Vienna International Centre (VIC)

The Vienna International Centre (VIC) is the campus and building complex hosting the United Nations Office at Vienna (Büro der Vereinten Nationen in Wien). The complex encompassing the Vienna International Centre and the Austria Center Vienna (ACV) convention center is colloquially known as UNO City. Overview The VIC, designed by Austrian architect Johann Staber, was built between 1973 and 1979 just north of the river Danube. The initial idea of setting up an international organization in Vienna came from the Chancellor of Austria Dr. Bruno Kreisky. Six Y-shaped office towers surround a cylindrical conference building for a total floor area of 230,000 m². The highest tower (“A Building”) stands 127 metres tall, enclosing 28 floors. These office towers were among the first modern skyscrapers to be built in Austria. About 5,000 people work at the VIC, which also offers catering and shopping facilities and a post office. Two banks, travel agents and other commercial services have offices on the premises. Complementing the early 2000s asbestos removal works in the VIC, the institution constructed a new conference building over the existing parking deck near the southern perimeter of the campus. Previously designated “C2” and now termed “M Building”, the facility entered service in 2009. Architecture The construction of the International Center was preceded by a competition, which was won in 1969 by the Argentinian architect César Pelli. Second and third prizes went to England and Germany, respectively, while the Austrian Johann Staber came in fourth. Nevertheless, in December 1970, Kreisky decided to implement Staber’s design. This decision triggered fierce protests, but it did not change the outcome. The complex occupies a 17-hectare site, for which the City of Vienna provided the land, and consists of six office towers with a distinctive Y-shaped floor plan, arranged in pairs around a central, circular conference building. The designers based the complex’s floor plan on an imaginary honeycomb structure (hexagons), within which they arranged the buildings to minimize mutual shading. Staber had originally developed design variations with more than six towers, which would have continued the hexagonal pattern. LUNAR SAMPLE 15459,6: This lunar sample (moon rock) was collected by Astronaut James Irwin on the rim of Spur Crater during the Apollo 15 mission. This rock weighs 160 grams. It is a fragment of the original rock which weighed 5,854 grams when returned to Earth. Lunar highland breccias are very old, about 3,900,000,000 years, older than 99.99% of all Earth surface rocks. Scientific research is being conducted on the balance of this sample at NASA’s Johnson Space Center and at other research centers in the United States and certain foreign nations under. History At the invitation of the Government of Austria, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) established their headquarters in Vienna in 1957 and 1967, respectively. In the 1970s, the Government provided a permanent residence for those two organizations: the Vienna International Centre (VIC). The VIC was inaugurated on 23 August 1979. The Government of Austria handed over the VIC complex to the United Nations and IAEA for the symbolic rental sum of one Austrian schilling (equivalent to 0.07 euro today) a year for 99 years. The VIC complex, which covers an area of 180,000 m², has extraterritorial status. Maintenance and operating costs of the VIC are borne by the VIC-based organizations. The VIC comprises about 4,500 offices and 19 conference rooms and accommodates international civil servants from across the globe. The Y-shaped office towers are between 48 metres and 120 metres high. Organizations A major UN site along with New York, Geneva (Palace of nations) and Nairobi, the VIC hosts several organizations: United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) Preparatory Commission for the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO) United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA) International Commission for the Protection of the Danube River (ICPDR) Five other notable international organizations headquartered in Vienna, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), the OPEC Fund for International Development (OFID), the International Anti-Corruption Academy (IACA) and the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA), occupy facilities outside the VIC. Visit Security personnel will require you to undergo security screening. Please bring a valid form of identification: national ID card, passport, or driver’s license. Copies and digital copies are not acceptable. The security checkpoint may become crowded during peak hours. We recommend arriving at the center 15 minutes before the tour starts. You may bring small bags. Luggage storage is not possible at the center for security reasons. The center closes on weekends, official UN holidays, and from December 22, to January 9. Tours for individual visitors are available Monday through Friday at 11:00 AM, 12:30 PM, 2:00 PM, and 3:30 PM. Each tour lasts approximately one hour. Prices: Adults: €15.90 Reduced rate: €13.78 Children: €7.42 How to get to? The Vienna International Centre is accessible by metro (U-Bahn). Take the U1 line to the Kaisermühlen-Vienna International Centre station. See also France travel guide Spain travel guide Catalonia travel guide Pyrenees travel guideThe post Vienna International Centre (VIC) first appeared on All PYRENEES.