“Our Message This Time Was Optimism”: In Conversation with Farrokh Derakhshani, Director of the Aga Khan Award for Architecture

On 2 September, the seven winners of the 16th Cycle (2023–2025) of the Aga Khan Award for Architecture (AKAA) were announced. Established in 1977, the Award seeks to identify and encourage building concepts that respond to the physical, social, and economic needs of communities with a significant Muslim presence, while also addressing their cultural aspirations. To understand the vision behind this cycle's winners, ArchDaily's Editor-in-Chief, Christele Harrouk, spoke with AKAA Director, Farrokh Derakhshani, who has been with the Award for over four decades. He described the initiative as "a curated message to the world," a message that evolves with the times. In discussing the winners of this edition of the Award, Derakhshani highlights how each project advances architectural thinking. He points to Marina Tabassum's Khudi Bari in Bangladesh, which pioneers a replicable bamboo housing system. Its key success is creating a framework that allows the community to adopt the design and "let it grow itself," redefining the architect's role as a facilitator. Similarly, the West Wusutu Village Community Centre in China by Zhang Pengju stands as a model for rural development, praised for its elegant design that intelligently uses reclaimed bricks and available local manpower. In Pakistan, Vision Pakistan by DB Studios addresses social empowerment directly, offering dignity to vocational education for disadvantaged youth through a joyful and well-crafted building that instils a sense of pride.