Al Nouri Complex UNESCO Competition

In 2021, AWB-Oregon submitted an entry to a UNESCO competition to reconstruct and rehabilitate the Al-Nouri Grand Mosque Complex in Mosul, Iraq. Made up of volunteers from Portland, New York, Italy, and Bahrain, the competition team investigated design solutions that respect the historical buildings on site, while also introducing modern and sustainable elements. AWB’s design, one of 123 from around the world, featured an upper-level walkway around a courtyard that contains native plants and a water element for evaporative cooling. The walkway also helps shade the facades of buildings adjacent to the mosque. These buildings house a school and a higher education center.