In line with the rapid development of Macau, AAM has organized many academic forums and professional seminars to address the urban, social and economic changes in the society, including a seminar on “The Old Urban Renewal of Macau” in November 2005, another one on “New Architecture & Urbanism – Solutions for Macau and Pearl River Delta” in November 2008, a workshop of “Study on Contemporary City And Architecture in Macau” in November 2011.
Furthermore, AAM has conducted a number of academic researches with the subsequent reports and proposals being delivered to the Government, these reports include “Study on the City Skyline and the Urban Image of Macau” entrusted to Mr. Wu Wei, Professor from the School of Architecture and Urban Planning at Shanghai Tongji University in 2011, with three further reports completed in 2011 and 2012 for DSSOPT on “Urban Planning Research for the Macau New Reclaimed Land”. Moreover, AAM actively advocated the establishment of a new accreditation system for architects and engineers, as well as the revision of some outdated laws and regulations and the enactment of new laws for topics related to construction and urban development, such as Fire-Prevention Regulation, Lands Law, Urban Planning, Law, Conservation Law, Green Buildings Regulation etc. AAM has also jointly organized workshops and seminars with local associations from the building industry, academic institutions and government departments for the purpose of raising standards of local building technology for the development of Macau.
With the aim to encourage local architects to further their professional skills and honor the outstanding architectures and their designers, as well as to enforce the sense of responsibility of local architects and to stimulate the sense of achievement of the developers and contractors, AAM has launched a number of architectural design contests and awards, not to mention architectural exhibitions, including “Macau Architecture Awards” in 1992, 1997, 2009 and 2013, “Celebration of Cities – Design Competition” in 2004, “Conceptual Design Competition for the Macau Pavilion in Shanghai EXPO 2010” which was co-operated with Macau Office for the EXPO 2010 in 2008, “Macau Young Architects Exhibition” in January 2010, Juror of “Conceptual Design Competition for the Extension of the Marine Bureau Headquarter Buildings, and the Improvement of the Surroundings, Area” in 2011, “Design Idea Competition for the Improvement of the Area Surrounding the Our Lady of Penha Church and the Bishop’s Palace” - jointly organized with the Macau Association of Building Contractors and Developers in 2013, “Project Design Competition for the Macau Pavilion in Bi-City Biennale of Urbanism\Architecture 2013 (Shenzhen)” - jointly organized with the Cultural Affairs Bureau in August 2013. Some projects in the exhibitions were later published in books and exhibited outside of Macau for the promotion of Macau Architecture. In addition, AAM encourages its members to participate in the international contests such as ARCASIA Architecture Awards or UNESCO Asia-Pacific Awards for Cultural Heritage Conservation, resulting in a number of AAM members receiving noted awards and honors. Books and publications that AAM has published include: the Magazine Architecture Macau for more than two decades, Macaensis Momentum Momentum in 1992 and The Contemporary Architecture of Macau in 1999. AAM has also provided support to the Chinese professional magazine World Architecture to publish two special Macau issues in 1999 and 2009. The goal of these publications were to promote outstanding local Architectures and, to stimulate the exploration of architectural thinking to eventually elevate the quality of design in Macau.
AAM also contributes significantly to architectural education by co-organizing activities with government departments, local institutions of higher education and certain overseas architectural schools, which have a large enrollment of Macau students. For example, the AAM jointly organized an architecture workshop with Macao Museum of Art, targeting the students from local high schools and universities during the exhibition of “Architecture for the New Millennium – Contemporary Architects of California, A Selection of Works Macau Exhibition” in 2003. Through the active involvement of AAM in CIALP and its role as a connection bridge, AAM has facilitated the Exhibition of the famous Brazilian architect Oscar Niemeyer: “The Geometry of Freedom” at Macao Museum of Art in 2011. AAM has also provided lectures and workshops for local universities as well as giving assistance to architecture schools from Hong Kong and mainland China, enabling their teachers and students to conduct field trips and researches in Macau as an integral part of their study program.Through organizing activities such as the AAM Anniversary Celebrations Dinner, Annual World Architecture Day Dinner and other less formal lunches or dinner gatherings, AAM strives to promote the fellowship among its members and that with other professionals of the building industry.
The works of AAM and its members have been recognized by the Macau Government and in November 1998, the Headquarters of AAM was moved to the present premise at No. 2F Avenida do Coronel Mesquita, a beautiful 2- storey building provided free of charge by the Government for the use of the AAM. As a show of recognition, several highly regarded members of AAM have been awarded Medals of Merit by the Macau Government.
