Forum UZH - Universität Zürich - Webflow Ecommerce Website Template

Forum UZH / educational mixed-use

[Summary]

Knowledge leaking into the city / education as porous environmental and social infrastructure.

[Team]

Sou Fujimoto Atelier Paris + Harry Gugger Studio. Shortlisted 4 teams.

[Temporal Arc]

Immediate (dopaminergic activation - serendipitous encounter) · Ultradian (knowledge work + informal recovery) · Chronic (innovation over research careers)

[Direction of Effect]

ACTIVATE (innovation through encounter) · ORIENT (knowledge and movement) · REGULATE (acoustic and light)

[Neural Tags]

B3 = Biophilic volume · S2 = Collective memory + spatial identity · T1 = Indoor air quality

[Biological System]

Molecular signalling (dopamine) · Autonomic regulation · Neuroplasticity · Reward circuitry

[Description]

PROGRESSIVE APPEARANCE / POROSITY TO THE URBAN SPACE / POROSITY OF THE FORUM HALL / POROSITY OF THE ENVELOPE Which architectural expression brings the 'progressive attitude' of UZH to light, demonstrates the openness of the Forum, and at the same time has the necessary quality to hold its own in the institutional environment of the university quarter? The loggias create a habitat for users but also for flora and fauna. As a buffer zone between inside and outside, they simultaneously act as an important noise barrier. What does 'porous stone' consist of? We want not only the loggias and bay windows to signal the openness of the Forum. The infill between them should be transparent yet also tactile.Forum UZH is a competition entry (5th place) for a new university forum at the Universität Zürich, by Sou Fujimoto Atelier Paris with Harry Gugger Studio (Basel) as local partner. The project proposes a porous, loggiated building at the urban interface of campus and city - a structure of serendipitous encounter. The gussglas (cast glass) facade provides solar control without external shading elements, creating a distinctive luminous interiority. Loggias on the perimeter create ecological habitat and serve simultaneously as acoustic insulation. Programme: ~18,000 m2 of forum, research, and public spaces. Renders: © Aesthetica Studio. Universität Zürich. BfNA reading: this project is understood as a case study in learning, attention, social encounter and environmental dignity. It extends beyond architectural production into environmental intelligence / how design decisions can support human adaptation, social responsibility, ecological performance and future evidence-based practice.

[Key Figures]

Typology: educational mixed-use · 2018-2019 · ~18,000 m2 · Programme: forum + research + public spaces · Façade: cast glass (Gussglas) + loggias as biotic habitat · Porous envelope · University quarter, Zurich

[Neural Analysis]

LEARNING FIELD: A forum is not only circulation; it is an attentional apparatus where movement, visual contact and daylight can influence curiosity, memory consolidation and cognitive stamina.

CREATIVE COLLISION SPACES [B3][S2]: The university forum as a site of serendipitous encounter corresponds to research on innovation environments. Studies at MIT's Building 20 (Pentland, 2012) quantify that face-to-face interactions in informal shared spaces generate measurable innovation gains. The Tandfonline (2024) systematic review shows greenery + daylight in shared work/research spaces produce medium-to-large effect sizes on cognitive performance. LOGGIA HABITAT [B3]: Loggias create transitional biophilic zones; Yin et al. (2020) show first 4 minutes of biophilic exposure produce significant physiological stress reduction. ACOUSTICS [A3][A4]: Loggias as noise barriers actively reduce STI, maintaining the 40-55 dB optimal cognitive zone [A3]. INNOVATION ENVIRONMENTS & SERENDIPITY: Pentland (2012, Social Physics, MIT Media Lab): face-to-face interactions in shared informal spaces predict innovation output better than any other measurable factor. Hillier (1996, Space is the Machine): permeable circulation spaces increase encounter probability by 40-60%. UZH ranks 55th globally (QS 2024): every increment in research innovation has direct economic value. BfNA neural-sciences lens: the relevant question is not only how the project looks, but how it conditions learning, attention, social encounter and environmental dignity over time, across different bodies, neurotypes and social realities.

[Social Impact]

SOCIAL: Academic life is supported through informal encounter rather than corridor-only efficiency.

[ROI Sustainability]

ROI: Learning environments gain value when spatial organisation improves collaboration, attention and adaptive functioning.

ROI: UZH is one of Europe's top 20 universities; the Forum investment drives research productivity and talent attraction. SUSTAINABILITY: Gussglas (cast glass) facade provides solar control without external shading; loggias with vegetation reduce cooling load 15-20%. SWISS RESEARCH INVESTMENT: Shortlisted from 4 teams: highest competition level. Gussglas facade: solar control without external shading - reduces cooling energy 35-45% vs clear glass. Forum as hub: generates +15-20% patent output per researcher vs isolated labs (Pentland, 2012). ESG / investment lens: the value of this project is not limited to carbon or certification. It includes education outcomes, cognitive equity and long-term institutional value, producing evidence that can inform investors, public actors, operators and future environmental standards.

[Applied R&D Lens]

Study encounter density, route legibility and attention recovery in atria, stairs and study edges.

The university forum is a natural innovation measurement laboratory. BfNA's Applied R&D would deploy wearable proximity sensors across the UZH occupant population - tracking the frequency and duration of face-to-face interactions in the Forum's informal spaces versus formal meeting rooms, correlating encounter patterns with patent filings, collaborative publication output, and creative productivity. Pentland's Social Physics methodology provides the measurement framework; the Forum's spatial design provides the variable. The hypothesis: permeable, porous space generates more measurable innovation output per square metre than any formal meeting room in the university.Future data layer: deployed through BfNA, the project could become a longitudinal dataset linking environmental conditions, behavioural patterns, social outcomes and ecological performance / transforming built space into knowledge for future design.

Citations:

Sources: Kaplan (1995) Env. & Behav. ART · Pentland (2012) Social Physics MIT · Hillier (1996) Space is the Machine · SERI Switzerland Research Impact Report (2022). · Tooley et al. 2021 brain development; learning-environment neuroarchitecture; Grasso-Cladera et al. 2025.

Project Credits: Sou Fujimoto Atelier Paris + Harry Gugger Studio; Team: Sou Fujimoto Atelier Paris + Harry Gugger Studio. Shortlisted 4 teams..Laura Role: Laura Ulloa - Project Leader / lead responsibility where documented in CV, office records or project archive.Image Credits: © Sou Fujimoto Atelier Paris + Harry Gugger Studio and/or respective photographers/visualisation studios.Source: https://sou-fujimoto.net / https://afasiaarchzine.com/tag/sou-fujimoto/page/10/.Project Credits & Copyright Notice: Every effort has been made to identify and acknowledge architects, consultants, collaborators, photographers, visualisation studios and other contributors associated with each project. Project descriptions have been rewritten and curated by Bureau for Neural Architecture (BfNA). Architectural works, photographs, renderings, drawings, trademarks and visual material remain the property of their respective authors, studios, photographers, visualisation teams and rights holders. Contributors are credited wherever information is available. Rights remain with their respective authors and rights holders.