The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) is a specialized agency of the United Nations task with information and communication technologies. Its new headquarters in Geneva is envisioned as a contemporary office space and conferencing center that serves the agencies’ growing need for state-of-the-art work, collaborative, and education environments. 

A series of four terracing and interconnecting office buildings incrementally step back from Rue de Varembe. The buildings are horizontally divided creating clear hierarchy between public/accessible lower, and private/secure upper levels. The ground and second levels are occupied by reception lobbies, restaurants, cafeteria, and a huge conference facility consisting of lecture and exhibition halls; while the upper levels consist of workspaces, meeting rooms and a private landscape roof. 

The heart of the building is its next generation high-performance workspace. It is flexible and adaptable to various working styles, and infused with biophilia enhancing opportunities for collaboration, inspiration and innovation. 

The future-proofing of the building’s primary function as an office is the most important sustainability endeavor. It guarantees the building’s continued use and performance as a working environment maximizing its life cycle. Department sizes and organization constantly change, while telecommunication infrastructure require constant updating to evolve with the industry. The building boasts a column-free workspace achieved through perimeter steel columns and a central core. It is flexible and future-proofed through the use of raised access floors and cellular steel beams that allow efficient and flexible threading of mechanical, electrical, plumbing, data and voice infrastructure. Fresh and tempered air is supplied by an underfloor HVAC system through moveable floor diffusers eliminating the need for ductwork. The fresh air mixes with air in the workspace, naturally rising to the ceiling where its extracted through diffusers. 

Biophilia in the form of amenity zones are scattered throughout the building including a fitness studio, break-out spaces, kitchens, and lounge while the landscape roof is home to a sports club and VIP dining restaurant. All office spaces, amenity zones and the landscape roof are connected through a series of bridge links and internal stairs allowing for planned and unplanned meetings, as well as walking meetings, between ITU’s departments.

The setting out of the program and terracing nature of the building geometry naturally gravitated to the building’s integration into its surrounding context through the visual extension of Place des Nations up onto the building’s landscape roof. This ‘Living Roof’ is the most visually dominant sustainability story of the building. The roof reduces urban heat island effect - a climate change problem all industrialized cities currently face. It creates biodiversity for wildlife in urban areas while reducing surface runoff and improves quality of water for rainfall harvesting and reuse in building systems and irrigation. Categorized as an ‘intensive green roof’, it improves air quality, sound insulation, and thermal performance resulting in lower usage of electricity and pollution. The roof also narrates an ambitious biophilic storyline. The ‘living roof’ is physically and visually accessible from all office levels. It provides occupants with quick access to nature and natural systems which has proven to stimulate improved cognitive, psychological and physiological well being. It is envisioned that the ‘living roof’ will become a place for walking meetings, exercise, contemplation, conversation … a place of inspiration and innovation.