Skidmore, Owings & Merrill’s cross- border research center wins the 2006 MIPIM/Architectural Review Award for Innovation.

An international scientific centre built on the borders of Jordan and Israel– requiring the agreement of the two nations to allocate 75 acres of land. The first building a science and research center, is conceived as a marker in the desert. To achieve a sense of place, a pure rectangular form is engraved in the desert floor. The building “floats” above the floor forming a cavity between the research facility floor and the earth. Laboratories are organized in clusters that are dispersed around larger programmatic spaces including a lecture hall, dining hall and library. The larger programmatic elements are housed in tall volumes that protrude upward onto a roof-level court. This raised plaza can accommodate more formal functions and serves as a viewing platform.