Issam Fares Institute for Public Policy and International Affairs
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The Issam Fares Institute for Public Policy and International Affairs (IFI) is located at the American University of Beirut (AUB).[1] This independent institute develops policy research in the Arab region.[1] It is currently headed by Joseph Bahout.[2] The Institute won a prestigious architecture award in 2016.[3]
Research
[edit]The Issam Fares Institute for Public Policy and International Affairs (IFI) at the American University of Beirut (AUB) was founded through donations by Lebanese businessman and politician Issam Fares, who also served as Deputy Prime Minister of Lebanon.
IFI activities include conferences, workshops and symposia; visiting fellows (from a few days to a full year); guest lecturers, and thematic lecture series.
Architecture
[edit]The American University of Beirut (AUB) master plan requested a home for its new think tank that had minimal impact on the surrounding area and preserved sight lines to the Mediterranean below, despite its location on the upper part of campus. Architecture firm Zaha Hadid won the design competition to create this building; she was a former AUB student.[4]
The Issam Fares Institute building is 3,000 square feet and made of fair-faced concrete. The designers placed a reading room, workshop conference room, and research spaces in a 21-metre-long cantilever.[5] The campus has intersecting routes of interlocking platforms with research and discussion spaces. Second-floor research rooms connect with the rest of the campus via a ramp surrounded by hundred-year-old ficus and cypress trees.[5] The building's height matches the surrounding trees.[6] The institute has an oval courtyard on the upper campus.
In 2016, architect Zaha Hadid died, and the building won the Aga Khan Award for Architecture in the same year.[7]
References
[edit]- ^ a b "About Us". Issam Fares Institute for Public Policy and International Affairs. Archived from the original on 27 February 2024. Retrieved 20 December 2019.
- ^ "Lebanese Elections Part Two: The Debrief". Middle East Institute (an article and a Zoom video with Joseph Bahout, Makram Ouaiss, Mona Yacoubian, and Joyce Karam). Archived from the original on 4 October 2023. Retrieved 1 November 2022.
- ^ "Six projects awarded Aga Khan architecture prize". The Independent Uganda. 7 November 2016. Archived from the original on 19 April 2023. Retrieved 20 December 2019.
- ^ "Issam Fares Institute for Public Policy and International Affairs". Aga Khan Award for Architecture. Archived from the original on 6 March 2024. Retrieved 20 December 2019.
- ^ a b The Aga Khan Award Architecture: Elegant mix of the old and new, 5 October 2016, Issam Fares Institute, archived from the original on 19 April 2023, retrieved 20 December 2019
- ^ Muiruri, Peter. "'Green' buildings top awards". The Standard. Archived from the original on 19 April 2023. Retrieved 20 December 2019.
- ^ "China, Denmark projects among architecture award winners". The Indian Express. 3 October 2016. Archived from the original on 20 April 2023. Retrieved 20 December 2019.