Hanif Kara

Professor Hanif Kara OBE contributes over forty years of international design experience. He’s a co-founder and design director of the ‘interdisciplinary’ engineering practice AKT II, which today unites 300+ people, with projects across 50+ countries. He’s also a professor in practice of architectural technology with the Harvard University’s Graduate School of Design (the Harvard GSD). Hanif is currently an appointed Design Advocate for the Mayor of London, having previously been the first structural engineer to be appointed to the Design Council’s Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment as well as to the Royal Institute of British Architects Stirling Prize Jury, President’s Medal Jury, and Honours Committee (which awards the Royal Gold Medal). Hanif’s insight into design – and particularly into interdisciplinarity – has been published throughout numerous books, media outlets and technical journals worldwide. In 2022, he was awarded the Council for Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat ‘Fazlur R Khan’ Lifetime Achievement Medal for his contributions to the global built environment.