[This is a monthly roundup of news articles, and other materials related to urban issues in the region, and beyond. It does not reflect the views of the Cities Page Editors or of Jadaliyya. You may send recommendations for inclusion in the Cities Media Roundup to cities@jadaliyya.com, mentioning “Roundup” in the subject line. We also welcome your submissions to the Cities Page: please check details on the Submission pane of Jadaliyya.]
Urban Development
A Landmark from Beirut’s ‘Golden Age’ of Modern Architecture Carla Aramouny reports for BrownBook on the design of the Electricité du Liban (EDL) building, a living testament to Beirut’s ‘golden age’ for planning, architectural visions and local trajectories.
Parallel Urban Practice in Egypt 10 Tooba reports on the first Egyptian urban forum, which seeks to strengthen the existing institutional landscape at the national level and pave the way for a greater integration of Egypt in the global urban development scene.
Dubai Announces plans to Increase Focus on Affordable Housing in 2018 DesignMENA reports on the new residential legislation in Dubai, and the government’s initiative to focus on affordable housing in the city.
Waste Management in Beirut
“As If You’re Inhaling Your Death” The Health Risks of Burning Waste in Lebanon Bassam Khawaja reports for Human Rights Watch on the consequences of the government’s failure to manage solid waste, and the dangers of the open burning of waste on the health and lives of Lebanese residents.
Diaries of a Garbage Bag: Lebanon’s Waste & Water Problem Ranine Awwad reports for Synaps Network on the ever-expanding and increasingly dangerous supply of waste in Lebanon, and the recurring failure of the government and society to implement an effective waste management system.
Lebanon: Waste Crisis Posing Health Risks Human Rights Watch reports on Lebanon’s need to end the open burning of waste, and the lack of a sustainable national waste management strategy that complies with international law and best practices of environmental and public health.
Une toute nouvelle coalition pour la gestion des déchets voit le jour L’Orient Le Jour reports on the formation of the ‘Coalition for Waste Management’, a lobby group for the implementation of a sustainable approach to waste management in Lebanon.
Everyday Life
Abu Dhabi Institution El Dorado to Close its Doors After 47 Years Anna Zacharias interviews the founders of El Dorado, Abu Dhabi’s first indoor cinema, which closes its doors after 47 years of service in a report for The Nation.
Census Shows There Are 174,422 Palestinians in Lebanon The New York Times reports on the first official census of Palestinian refugees in Lebanon, conduced by the Lebanese Central Administration of Statistics and the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics.
Lebanese Economy Watchdog Rosalie Berthier reports for Synaps Network on The Lebanese economy watchdog, which aims to unpack economic issues most critical to Lebanese citizens, from their vantage point, and in accessible terms.
Transpatialization: A New Heuristic Model to think about Modern Cities Cyrus Schayegh writes for Global Urban History on the socio-spatial making of the modern world through a set of processes of socio-spatial intertwinements.
بالأرقام والإحصاءات ... سكان بيروت ليسوا سعيدين!
An-Nahar reports on the results of the survey conducted by Bayt, which assesses the quality of life in the cities of the MENA region for 2017, and claims that Beirut possessing the least happy residents.
مسار "بلع" البحر مُستمر: 80% من الشاطئ مغلق أمام اللبنانيين Hadeel Farfour reports for Al-Akhbar on the threat faced by the Lebanese coastal zone, as investment projects jeopardize the remaining percentage accessible to the public.
War and Reconstruction
Batroun’s Abandoned Aquarium: Condemned, yet Still Hopeful Gioia Sawaya reports for Failed Architecture on an abandoned building in Batroun, which was originally intended as an aquarium, and questions its continuing relevance as it is scheduled for demolition.
Aerial Imperialism: Syrian Ruinscapes and Vertical Media Sina Zekavat reports for Failed Architecture on the false narratives of the Syrian war, which are reinforced by the media through widely circulated drone images, and videos of bombed ruins.
After the War: Who’s Going to Pay for Syria’s Reconstruction? Paul Cochrane reports for Middle East Eye on the level of destruction in Syria by sector, and studies the amount, timescale and sources of costs required to rebuild the city.
War, Riots, Torture: The Luxury Hotels that Shaped the Middle East Daniel Hilton reports for Middle East Eye on certain luxury establishments which have become synonymous with dynamic eras in the history of the Middle East in a photo essay.
Urban Housing and The Question of Property Rights In Syria Syrian Echoes reports on the massive zones of informality in major metropolitan areas of secondary cities which arise from the failure of formal systems to cope with the increased demand for housing and the degree of rural to urban migration.
Resources
New Report: VASYR 2017: Vulnerability Assessment of Syrian Refugees in Lebanon Reliefweb releases the 2017 Vulnerability Assessment of Syrian Refugees in Lebanon (VASyR), the fifth annual survey assesses the situation of a representative sample of registered Syrian refugee households in an attempt to identify situational changes and trends.
New Website: Waste Management Coalition A group of individuals and organizations have come together to form the Waste Management Coalition (WMC), which seeks to address the Lebanese garbage crisis, and identify a sustainable waste management plan for Beirut.
Call for Applications: IJURR Foundation Studentship Applications Open (Dec 1 2017), Deadline: 31 January 2018. IJURR Foundation is offering 1 year studentships and 6 months writing up grants for PhD students with the nationality of World Bank B & C countries working in the area of Urban and Regional Studies.
Press Review: Revue de presse Ville-Décembre 2017 CEDEJ covers Egypt for their press review for the month of December 2017.
New Paper: The Role of Housing Markets in the Timing of Marriage in Egypt, Jordan, and Tunisia Ragui Assaad, Caroline Krafft and Dominique Rolando examine housing markets in Egypt, Jordan and Tunisia and their impact on the timing of marriage in a paper for the Economic Research Forum.
Main image caption: Electricité du Liban Head office in Beirut (Lebanon), by Philippe48 (Wikipedia)