Anders Olausson, 4 May 2023

The first thing we need to clear up is where Erbil actually is, and what KRG is. — KRG stands for the Kurdistan Regional Government, the autonomous Kurdish region in northern Iraq, with Erbil as its capital — one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world. The Kurds are often called the largest ethnic group without a nation state of their own.

Who are the clients behind KII? — The initiative comes from Prime Minister Masrour Barzani. The region's economy has long been built on oil; new foundations are needed. The idea is to establish a science park that creates environments where knowledge generates new industries and opportunities.

For KII we initially produced proposals based on local building traditions — courtyard typologies, regional brick architecture. The response was that Western architects always propose more of what already exists. We had underestimated the symbolic dimension of the task: a project meant to create the conditions for stable, sustainable growth for a stateless people. It cannot be just another collection of buildings.

Among the Kurds, the landscape has historically been the most powerful symbol of identity — "No friends but the mountains." We distilled the characteristic landscape of Kurdistan into architecture: white mountain peaks anchored in rolling green hills, with rivers winding through the valleys below. The "mountains" are shaped to maximise daylight while minimising solar gain; their roofs slope south to harvest energy and collect water, feeding the rivers below. Each is conceived as a creative volcano — rings of flexible workspace around a vibrant central atrium for meeting, exchange and collaboration.