AREP takes first place in competition for unique technology cluster, Skolkovo Innovation Center
This competition for the conception of an innovation cluster was launched in 2010 by the Non-Profit Organisation ‘Fund for the Development of the Center for Elaboration and Commercialization of New Technologies’. The Board of Trustees of the Skolkovo Foundation is headed personally by the President of Russia Dmitry Medvedev. AREP was chosen at the conclusion of a selection process of 4 successive stages by an international jury of architects and experts gathered within the Skolkovo Urban Council.
Located in a natural area 15km South West of central Moscow, the Skolkovo Innovation Center is an original concept at both Russian and International levels – a scientific and ecological cluster and a centre of excellence driving synergies between the teaching and research communities, their applications and their economic deployment. Skolkovo will feature a university campus, a start-up enterprise zone, and a cluster of research laboratories and businesses. It will also have accommodation and a wealth of social and cultural amenities, providing all the facilities needed for faculty, researchers, scientists, and entrepreneurs to work and live on-site.
The concept of the Skolkovo urban centre designed by AREP stands out for its overall organisation into a cluster of ‘urban villages’ with strong links to each other, and built on a series of natural balconies overlooking the valley of the Setun River. The town will enshrine the qualities of downtown neighbourhoods that are dense, lively, and conducive to meeting and exchange. At the same time as it features all the attractions of a countryside setting. All public spaces and built areas will be on a human scale in regards to both work and residential areas; as well as retail, cultural and leisure amenities. It will also benefit from good transportation links with Moscow.
A sophisticated transport network, including a tramway and bus-only lanes will be built for getting around Skolkovo itself, while the emergence of more innovative transport modes will be encouraged. As a sustainable urban centre, Skolkovo will also focus on the use of renewable energy sources, co-generation and the conversion of waste into heat in systems designed for extreme climatic conditions. Through its design and organisation, Skolkovo is destined to be the Russian prototype for technology clusters and innovative cities.
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