To pursue its goal of promoting sustainability in construction on a global basis, the LafargeHolcim Foundation has established a network of renowned technical universities on all continents. The latest university to join is the Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT Chicago). “We are thrilled to be associated with a school on a campus that is mentioned in the curriculum of every student of architecture around the world,” said Marc Angélil, Head of the Academic Committee and member of the Board of the Foundation, as the Memorandum of Understanding was signed.

The LafargeHolcim Foundation has been cooperating with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Cambridge, Massachusetts since the first Awards competition cycle in 2004. The network in North America grew three years ago to include the University of British Columbia (UBC) in Vancouver, Canada – and is now also associated with the IIT Chicago, where LafargeHolcim US (the operational company of the sponsor of the Foundation) is based. “Being associated with IIT opens doors for us in the field of research and innovation,” explained Dominique Corvez, Head of Ductal Americas for LafargeHolcim.

“We look forward to an array of opportunities for collaboration with the Foundation and its sponsor company,” said Michelangelo Sabatino, Dean of the College of Architecture at IIT. The roots of this college go back as far as 1895 when two schools were merged to form the Chicago School of Architecture of Armour Institute. From 1938 to 1958 Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, one of the most influential architects of the 20th century, directed the architecture program at IIT. He designed many of the buildings on the campus, which was recognized by the American Institute of Architects as one of the 200 most significant works of architecture in the USA in 1976.

The IIT College of Architecture has been located in the Mies van der Rohe designed S R Crown Hall since 1956. The iconic building was designated as National Historic Landmark in 2001. It stands adjacent to the McCormick Tribune Campus Center, designed by the Dutch architect Rem Koolhaas in 2003. It includes a concrete and stainless steel tube that encloses a part of the Green Line elevated commuter rail of Chicago.

As part of its role in the Foundation’s network, representatives of IIT will attend the forthcoming LafargeHolcim Forum at the American University in Cairo (AUC), Egypt in April 2019 on the theme of “Re-materializing Construction”.