Zaha Hadid Architects has won an international competition for a building to house the Issam Fares Institute of Public Policy and International Affairs at the American University of Beirut. The school is Hadid's alma mater. The Institute, founded in 2004, is an international think-tank for Middle Eastern affairs.

The competition called for a contemporary structure that would fit in with the landmarks of the century-old campus, located in the heart of the city on a site that slopes down to the Mediterranean.

The six-level building has been conceived to reflect the undulating topography of the site, and the existing network of pathways around it. Its upper levels, comprising researchers' offices, seminar rooms, and the main reading space, extend over the site's boundaries. Bridges, running through the building's atrium, connect the third and fourth stories. In order to keep the academic space's quiet, the main auditorium and its amenities have been located underground.

The 21,500-square-foot building is expected to be complete by October 2008.

Source: Architectural Record