March 2020
Firstly, congratulations and welcome to the new IR Board for 2020! There is a tremendous mix of talent and energy from around the globe, and we want to channel that energy to improving your experience with the AIA! Secondly, a huge thank you to outgoing IR president Thierry Paret! We all build on the work of the work of our predecessors and I’m particular fortunate to be following in Thierry’s footsteps.
There are a number of key issues that I would like the IR to address. These include, but aren’t limited to:
· Improving communication and collaboration between the 7 IR Chapters. This includes the sharing of information, knowledge of events, and the creation of centralized databases. We are looking to create a central store of webinars on the IR website that feature major events from chapter which IR members can access for free, and also obtain CES credits.
· Improving the connection of non-chapter members of the IR (i.e., ‘Unassigned Members’) to the AIA and IR and to each other. The AIA has members in more than 100 countries. We are focusing on building an electronic infrastructure for meetings and webinars to better connect these members and to integrate them into the grassroots level of AIA membership which is where the real value of membership lies. We are finalizing with AIA National the creation of ‘Country Representatives’ that we hope to start this Spring in half a dozen countries, and if successful to implement this on a wider scale.
· Increasing the awareness, and raising the profile of international issues in the domestic US. IR Past Presidents Thierry Paret and James Wright have portfolio responsibilities for domestic liaison. Their remit includes liaising with the AIA National board and coordinating efforts with all elements of the AIA who have an interest in things international.
· Extend the influence of the AIA internationally. The AIA is a well-respected brand internationally and has a great deal of influence. We have successfully organised several 3rdparty architectural-conferences at major trade construction industry trade shows in China (with attendance of more than 60,000 people) and we want to extend this to other countries. We are also developing with industry partners a young-architect award.
We hope that you can join us for events at A’20 in Los Angeles. We will have a display of all IR Design Award winners, from all years, on display in the main gallery of the LA Convention Center. For more information on international events at A’20 see here.
Mark you calendars now for the IR’s annual conference in Dubai from November 19-21. More information here.
We are looking for IR members who are interesting in participating and contributing. If you are interested, or have any comments or suggestions, please contact me directly at lester.korzilius@aiainternational.org
Lester Korzilius; FAIA, RIBA
President
AIA International Region
