The David Attenborough Building

The Arup Building - the brutalist icon designed by Arup Associates for the University of Cambridge - has been given a new name some 40 years after it opened. The building, currently being re-invented as a centre for research into habitat conservation and biodiversity by Nicholas Hare Architects, will now be known as the David Attenborough Building.

The project will facilitate collaboration in research and practice between the University of Cambridge, the Cambridge Conservation Initiative - a cluster of leading conservation organisations - and the Museum of Zoology. The refurbishment uses an innovative approach to measuring sustainability and will demonstrate how it is possible to enrich and conserve biodiversity even in the heart of a city.

A 20m skeleton of a finback whale will float above the entrance to the Museum inviting a new audience to explore the outstanding collections that have until now been primarily an academic resource.

"It is fantastic that the building will have such an inspiring new name to launch its new future. I can think of no one more appropriate to personify the nature and ambition of this complex project."
Carol Lelliott, Partner, Nicholas Hare Architects

Photo courtesy of CCI