urban sprawl

Research-Based Article

Baalbek: A Long History of Exclusion, for the City and its People

In this text, we present an overview of the city of Baalbek and its neighborhoods, and the exclusion that resulted from specific planning tools. We read into the numerous masterplans, in their dwarfing …

Activity

Discussion Session in Tripoli’s Public Square:

Commodifying Housing in the Service of the Rentier Economy

After decades of handing over the fate of city dwellers and their right to housing to the real estate market and the housing loan policies, housing has been reduced to a commodity, lacking …

Activity

Defending Social Spaces for an Equitable City

Dialogue Series: The Social Value of Land

Speakers in this session discuss the reclamation and preservation of social spaces threatened by real-estate speculation. They examine urban planning laws and the experiences of Bayt Beirut, Fouad Boutros, Beirut Theatre, Dalieh, and …

Activity

Discussion in Kaferman’s Public Square

Regions Marginalization Under the Rentier Economy

The national vision for economic development in Lebanon has historically been closely tied to the construction and real estate sector. How has this led to the destruction of livelihoods and the impoverishment and …

Project

Beyond Cement:

Towards an Alternative Vision for Chekka and Surrounding Towns

The towns of Chekka and Koura in North Lebanon have become prime examples of what public policies in Lebanon generate. The “Green Koura” in residents’ memories sat atop an abundance of groundwater and …

Publication

Beyond Cement

Towards an Alternative Vision for Chekka and Surrounding Towns

Download the book in Arabic Research and production: Monica Basbous, Nadine Bekdache, Tala Alaeddine, Abir SaksoukDesign: Imad KaafaraniEditing: Hashem HashemReport localisation: Sassine Kouzli Due to the presence of cement factories and quarries on …

Publication

Planning in Lebanon:

Manufacturing Landscapes of Inequality

Urban planning and land use maps are a reflection/embodiment of the country’s larger policy choices and economic conceptions. It is the voice and instrument of authority, as it includes the political-economic vision and …

Project

Urbanism and Law: Master-planning in Lebanon and its Impact on People and Places

Over the past decade, many urban geographers engaged with the relation between law and geography, in an attempt to clarify the connections between these two increasingly complex concepts. In Lebanon, law has often …

Project

Cultural Value, Agricultural Practices, and Housing Modes in Saida’s Wastani

As part of a larger study conducted for the Municipality of Saida for the urban development of the Wastani area through the “damm wo farz” project, Public Works was commissioned to study the …

Project

Towards a Participatory Practice in Organizing the Lebanese Territories: The Zahrani Coast as a Model

In Lebanon, the national vision for economic development has always been closely tied to the construction sector. However, the emphasis on land as a source of profit has resulted in the destruction of …