Lesley Lokko Is Awarded The RIBA Royal Gold Medal 2024 For Architecture

Professor Lesley Lokko received the Royal Gold Medal in Architecture in 2024.

She  is renowned for her revolutionary influence on her profession and has made history as the first African American woman to receive the esteemed Royal Gold Medal from the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA).

The 60-year-old Ghanaian-Scottish Architect, Educator and Author Lesley Lokko is being honoured for her outstanding contributions to justice causes and her determination to "democratise architecture."

The commitment of Lokko to promoting diversity in design spans more than two decades. She founded the African Futures Institute (AFI) in Accra, Ghana in 2021, with the goal of exploring the complex relationships between architecture, identity, and race.

Lokko is the first woman of African heritage to receive the Gold Medal since it was established in 1848, making this a historic achievement. She also follows in the footsteps of previous year's laureate, Yasmeen Lari, becoming RIBA's first back-to-back solo female Royal Gold Medalist.

Throughout her distinguished career, Lokko has served as dean of the CCNY Spitzer School of Architecture and developed the Graduate School of Architecture at the University of Johannesburg.

The RIBA Honours Committee recognises her work as a "clarion call for equitable representation in policies, planning, and design that shape our spaces."