Prof. Dina Shehayeb

Egypt has one of the most rapidly transforming urban scenes. Egyptian cities and towns also include a wide range of diversity in urban form and patterns. It is a country characterized by its central location and multi-cultural heritage from Ancient Egyptian, through Greco-Roman, Christian, and Ottoman, to the European colonial influences of the 19th C. These layers of heritage are reflected in its cities and neighborhoods as well as in people’s lifestyles. Cairo is a megacity with a population of an estimated 20+ million offering a ripe example of fast-growing mega cities multiple with diverse urban experiences and a vibrant social life that becomes part of the learning experience of any student. For the spatial design and urban planning fields, from architecture to urban management, the city of Cairo alone offers a highly complex laboratory. The rate of urban development and transformation, the underlying socio-cultural and economic patterns, the tensions and linkages between ‘formal’ and ‘informal’, the social resilience and potential for adaptability, and the continuous experimentation with laws and regulations, make studying it a fascinating and challenging endeavor and requires heuristic frameworks that are at the same time integrative, multidisciplinary, socio-culturally sensitive, and technically agile. The vision was to develop an architectural undergraduate program that is “different” and innovative utilizing technology yet closely connected to the real everyday dynamics to address the challenges facing the building of human settlements that support and sustain the wellbeing, prosperity, and fulfillment of human values.