Closing Webinar | Citizen Participation in Historic Cairo Project

You are invited to the closing webinar for Athar Lina Initiative’s Citizen Participation in Historic Cairo Project. In this 2-hour webinar, we will present the scope of the project focusing on its outputs, mainly the publications and website.

Presentations by May al-Ibrashy, Ahmed Mansour and Ahmed Zaazaa, will be followed by commentary and discussion from distinguished colleagues, Noha el-Mikawy, Kareem Ibrahim, and Omar Kishk. We will then open the floor to all for questions and discussion.

Your participation is not simply to listen to us. It is for us to listen to your feedback and input and for all of us to think together on how to move forward and build on this project.

Register here, to be sent an event zoom link.

It will also be broadcast through Facebook Live.

The event will be in Arabic.

About Citizen Participation in Historic Cairo

A 3-year research project focusing on the conservation, management, and development of 3 areas within the district of al-Khalifa in Historic Cairo.

– Al-Khalifa Street Area, as an example of a residential neighbourhood along the main Qasaba with a wealth of heritage sites of both cultural and spiritual value.

– Al-Hattaba, as an example of a historic neighbourhood listed incorrectly as an informal settlement and as such, slated for demolition.

– Zaynhum Housing, as an example of a public housing project within the historic city with untapped resources.

The areas were chosen to be as diverse as possible. They were also chosen to reflect different types of priorities that synergise with the work that Athar Lina Initiative already does in al-Khalifa;

– For al-Khalifa Street Area, the output was a conservation and management plan that builds on previous research and intervention and aims at integrating it within a clear vision for maximum impact. The output is a planning tool for Athar Lina and for decision-makers. It can be used as a basis for similar proposals in other neighbourhoods and can also be linked to city-wide plans.

– For al-Hattaba, the aim was to work with the community and with governmental stakeholders and experts to advocate for an alternative scenario to evacuation and demolition. The output was a preliminary development plan that preserves the neighbourhood and builds on its heritage assets to develop it.

– For Zaynhum Housing, the research took an alternative position to the prevalent view that modern public housing has no place in the historic city. It proposed using the interstitial spaces for services that benefited the residents of the public housing estate and the surrounding historic neighbourhoods alike.

In addition to the direct outputs of the fieldwork, the project also produced other, more general outputs:

– An intervention toolkit for Historic Cairo: this toolkit compiles laws, regulations, and building codes relevant to land use, modification, or construction of buildings and interventions in open spaces. It annotates the compiled data with examples and directions for use. It also closes with a discussion of the legal framework and suggestions for modifying it for the benefit of the historic city and its residents.

– A website that promotes al-Khalifa district; its heritage, crafts, and people. It is regularly updated with all the public events taking place and is also planned as a platform for selling products coming out of al-Khalifa.

Citizen Participation in Historic Cairo was implemented between 2017 and 2020 by Athar Lina Initiative under the umbrella of the Built Environment Collective, in partnership with the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities and funded by the Ford Foundation.

Event Schedule

Introductory Session: 7.00 – 7.30 pm

– Introduction to Citizen Presentation in Historic Cairo Project – May al-Ibrashy

– Q & A session Ahmed Mansour, Ahmed Zaazaa, and Ahmed Borham

– moderated by Omar el-Kousy

Project Outputs: 7.30 – 8.30 pm

– Al-Khalifa Street Conservation and Management Plan – Presentation by Ahmed Mansour followed by reflections and discussion with Kareem Ibrahim

– Historic Cairo Intervention Toolkit – Presentation by Ahmed Zaazaa followed by reflections and discussion with Omar Kishk

– Al-Khalifa website – short walkthrough

General Discussion – 8.30 – 9.00 pm

– What happens next – May al-Ibrashy

– General reflections – Noha el-Mikawy

– Q & A session – Closing and thanks

Speakers (in alphabetical order)

– Ahmad Borham is a practicing design architect, urban researcher, and a PhD candidate at Weimar University. He is also an urban consultant with Citizen Participation in Historic Project.

– Ahmed Mansour is an architect and heritage industries coordinator at Athar Lina Heritage Design Thinking School. He is also a heritage consultant with Citizen Participation in Historic Project.

– Ahmed Zaazaa is a researcher, urban designer, and a founding partner at 10 Tooba. He is also an urban consultant with Citizen Participation in Historic Project.

– Kareem Ibrahim is an Egyptian architect and urban researcher. He is a founding partner at Takween- ICD.

– May al-Ibrashy is the founder and chair of Megawra-Built Environment Collective and the coordinator of Athar Lina Initiative.

– Noha El-Mikawy is the regional director at the Ford Foundation’s Middle East and North Africa office.

– Omar Kishk is the founder and principal of the architectural firm, A for Architecture.

– Omar el-Kousy is an assistant lecturer at the Faculty of Planning, Cairo University, and a planning consultant at Athar Lina Initiative.