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The Center for Middle Eastern Studies presents
Dr. Anas Soufan
Artist, Architect & Heritage Specialist; Affiliation: CMES, GSD, Harvard + NABNI-H, France
The Ancient City of Aleppo was inscribed in the World Heritage List in 1986. From 2012 to 2017, it became a battleground of war, an event that damaged and destroyed more than 1,200 buildings and public spaces. Moreover, on February 6th, 2023, a violent earthquake struck the city, destroying more historic monuments and weakening many others. Accordingly, the city faces a high risk of being lost forever and is in dire need of a post-war / post-disaster recovery initiative.
Many complex and interdisciplinary challenges face the city today which impede its recovery. These include an on-going economic and political crisis, overlayed by a complicated geopolitical situation. The daily life of the Syrian people is deeply impacted – along with their future ambitions and past cultural heritage. The city is also a hostage to the concept of time, which deteriorates its monuments and aggravates its existing problems and creates new ones.
This lecture sheds light on the complexity of the city’s current situation and introduces a new understanding of the term ‘Heritage Conservation’ and a new approach to the recovery process – incorporating ethical, conservation, and sustainable development strategies.
Contact: Liz Flanagan