Mr. Hanif Cara: Co-Founder and Design Director at AKT II, I
After forming AKT II (formerly Adams Kara Taylor & AKT) in 1996, Hanif has been part of many incredible, challenging and unique projects across the globe. Currently, as well as being a design director at AKT II, he is a Professor in Practice of Architectural Technology at the Harvard's Graduate School of Design. Hanif has always focussed on a 'design-led' approach to all of his projects, and this has led to over 350 design awards, including three RIBA Stirling Prize-winning projects.
Hanif's career extends into wider areas of design, and he is part of many industry and architectural committees and bodies. He is the first Uk structural engineer to be honoured for lifetime achievement Fazlur khan award2022 by the CTUBH and the first engineer appointed to the AKKA (Aga Khan Awards for Architecture)and remains part of the highly regarded international awarding body and development network .Other involvements include being a fellow of the Royal Institute of British Architects, the Institute of Civil Engineers, the Royal Academy of Engineering, the IStructE, trustee for the zaha hadid foundation and the Cyfarthfa Foundation .
Over the years Hanif has been involved in academia, co-tutoring a diploma unit at the Architecture Association in London from 2000 to 2004 as well as being a visiting professor of architectural technology at KTH Stockholm from 2007 to 2012.
Formerly Hanif was a CABE (a National Watchdog commission for architecture and built environment) Commissioner and served as a member of the Design for London Advisory Group to the Mayor of London. Since 2015 he has also served as a review panel member of the National Centres of Competence in Research (NCCR) (Digital Fabrication) at ETH Zurich and currently sits on the UK National Infrastructure Commission's Design Task Force and Expert Advisory Group .
Hanif has also contributed to a number of widely published works including 'Design Engineering', 2008, a retrospective of AKT's first decade, and 'Interdisciplinary Design: New Lessons from Architecture and Engineering', 2012, co-published with Harvard. Recently Hanif worked on 'Deliverance of Design – making, mending and revitalising structures'.His most recent publications are 'Design Engineering Refocused' and the 'Architecture of Waste'. And " matters of engineering design akt2"2023 and "Blank " .
Hanif was awarded the OBE aim 2022 and honoured the lifetime achievement Fazlur Khan award council of tall building and urban habitat 2022 and the London Design medal 2023.
Dr Adrian Lahoud: Dean of School of Architecture, Royal College of Art
Dr. Adrian Lahoud is Dean, School of Architecture and Fellow at the Royal College of Art. He sits on the board of the Architecture Foundation, Design Museum Future Observatory, New Architecture Writers, and was Convenor and Co-Chair of the Rights of Future Generation Working Group. Prior to his role at RCA, he was director of the MA programme at the Centre for Research Architecture, Goldsmiths and Studio Master in the Projective Cities MPhil in Architecture and Urban Design at the Architectural Association. In 2019, he curated the inaugural Sharjah Architecture Triennial, the first major international platform for architecture and urbanism in the global south. His research work is focused on architecture and urbanism in the global south.
Dr. Ashraf Salama: Professor of Architecture and Urbanism, Head of Architecture and the Built Environment, University of Northumbria, Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom
He is academic, scholar, and Chair in Architecture. He is Professor of Architecture and Urbanism and Head of the Department of Architecture and the Built Environment, University of Northumbria at Newcastle. He is co-Director of the UNESCO/UIA Validation Council for Architectural Education. Professor Salama has chaired and led three schools of architecture over the past 25 years in Misr International University, Cairo, Egypt (1996-2001), Qatar University, Doha, Qatar (2009-2014), and the University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, United Kingdom (2014-2020). He is an honorary professor of architecture at the University Putra Malaysia and has held tenured and visiting positions in Egypt, Germany, Italy, Malaysia, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. He holds B.Sc. MSc. and PhD in architecture and has received his education at Al Azhar University in Cairo, Egypt and North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, USA.
Securing more than £2.0 million funded research over his research career, Professor Salama has published over 200 research outputs in the international refereed press including authoring and editing 17 books. His recent books inlcude: The Routledge Companion to Architectural Pedagogies of the Global South (2022), Influence and Resistance in Post-Independence Egyptian Architecture (2022), Transformative Pedagogy in Architecture and Urbanism (2021/09), Architectural Excellence in Islamic Societies (2020), Spatial Design Education (2015/16), Demystifying Doha: On Architecture and Urbanism in an Emerging City (2013/16), Architecture Beyond Criticism: Expert Judgment and Performance Evaluation (2014)
He is the chief editor of the Archnet-IJAR: International Journal of Architectural Research and honorary editor of Open House International. Professor Salama is the UIA 2017 Recipient of Jean Tschumi Prize for Excellence in Architectural Education and Criticism. He is a licensed architect in Egypt since 1987, practiced in Egypt (1987-92). He has been a consultant to the Ministry of Culture and Ministry of Tourism in Egypt (1996-2001), architecture and urban design consultant to a number of authorities and international development agencies, including WHO & US-AID, since 2004. He was Director of Research and Consulting at Adams Group Architects, Charlotte, North Carolina, United States.
For more information, please visit:
https://www.northumbria.ac.uk/about-us/our-staff/s/ashraf-salama/
https://www.ashrafsalamanet.net/
https://www.archurbanresearch.net/
https://researchportal.northumbria.ac.uk/en/persons/ashraf-salama
Mr. Cameron Sinclair: Founder, Worldchanging Institute | Humanitarian Designer and Consultant | Social Impact Advisor
He is a humanitarian designer and consultant with over 25 years of experience in developing and implementing innovative design solutions for social and environmental challenges. He is the founder of Worldchanging Institute, a global research and development think-tank that focuses in housing, health, and educational facilities for underserved and at risk communities.
With a background in architecture and social entrepreneurship, Cameron has led and advised numerous projects and initiatives that address refugee integration, sports for social change, health, education, child protection, and post-conflict reconstruction. He has also authored and co-authored multiple books and publications on humanitarian and environmental design, and has received prestigious awards and recognition, such as the TED Prize, the National Design Award, and the Centenary Medal.
Dr. Sumayah Al-Solaiman: Chief Executive Officer at Architecture and Design Commission, Ministry of Culture
Sumayah Al-Solaiman is the most influential figure in architecture in Saudi Arabia. As chief executive of the Architectural Design Commission, she covers design disciplines and regulation, standards, sector development, cultural engagement and education.
Mr. James Dyson: Founder and Chairman of Dyson
