Key Dates :  

• Announcement : April, 2025 

• Deadline for Questions : until April 30th, 2025 

• Application Deadline : May 31th, 2025, at 23.59 (GMT) 

• Selection Notification : June 30th, 2025. The selected students will be contacted individually 

• Workshop in Nantes : September 6th to 9th, September 2025 

• Award Ceremony : September 12th, 2025, at IFLA World Congress 

The expression “Charette” comes from the École des Beaux-Arts (School of Fines Arts) in Paris, where architecture students had to transport their presentation boards with plans to the exhibition place (now the Palais des Études) using carts when they were late for an assignment submission. “Charette” is the french for “carts”.

The IFLA World Conference Student Charrette is an intensive workshop open to students of Landscape Architecture Programmes worldwide. Sponsored by the Nava Polman-Gerson Foundation, Netherlands, it is organized annually in the context of the IFLA World Conference and the IFLA Global Studio Program. The 2025 Student Charrette is developed and implemented by the French Federation of Landscape Architects in collaboration with the IFLA Education and Academic Affairs Standing Committee

We invite undergraduate and postgraduate landscape architecture students to apply for participation in a four-day workshop focused on exploring the power of landscape within urban strategies, using the Etoile Verte de Nantes (Nantes' Green Star) as a key example.

Students from diverse cultural backgrounds will have the opportunity to collaborate, exchange ideas, and, above all, enjoy the experience. Participants in the Student Charrette will be organized into teams, where they will receive guidance from academic experts and professionals to develop innovative and unique concepts.

Theme : l’Etoile verte de Nantes (Nantes’ green star)

The three natural corridors—the valleys of the Chézine, the Erdre, and the Sèvre Nantaise—form the branches of the Green Star, converging towards Île de Nantes. The Loire, extending along the east-west axis, serves as its main branch. In recent years, the river has become the vibrant heart around which the new face of the city is being envisioned and taking shape.

This workshop offers an opportunity to reflect on how landscape can play a central role in adapting cities to climate change. Through the study of specific case examples, focusing on the Nantes valleys and their role in the Green Star of Nantes, participants will explore, on one or more designated sites, how landscape approaches can help guide cities toward resilient urban planning that addresses contemporary challenges, with a particular emphasis on land management, water management, and the role of vegetation in urban environments.

We look forward to the IFLA 2025 Student Charrette producing strategies and designs that seek to address the questions we have raised, drawing from the potential of the Etoile Verte de Nantes (Nantes' Green Star).

We hope you will be inspired to join us on this exciting journey!

Dates

Program duration: September 6th to September 9th (4 days)

Participants will be welcomed starting Friday 5th, in the late afternoon, and accommodation will be provided from Friday 5th, to Wednesday morning, the 10th.

GENERAL TERMS

Eligibility:

Students majoring in landscape architecture all over the world (including graduate students). Students must be active students/enrolled in a program when the charrette takes place. Proficiency in the English language, ability to use drawing and visualization programs, etc. is crucial to apply for student charrette.

Admission:

There are two pathways for admission to the IFLA World Conference Student Charrette.

1. The first is related to the IFLA Global Studio Program. In this case, Master's or Bachelor's program chairs must apply for their students' participation (for further information, please see https://www.iflaworld.com/global-studio-program).

2. The second pathway is dedicated to those students who aim to apply independently from their programs of enrollment and are interested in the IFLA World Conference Student Charrette but not in the IFLA Global Studio Program. These students must submit a Letter of Intent, Proof of Student Enrollment, and Selected Samples of Personal Work, which the organization of the Student Charrette will review.

Finally, after assessing all the applications, the organization will select 50 participants, although it reserves the right to modify the total number of participants during the selection process if necessary. Of these 50, 12 students will be selected from the number of applicants applying from France and 38 from the rest of the World (including all 5 IFLA regions).

Participation fee:

55 € / participant

The fee includes lunch, coffee breaks, accommodation, site visit(s), and program participation. (The fee does NOT include personal expenses such as flights, travel insurance, shopping, touristic visits, breakfast, dinner, etc.)

The payment method for the participation fee will be notified to the selected applicants at a later date.

Application (for independent application only, not for GSP)

• Letter of Intent : 2 pages maximum (A4 size), please describe yourself and why you should be admitted into the Charette. Include self-introduction and share an experience/anecdote (personal or related to your studies) that has changed or evolved the way you consider landscapes and/or landscape roles (feel free!). It should be saved as an uneditable PDF.
  

• Proof of Student Enrollment : All participants must be enrolled in a program at the time of the charrette’s and submit a Student Certificate.
  

• Selected samples of your personal work, from your studio projects or portfolio. You must present, through a book, at least 3 project that describes the best the theme “Guiding landscape”. You will need to briefly describe, in a short text, how the proposed project addresses the theme. More details on the themes and sub-themes of the congress can be found at the following link: https://www.ifla2025.com/abstracts/topics (in ".pdf" format with a high resolution).

You must apply using the submission form, which allows you to upload your letter of intent, proof of enrollment, sample works/portfolio, and enter some personal informations.

For applications from France, you need to be student enrolled in a Landscape Architecture program, and you must be a FFP member (Fédération Française du Paysage).

The application platform for the 2025’s Charette is open until May 31st! 

Congress registration

Congress registration is included for student participating in the Charrette (for GSP, only student participating in person)

For any question, please contact: student@ifla2025.com