In anticipation of the AIA's Committee on the Environment (COTE®) Top Ten Awards submission deadline on October 26, KieranTimberlake staff have been contemplating how the Framework for Design Excellence principles can be interpreted beyond the built environment. 
 
To initiate this thought exercise, the first KieranTimberlake Music League (KTML) was launched. Each week, staff from across the office would submit one song that they thought corresponds with or engages a specific principle.  
 
After ten weeks, we compiled the playlists onto a public Spotify account. We invite you to listen, consider, and enjoy. 
 
The COTE® Top Ten Award has become the industry's leading award program for rigorously examining both sustainability and design excellence. KieranTimberlake has previously earned five COTE® Top Ten Awards and is committed to confronting climate change, social inequity, and biodiversity loss on every project.

Week 1: Music for Integration

Focus topics include:  
Beauty and delight 
Connections with place, including climate, history, and people 
 
 

Week 2: Music for Equitable Communities

Focus topics include:  
Social justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion 
Community engagement and empowerment 
 
 

Week 3: Music for Ecosystems

Focus topics include:  
Reduce human impacts: light, noise, and heat 
Nature-based solutions 
 
 

Week 4: Music for Water

Focus topics include:  
Climate change, water resilience, and equity 
Reuse of greywater and/or blackwater 
 

Week 5: Music for Economy

Focus topics include:  
Material use and reuse 
Financing and incentives 
 

Week 6: Music for Energy

Focus topics include:  
Passive music strategies 
Energy modeling 
 

Week 7: Music for Well-being

Focus topics include:  
Thermal comfort 
Nourishment 
 

Week 8: Music for Resources

Focus topics include:  
Construction, deconstruction, and demolition  
Material sourcing 
 

Week 9: Music for Change

Focus topics include:  
Risk and vulnerability assessment 
Passive survivability and livability 
 

Week 10: Music for Discovery

Focus topics include:  
Occupant engagement  
Music that influences behavior  
 

For more KT playlists, follow our Spotify account.