Prospects of Placemaking Progression in Arab cities

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Cover image: The Egg, Beirut. Protests (2019), day #6. Picture by Louay Kabalan
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Published: Jan 31, 2020
DOI: https://doi.org/10.32891/jps.v5i1.1255
Keywords:
public space pseudo-public alternative publicness performativity right to the city civic pedagogy tactics

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Merham M. Keleg
Ain Shams University

Abstract

Placemaking is a philosophical ideology that focuses on common and shared values among the different stakeholders aiming at providing better environment for the people. It is a hands-on tool that increases place attachment and yields places that reflect the local identities of the people and so transforms them into active players and local guardians. Several typologies of placemaking emerged overtime, but they are all people driven. On the contrary to public projects ideologies which are not certainly to be people driven at all times. In this regard, the research aims at investigating the different set ups in the Arab region in relation to placemaking philosophy. The study is discussing the two cases of Abu Dhabi and Cairo as two diverse contexts in the Arab region with different inputs and challenges. Despite the potentials revealed for the progression of placemaking in the two studied cities, the research argues that achieving the core philosophy of placemaking is still early in the Arab region. As it requires core and in-depth consideration of public realm production ideologies and its subsequent administrative set ups that would encourage inclusive and democratic process.

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How to Cite
Keleg, M. M. (2020) “Prospects of Placemaking Progression in Arab cities”, The Journal of Public Space, 5(1), pp. 153–166. doi: 10.32891/jps.v5i1.1255.
Issue
Vol. 5 No. 1 (2020): Placemaking in Arab Cities
Section
Systems

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Author Biography

Merham M. Keleg, Ain Shams University

Merham gained her BSc in Architecture with distinction in 2011 from Ain Shams University and pursued an academic career since then. She was appointed as a teaching assistant at Urban Planning and Design Department, Ain Shams University. She has been engaged in developing several undergrad and post grade curricula. Since 2012 she worked as a research assistant where she took part in writing several research proposals, conducting desktop researches, assisting in writing scientific papers, as well as organizing workshops. Merham was a member of the organization committee of the Eco Cities World Summit 2015. She also has several publications mainly focusing on the relation between the urban settings and people’s perceptions. Meanwhile she gained her MSc about the livability of public spaces in Cairo. Merham is now a PhD fellow at Oxford Brookes University studying Placemaking in relation to Green Infrastructure in the context of Cairo, Egypt as an example of rapidly growing Global South cities. The research shall shed the lights on the different opportunities in the current landscape of Cairo that can stimulate better value to the current green spaces provision practices in order to achieve a better value for the city and its inhabitants.

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