CBT Principal Sae Kim Receives 2024 AIA Young Designer Award
We are deeply proud to celebrate the recognition of our own CBT Principal Sae Kim as a 2024 AIA Young Designer Award honoree. Since joining CBT in 2012, after having graduated with a master’s in architecture and urban design from Harvard University, Sae quickly demonstrated his skill as a leader and talent as an innovative design professional, elevating him to CBT Principal in just twelve years. Sae’s future-focused approach considers design solutions through the lens of problem-solving, storytelling, and value-creation, leading the firm through several complex, award-winning projects, both locally and abroad.
As an AIA Young Designer Award recipient, Sae joins an impressive roster of thirty emerging professionals throughout the country, each lauded for their significant contributions to the design industry, from sustainable and accessible architecture to mentorship of the next generation of designers. This national honor follows several accolades which have commended Sae’s far-reaching work and remarkable impact, including recognition as the Boston Society for Architecture’s Earl R. Flansburgh Young Designer Award recipient in 2022.
With a keen understanding of creative processes on both national and international levels, Sae’s work takes an analytical approach to some of today’s most pressing challenges, including climate change and technological advancement, while implementing innovative, evidence-based solutions that inspire new models for smart, sustainable design worldwide. “Sae consistently delivers uncompromisingly high-quality and responsive design solutions,” says CBT President and Principal David Nagahiro, “His designs transcend conventional thinking and are rooted in the ambition to serve and contribute to the neighbors and people for whom he designs. At every opportunity, Sae seeks to employ design as a catalyst for change.”
During his tenure at CBT, Sae’s award-winning work has included transformative projects such as: The Sudbury, which reimagines a 2,300-car garage in the heart of Boston as a graceful addition to the city’s skyline; 585 Kendall in Cambridge, MA which introduces a super-hybrid building where science and art converge; the Abu Dhabi Climate Resilience Initiative, a citywide initiative that offers a scalable and sustainable methodology for addressing extreme urban heat; and “Balancing Act: Urbanism & Emerging Technologies,” a curated exhibit on display at the Boston Society for Architecture which explored best practices for creating more livable and equitable cities.
“With his commitment to design excellence and exploration,” the AIA Awards jury said of Sae, “Kim has been a consistently positive influence on the profession. As an advocate and enthusiastic leader, he will continue to make significant contributions to the practice of architecture.”
We are beyond proud of our esteemed colleague and grateful to work with someone so dedicated to using design to make a difference.
Congratulations, Sae!
