In light of the ongoing conflict and Gaza summer school call, our team has identified a critical need for intervention during the war phase. This decision is informed by testimonies from residents, notably: “Gaza City is a living organism even under bombing.” Additionally, experts are currently developing master plans for rebuilding Gaza, often without the direct involvement of the local people. This approach reflects an outdated belief that distant experts can utilize to effectively plan and shape the living environments of others.
Given this context and the existing restrictions, we consider it unrealistic to propose a rigid, aesthetically driven design at this stage. Instead, our focus is on creating an adaptable urban agenda that addresses short, medium, and long-term needs. This agenda is rooted in bottom-up, human-centered design strategies that empower the local community and foster resilience through different phases of the intervention.
Our proposal focuses geographically on the Port of Gaza as a key catalyst. The port is not just a physical space; it is dynamic, cultural, historical, and economic, contributing to the survival of the community. We believe that this urban agenda will organically emerge from the port (pop-ups), where people gather in one of the few remaining open spaces, seeking solutions to rebuild and thrive, focusing on existing iconic exiting spaces and infrastructure (schools, mosques, cultural and social areas, agriculture land). The urban agenda is born around these iconic usages as a consideration of accessibility, familiarity, and redevelopment aims.
To translate our vision, we have conceptualized four micro-urban programs within a broader urban fabric. Our guiding motifs are “the sea complementing the land” and “the land complementing the sea,” reflecting the symbiotic relationship between these two elements. Thus, these pop-ups start from the port and continue to pop out towards the city for the same strategic aims. The spread of the programs is set to emerge along an existing urban axis that connects the port with the center of Gaza City. These pop-ups serve the program purpose (schools, mosques, galleries, agriculture land), taking into consideration the adaptability and the need of each program to the destruction condition of urban tissue (partially, fully, no damage), taking into consideration the need for emergency housing, living and working spaces.
Micro Urban Programs: These programs will be facilitated by various NGOs, each focusing on one of the following sectors: Fishing. Farming. Culture. Education.
Our proposal is not just a design plan but an evolving urban dynamic agenda that prioritizes community-driven solutions. By leveraging the port as a catalyst and focusing on the inherent strengths and capacities of the people, we aim to create a framework that supports adaptability, resilience, and long-term sustainability in Gaza City within its Port. The port, which has always been the focus of Gazans, continues with its significance to be marked as a starting point for initiating the suggested urban programs. Healing becomes inclusive, baring the sand and the water, the dry and aquatic fabric of the city.
Our intervention focuses on creating an adaptable urban agenda that addresses short, medium, and long-term needs amid war and post-war conditions. This agenda is rooted in bottom-up, human-centered design strategies that empower the local community. The adapted strategy is to set pop-ups of different programs (Fishing, Farming, Culture, Education) starting from the port and continue to pop out towards the urban fabric of the city for consistent aims of revival. They are visualized to exist within iconic spaces and infrastructure as a consideration of accessibility, familiarity, and redevelopment aims.
Team:
Bahaa Bou Kalfouni , Diana Enab, Rahaf Asmar, Tala Salhi, Raneem Faris, and Yaqeen Shalab
Know more about the project through the links:
OPERATED BY BRAINY MEDIA AGENCY | +961 76132354
Copyright © 2025. All rights reserved.
OPERATED BY BRAINY MEDIA AGENCY | +961 76132354
Copyright © 2025. All rights reserved.
