A timber pavilion emerging from the landscape, I³R brings together researchers, students, and industry to collaborate across boundaries to “solve wicked problems”.
Created as a bold step forward for the state, the Institute for Integrative & Innovative Research supports 30 interdisciplinary research teams and a total building population of 135. Designed to encourage collaboration across departments and with public and private partners, the building’s central atrium, open office clusters, and shared labs reflect the belief that proximity drives innovation. Every spatial decision was guided by the theory of propinquity—relationships form through repeated, informal encounters.

Rooted in the Arkansas landscape, I³R reflects the identity of the region through material, form, and site. Positioned at the edge of campus, the building creates a physical and symbolic bridge between academia and industry. A structural system of exposed glulam and CLT references Arkansas’s forestry economy, while native landscaping and vertical apertures reinforce place and pattern.

A light-filled timber pavilion set within the landscape—a place where people, ideas, and disciplines converge. The architecture merges a flexible lab chassis with a warm, inviting pavilion. A canopy of vertical timber columns and filtered light shapes the entry experience, while shared gathering spaces and circulation routes loop around the central atrium to foster interaction.

Sustainability is woven into the structure, systems, and experience—from biophilic design to high-efficiency labs. Targeting LEED v4 Silver, the design incorporates chilled beams, energy recovery, native plantings, and daylight optimization—exceeding energy benchmarks by 32%. The mass timber structure reduces embodied carbon while celebrating regional materials and craft.

I³R is more than a research facility—it’s a place where collaboration is shaped in timber and filled with light. It reflects a new model for interdisciplinary collaboration—one that is rooted in place, shaped by community, and designed to evolve.