urbanism and Urban Planning; Belgrade, Serbia

For more information, including eligibility criteria and evaluation criteria, please contact Ali Alraouf, CORP Awards Coordinator, at alialraouf --at-- gmail --dot-- com. We look forward to receiving your extraordinary submissions and celebrating the exceptional work of our members.

The REAL CORP Team