TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - There are many ways for each of us to give back to society. Indonesian-born architect Rafi Haikal, who currently serves as the Director of ASEAN Business Development at the prestigious New York City-based architectural firm Urbahn Architects, aims to address inequality and social exclusivity in his home country through design. He believes that architecture is a critical industry in boosting both the development of a nation and the improvement of the quality of life of all members of the community.

According to Haikal, the practice of architecture requires a balance between hard skills and social sensitivity that is accommodating to environmental, social and human interactions. He believes that architects must possess the ability to recognize and provide for the needs and motivations of each client in order to create safe, comfortable, and inclusive spaces that facilitate community and business interactions for everyone.

“In New York City, the work of architects is regulated nearly as much as that of healthcare workers. It requires an extensive amount of education, work experience, exams and certifications for architects to receive their professional license. Why? This is because architects are responsible for the safety and wellness of occupants, proper and efficient functioning of properties, and public welfare,” explained Haikal. “Design of buildings and other elements of the built environment must ensure that the wellbeing and needs of all different users are accommodated, including those of varied physical abilities and identities. How do we build buildings that are accommodating to the deaf, visually- and speech-impaired and wheelchair-bound? Those with varied psychological and racial needs?” he continued.

One of the best examples of Haikal's work that showcases the responsibilities of architects is one of Urbahn’s current projects in Indonesia. As part of his firm’s design team, he is currently working as an accessibility design consultant for the ongoing restoration and upgrade of the Grand Inna Bali Beach Hotel, a project led by the Ministry of State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) in the Special Economic Zone (KEK) in the Sanur area, Bali. Haikal championed the implementation of accessibility design without neglecting interior aesthetics and spatial tectonics, which is also highly correlated with the well-being of people using and working in the building.

This interesting project provided Haikal with the opportunity to study the Balinese architecture and design market and traditions in depth, which then became his reference in transferring knowledge of the U.S. building standards into the hotel development process. "Indonesia does not yet have its own architectural, building, and zoning codes designed to suit the geographical, demographic, and cultural uniqueness of our country. We still use international zoning standards, and some of Singapore’s standards," he shared.

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The concept of zoning and codes in architecture is indispensable. Zoning is a set of rules that regulate limits on the size, shape, use and placement of buildings in various locations. “For example, the zoning code in New York regulates in detail how high apartment or office buildings can be built in certain locations to ensure sufficient natural light in the surrounding, sufficient supply of utilities such as electrical power or water, and easy access by emergency services. The goal is to ensure that pedestrians still experience enough sunlight when walking on the sidewalk, which has a direct impact on people's mental health – another parallel between architects and health workers. That’s how it’s supposed to be in order for the community to benefit from and enjoy the built environment," added Haikal in the same series of interviews in New York.

The success of the Sanur project was only the beginning of Haikal’s advocacy for inclusive architecture. He then assisted in establishing an effective incentive scheme for Urbahn Architects’ new joint venture, Urbahn International, expanding Urbahn's expertise to Indonesia.

Since its founding in 1945, Urbahn has designed projects for organizations and institutions that operate in the commercial real estate, public and governmental services, transportation, residential, healthcare, education, justice, science, hospitality, multi-family residential, and infrastructure sectors. The firm served as the architect for some of the US’ most iconic structures, including the Vehicle Assembly Building and Launch Control at Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, FL, at the time of construction the largest building on Earth, and the Fermi National Accelerator Lab in Batavia, IL. The total value of Urbahn’s current domestic and international projects exceeds $1 billion.

Building Design & Construction magazine ranks Urbahn as the 83rd largest architecture and planning firm overall, 36th largest government building designer, 21st largest designer of justice facilities, 48th largest hospitality designer, 99th largest designer of healthcare projects, and 104th largest university architect in the United States. Engineering News-Record New York magazine recognized the firm as the 2019 Design Firm of the Year.

Haikal led the process of establishing Urbahn’s new subsidiary through a detailed feasibility study and fundraisings with a target investment value of IDR 10 billion or the equivalent of USD $650,000. Thanks to his efforts, Urbahn International PT PMA has recently become a licensed company in Indonesia, with Haikal serving as partner and president commissioner, responsible for examining the design quality, sustainability and accessibility components and aesthetic standards of the company’s projects.

Most recently, Haikal's commitment to his home country has been showcased on an even larger scale. Since 2022, Haikal has advocated for inclusive architecture standards in the master design of Nusantara (IKN), Indonesia's new capital. The main commitment is to connect world-class architectural consultants and developers to the Nusantara development process so that the Archipelago has accessibility and sustainability standards equivalent to those in New York City while highlighting Indonesia’s own cultural and aesthetic heritage.

As part of this effort, on November 20, 2023, at the World Trade Center 7 in Manhattan, Haikal organized a meeting that enabled the IKN Authority Agency to pitch the nation’s megaproject to some of the most prominent real estate developers in the world, like Silverstein Properties, the co-owner and operator of the iconic World Trade Center complex. The meeting’s participants discussed the potential for New York-based property developers to become one of the main developers of the new capital in the next five years. Meanwhile, Urbahn would serve on the advisory board for the Nusantara project with the main mission of overseeing and ensuring accessibility and human rights in the Nusantara master plan.

This meeting succeeded in enticing Western developers to become one of the largest investors in the development of IKN. This is no small achievement, considering the prestigious profile of the global developers that often refuse to invest in regions that do not match the company’s values and goals.

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During the meeting, Haikal emphasized the urgency of preventing increasing inequality between Indonesia and the world by improving the quality standards of architecture and city planning. He stressed that the rule of law, political stability, and individual freedoms in Indonesia create a very safe and attractive investment environment for international businesses. It is safe to say that Rafi Haikal has pioneered a human rights-friendly approach to architecture in Indonesia.

Based on the IKN Authority's presentation at the meeting on Monday (20/11), 20% of the IKN development budget will come from the state budget, while the remaining 80% will come from foreign investment. IKN is described, by the Indonesian government, as a megaproject that focuses on building a unique green and smart city located in the middle of Kalimantan's forests.

“This is a big achievement for my home country, Indonesia, and its architectural community. Nusantara is only the beginning of our mission together. We will continue to strive for a long-term relationship with these global developers, like Silverstein Properties, so that we can build more and more cities in Indonesia that have international standards, that are inclusive, are safe for all people's needs, all ethnicities, religions, races, and varied mental and physical needs,” said Haikal at the launch of Urbahn International at the Indonesian Consulate General in New York in November of 2023, where he gave a speech as Urbahn’s new Director of Business Development for the ASEAN Region.

In addition to elevating Indonesian architectural practices to the highest international level, the efforts to support Nusantara also have a very immediate positive impact on his nation: the potential employment of 10,000 construction workers in Nusantara and the ripple effect it will have on the Kalimantan economy.

The mission of inclusivity and equality is nothing new for this alum of the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, a prominent school of architecture known, just as Urbahn Architects is, for its commitment to serving the needs of the entire society. He has also been active in various social movements, one of which is Project Bhinneka created in 2018, through which he was committed to promoting cross-cultural collaboration and tolerance of differences before the 2019 presidential election.

Apart from that, Haikal will also continue to promote the Good Design Indonesia (GDI) program. GDI is a competition and award initiative for designers and business professionals, who improve the quality of life through design and art. The program is affiliated with Indonesia’s Ministry of Trade and is considered one of the largest design competitions in Asia. He hopes that support for GDI will encourage Indonesian architects to take advantage of the trade agreements that Indonesia has ratified to both open new markets to Indonesian professionals and to introduce new practices and ideas within the country.

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