Human Technopole: il nuovo headquarters

The New Headquarters of Human Technopole translates the mission of the Foundation into an organic system that integrates architecture, landscape and technology and whose key values encourage a new collective spirit. The project is born bearing in mind the central role that it embodies for HT and within the MIND area. The building aligns coherently to HT’s vision and gives back a BIO-inspired organism, a reflection of the natural dynamics that surround us and outcome of a design process that focuses on Mankind. Indeed, collaboration and networking are portrayed as mid-air passages that define the indoor courtyard and improve the circulation between levels; the desire for inclusion and transparency within the research takes on the appearance of a see-through, glass volume; the external structural grid maximizes the capacities of a bone-structure, whose lightness defies gravity. The overall image is that of an architecture which is “alive”, organic in its processes, responsive and flexible in its components. The functional layout provides a clear and logic typological scheme, by which the courtyard, the voids and the cores for the circulation function as pivots of the volume. This strategy allows the interiors to adapt to a multiplicity of different layouts. Fundamental in the design process was the aim for environmental sustainability, achieved through an integrated approach of both architectural and technological solutions: a certifiable design adherent to WELL Gold and LEED Platinum Protocols. The Campus represents a new ecosystem, in which nature and technology entrench into the outdoor spaces to provide an interactive landscape, equipped with a variety of sensors and devices that detect and respond to Life signals. The large square unveils as a true urban laboratory for scientific experimentation, capable of merging knowledge and clarity of mind in a synergic manner. The arrangement of the outdoor areas is designed to coordinate glances and regulates new proportions between Palazzo Italia and HT, revealing the urban role of the Campus. The placement of the architectural elements, amongst which are green walls and vertical gardens, helps to guide visitors and workers through an ecological and interactive wayfinding strategy. The Headquarters applies a methodological approach to a new scale. The new HQs becomes an ecosystem for research and home to the scientific community of the future. Shortlisted Project of the Human Technopole Competition.