Greenterrace Kindergarten by YG Studio Brings Joy to Educational Design

YG Studio’s award-winning Greenterrace Kindergarten proves that schools can be both practical and poetic, serving as a true partner in growth.

YG Studio for Greenterrace Kindergarten has made its mark at the 2025 MUSE Design Awards, taking home a Gold win in Architectural Design for Educational spaces. Their project shows how a school can become a place that sparks curiosity, nurtures connection, and leaves a lasting impression on everyone who steps inside.

Located in Yunnan’s iconic terraced fields, the kindergarten is both an educational and community space and it drew inspiration from the surrounding stepped terrain, YG Studio envisioned a curved structure that gently integrates with its landscape. The building’s outdoor platforms allow children to engage directly with their environment, connecting lessons in the classroom with the ecology and agricultural traditions of the region. This connection enriches their learning and also roots the school in the cultural and natural fabric of the community.

The design of Greenterrace Kindergarten shines for its ability to balance openness with purpose. Sunlight streams through generously placed windows, filling each room with vitality and warmth. Every corner feels alive, from the bright classrooms to the corridors that double as gathering spaces where conversations spark and friendships grow. Rather than treating circulation as something ordinary, YG Studio has turned movement into part of the learning journey, reminding us that education thrives just as much in shared moments as it does within the classroom.

Equally important is the way the project embraces sustainability and adaptability. Natural ventilation, solar power, mist irrigation, and stormwater reuse all work together to reduce the building’s footprint. Flexible spaces encourage diverse methods of teaching and collaboration, while the choice of materials balances durability with comfort. This attention to detail ensures the kindergarten will serve generations of students while remaining mindful of its responsibility to the environment.

What makes the project truly captivating is the way it puts people at the center. YG Studio carefully considered how students, teachers, and the wider community interact with the space on a daily basis. The result is an environment that is not only practical but also uplifting, offering a setting that evolves with its users while maintaining a timeless sense of place. In this way, the kindergarten fosters cultural continuity, ecological awareness, and resilience within the community it serves.

Winning Gold in the Architectural Design – Educational category at the 2025 MUSE Design Awards celebrates more than just a remarkable building. It reflects YG Studio’s belief that architecture can be a true partner in growth and learning. Greenterrace Kindergarten demonstrates that schools can be vibrant, forward-looking, and deeply human places, where light, form, and purpose come together to inspire imagination and nurture the future.