Ing. Diana Salahieh

Ing. Diana Salahieh

This paper examines how armed conflict impacts the recalibration of Aleppo’s historic urban and cultural fabric, using the Al-Jdeideh quarter as a case study. This article critically reflects on the ongoing (post-)conflict, top-down (post-)reconstruction activities in Aleppo’s historic core, drawing on ethnographic research of visual mapping and semi-structured interviews with current Aleppo dwellers in the city and former dwellers displaced across Europe. Our findings highlight that the current reconstruction activities lack locals’ values and needs, and amplify the altered socio-economic dynamics between the (former) communities’ absence and presence. Therefore, these activities are resulting in a skewed representation of what once was a major hub of culture, commerce, heritage, and everyday life. As such, the paper argues that the current reconstruction attempts lack a comprehensive and context-specific approach, and need to explore more inclusive pathways of human-centered and sustainable recovery.

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Mgr. Kateřina Tobišková, Ing. Diana Salahieh

In the "Czech Republic 2030 Vision” document, published in 2017 by the Department for Sustainable Development at the Czech Republic Government Office, urban resilience was a prioritized parameter for assessing urban capacity to mitigate vulnerabilities to socioeconomic and environmental perturbations. However, efforts to assess and reflect on the measures and conditions of urban resilience are somewhat lacking in the Czech context. In retrospect, this paper aims to review the resilience of a distinct inner-city neighborhood in the city of Prague: Prague-Smíchov. Methodologically, the paper begins with a review of the strategies and implementation plans for urban resilience in Prague and Smíchov's municipality, followed by a historical reading of the area's urban development and adaptability to turbulences and changes. Finally, the paper unveils a preliminary examination of Smíchov’s central area contemporary urban conditions in conjunction with the walkability of its public spaces and vitality of its blue-green infrastructure. The paper highlights the need for further research to address and enhance the scope of urban resilience within the city of Prague.

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Ing. Diana Salahieh

15119 Ústav urbanismu

Aleppo City is a recent example of how armed conflict ruptures generationally (re)articulated urban and cultural fabric. Apart from the city's physical destruction, the post-conflict spatial fragmentation reveals significantly altered socio-economic dynamics between its (former) communities’ absence and presence. With the end of active armed confrontation, Aleppo's Old City, recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1986, has witnessed a patchwork of non-orchestrated reconstruction and privately-funded efforts. However, these contemporary reconstruction activities generally lack a comprehensive, sustainable, recovery-oriented, and context-specific approach that captures the city’s post-conflict social, cultural and heritage significance (Affaki, 2021; Munawar & Symonds, 2022). Al-Jdeideh neighborhood, in the Old City of Aleppo, serves as an example where such individualistic and unplanned reconstruction attempts result in underrepresented values and needs of the locals, and an arguably skewed image of the area’s past socio-material symbol as a major hub of culture, commerce, heritage, and everyday life in Aleppo city. Consequently, Al-Jdeideh today remains in a state of conflict between different actors’ visions, and (un)heard Aleppians’ voices. Therefore, in order to stratify the post-war dynamics on a small-scale (i.e. Al-Jdeideh neighborhood) in the context of large-scale socio-economic transformations, this paper combines empirical data from on-site qualitative evaluations of Al-Jdeideh’s heavily destroyed urban structure with semi-structured informal interviews that render the local narratives and memories of Aleppians inside and outside of Syria. This approach allows for a dynamic interpretation of Al-Jdeideh's meaning, urban function, and cultural value for its former and present-day dwellers and users. Finally, the authors call for the urgent adoption of heritage-led regeneration and a human-centered urbanism approach to recover Al-Jdeideh’s image as a traditional and sustainable neighborhood in the Old City of Aleppo. This will enhance the significance and integration of the various local perceptions into a contextual post-conflict recovery approach that acknowledges the past, evaluates the present, and provides future guidelines that reflect the values of present-day and future communities of Al-Jdeideh and Aleppo city. Affaki, M. S. (2021). Reconstruction of Heritage and Spirit: Mending the Scars of Aleppo. In F. F. Arefian, J. Ryser, A. Hopkins, & J. Mackee (Eds.), Historic Cities in the Face of Disasters: Reconstruction, Recovery and Resilience of Societies (pp. 263–279). Springer International Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-77356-4_15 Munawar & James Symonds (2022): Post-Conflict Reconstruction, Forced migration & Community Engagement: The Case of Aleppo, Syria, International Journal of Heritage Studies 28 (9): 1017-1035.

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Ing. Diana Salahieh

This PhD research critically explores the concept of the Walkable City and the capacity for urban design and planning strategies to embrace the experiential dimensions of urban walking. In contrast to conventional approaches that view walking primarily as short-distance transportation, this thesis employs narrative and Design Driven research methodologies for examining urban settings in relation to their local walking experiences and atmospheric possibilities. Taking Prague as its primary case study, the thesis begins with a historical reading of the city fabric as walkscapes. In tandem, it traces the evolution of pedestrian infrastructures, their conceptualization and impact on urban walking practices. Central to the thesis is its positioning at the intersection of how the city, urban design, and planning are conceived, imagined, and experienced. Drawing inspiration from the historical value of trails in storytelling and landscape appreciation, this research takes an exploratory approach to tracing urban walking trails and harnesses the potency of imagination to envision walkable urban spaces. This research aims to yield insights into integrating (long-distance) urban walking within metropolitan contexts, applying narrative tools in urban design and planning strategies, and enabling architects and urban planners to address the challenges of contemporary fast-paced and digitally dominated urban lifestyles.

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