ResearchGROUNDED URBAN PRACTICES: CAIRO AND AMSTERDAM/ROTTERDAMYear: 2019 Location: Cairo, Amsterdam/Rotterdam Client: Creative Industries Fund NL Scope: Research Grounded Urban Practices (GUPs) refer to alternative initiatives engaging cities and public space that have emerged over the past decade in response to economic and political shifts. They engage space as an agent for change, an approach known…
DesignBIKE LANES IN DOWNTOWN CAIROYear: 2019 Location: Downtown, Cairo Client: UN-Habitat Scope: Research and Design Greater Cairo, a megacity of approximately 18 million, faces daunting traffic jams and severely polluted air. Responding to the city’s transport challenges, the Cairo governorate (an administrative region, similar to a state or province), in partnership with the United Nations…
PublicationsGROUNDED URBAN PRACTICES IN CAIRO AND AMSTERDAM ROTTERDAMYear: 2019 This study contains an in-depth investigation of the work of GUPs in both countries, based on an extensive research and several meet-ups with the selected GUPs in Amsterdam, Rotterdam and Cairo. The research focused on 1) the roots and reasons behind their emergence; 2) their structure…
PublicationsCREATIVE INITIATIVES: ECONOMIC IMPACT ON DOWNTOWN CAIROYear: 2018 This Creative Initiatives Toolkit offers stakeholders and researchers alike a guide to measuring the economic impact of the independent arts and culture sector as a segment of the creative sector on a district, in this study, downtown Cairo. Through an economic impact assessment of the arts on…
PublicationsCAIRO DESERT CITIESYear: 2018 Presented since 1950 as the solution to all urban problems, new cities have flourished in the deserts around Cairo. Colossal amounts of money and resources have been spent in the name of a modern Egypt, all of which have yet to show success. Instigated by the Master of Advanced Studies in…
Digital PlatformsAMMAN STAIRWAYSYear: 2018 The Amman Stairways Mapping Project builds upon on earlier archives and databases developed by local art, architecture and urban communities in Amman, as well as research practices developed by CLUSTER in collaboration with the Center for Spatial Research (CSR) and Studio-X Amman at the Columbia Global Centers | Amman. The project…
ResearchWatch Video FORMAL-INFORMAL INTERFACE: FOUR AFRICAN CITIESYear: 2018 Location: Cairo, Dar es Salaam, Lusaka, Ouagadougu Client: AURI Scope: Research The second phase of the project ‘Formal-Informal Interface’ was developed comparatively between four African cities: Cairo, Dar es Salaam, Lusaka and Ouagadougou, engaging the formal-informal interface with four themes: mobility, water infrastructure, food chain and housing…
DesignSTREET STORYYear: 2018 Location: Downtown, Cairo Client: National Organization for Urban Harmony Scope: Research and Design The National Organization for Urban Harmony (NOUH) commissioned CLUSTER to develop a concept design proposal for the Downtown street signage project. The project aims to highlight how the streets, together with the urban fabric of Downtown Cairo, have evolved…
Digital PlatformsCREATIVE URBAN INITIATIVES PLATFORM (CUIP) AMMANYear: 2018 CUIP is a community based, user- generated interactive map, directory, and a shared calendar of events for art, culture, architecture, advocacy, urban development and interdisciplinary initiatives and organizations. Launched in 2013 by CLUSTER in Cairo, CUIP is a directory and calendar of emerging initiatives focusing on the…
ProgramsARD AL-LIWA HOMES EXHIBITIONYear: 2017 Location: Artellewa Clients and Partners: Artellewa, Pro Helvetia, ETH Scope: Exhibition After investigating the architecture of informal settlements, the ETH Zurich Master of Advanced Studies Program in Urban Design at the Chair of Marc Angélil and directed by Charlotte Malterre-Barthes in collaboration with local partner CLUSTER, proposed new designs for…