Al-Hattaba is considered a representative example of Historic Cairo’s urban fabric, due to its wealth of historical buildings and monuments that should be preserved and reused. In accordance to that, the Built Environment Collective presented the Ministry of Antiquities with a masterplan for the neighbourhood of al-Hattaba in the Citadel area. The proposal was developed as a result of a workshop hosted by the Built Environment Collective and attended by representatives from the Ministry of Antiquities, Cairo Governorate and the Informal Settlement Development Fund in September 2018. The overall plan aims to elevate al-Hattaba as a historical area that is easy to develop as a crafts and tourism neighbourhood.

Links:

Press Release

Executive summary: Preliminary Masterplan for the Development of al-Hattaba Neighbourhood in Historic Cairo

Images and drawings

Integrated solutions for ground water problems in historic contexts

A multi-disciplinary research and training program with the participation of an international team of architects, conservation experts, planners and experts in urbanism, environment, infrastructure and water resources. The program is organised by Megawra- Built Environment Collective and Oregon and Cornell universities, with funding from the American Research Center in Egypt and the American Embassy in Cairo and in partnership with the Ministry of Antiquities and Cairo Governorate to:

1. Study the phenomenon of ground and subsurface water rise in historic areas and its effect on historic buildings. (Research phases: Aug-Oct 2016 and Jan-Mar 2017).
2. Train professionals and scholars in the field of heritage conservation on state of the art techniques of treatment of historic buildings suffering from salt and water damage. (Conservation School: Nov-Dec 2016).
3. Organise an international school to develop integrated methodologies for the treatment of water extracted during dewatering processes to be used as an alternative for supply water for cleaning, industrial, irrigation or irrigation purposes. (International School: Mar-Apr 2017).
4. Pilot one or more proposed methodologies in al-Khalifa. (Piloting and Intervention phase: May-Jul 2017).

The program will follow a sustainable methodology through technologies that can be implemented and that are suitable for the social particularity and economic conditions of the area with the aim of transforming ground water from a source of harm to a social resource. It builds on Athar Lina Initiative’s mandate to preserve the historic city and make sure it is used efficiently as a social resource and driver for development. Athar Lina initiative has been implementing an integrated participatory program of conservation, rehabilitation, heritage education, tourist development, capacity building and urban development in the neighborhood of Khalifa since 2012 based on this mandate.

Athar Lina is a participatory conservation initiative to establish modalities of citizen participation in heritage conservation based on a vision of heritage as a resource not a burden. Based in al-Khalifa in Historic Cairo, Athar Lina believes that only when cultural heritage is beneficial to the community, will the community become an active partner in its conservation. It believes that conservation can be a vehicle for development if practiced in a participatory inclusive manner. In order to enable the community to become an active partner, workshops and research projects are developed and implemented to determine the priorities and devise strategies. These are a necessary step towards implementation of feasible impactful interventions.

To motivate the participation of the community and sustainability of the interventions, heritage and projects, conservation is combined with social development and tourist promotion activities. Furthermore, the projects target children as one of the principal beneficiaries, hence the introduction of the educational program.

Athar Lina started in June 2012 with a participatory design workshop focusing on the neighbourhood of al-Khalifa in Historic Cairo. This neighbourhood stretches from Ibn Tulun Mosque in the north to al-Sayyida Nafisa Shrine in the south and is known for its impressive, yet under-appreciated set of listed monuments dating from the 9th to the 19th century. The question asked was on the relationship between these heritage sites and their surroundings and whether they could become resources the community benefits from. The recommendations of this workshop focused on three mains issues:

1. Identifying heritage nodes to conserve and rehabilitate for communal use.
2. Children as prime targets for heritage awareness activities.
3. Urban scale projects linking heritage to economic and social benefit through upgrade of public space, tourist promotion and capacity building.

These recommendations guide the work we do to this day. Projects implemented include the following:

1. Conservation of four domes from the 12th and 13th century and rehabilitation of an early 20th century building into a community centre.
2. Establishment of a heritage school for Khalifa’s children, run on a daily basis in summer and on a weekly basis during school. Funding for this free school is through a heritage activity program for private schools and a heritage education consultancy.
3. Promotion of the tangible and intangible heritage of al-Khalifa through craft development and tourist programs. The craft program focuses on knowledge exchange activities between designers and local artisans as a means of raising the capacity of both groups. Tourist promotion is through an annual event of guided tours, street art, street performances, exhibitions and recreational activities called (Spend the Day in Khalifa).
4. Urban upgrade activities focusing on infrastructure, mostly waste management and groundwater problems. The waste management program focuses on the rehabilitation of dumps into recreational spaces. The first dump, in Darb al-Husr was converted into a football field and al-Khalifa Ridge is the second project. The groundwater issues are addressed through the Athar Lina Groundwater Research Project.