Open Gaza: Architectures of Hope

This book explores how architecture and design can improve life in the Gaza Strip, highlighting the resilience and creativity of its inhabitants. It brings together experts from various fields to create hopeful interventions that envision a better future for Gazans and Palestinians.

Format: Hardback
Length: 348 pages
Publication date: 29 December 2020
Publisher: American University in Cairo Press

The Gaza Strip is a highly challenging environment, characterized by its cramped size of 139 square miles (360 square kilometers) and the ongoing Israeli siege that has led to deteriorating conditions and despair for its 1.8 million inhabitants. Despite these daunting challenges, Gaza is a place of resilience, resistance, and imagination. In this context, its residents go to extraordinary lengths to create ordinary conditions for their daily lives and to reject their exceptional status.

Inspired by the resilience of the Gazan people, Open Gaza brings together environmentalists, planners, activists, and scholars from Palestine, Israel, the United States, the United Kingdom, India, and other countries. The book aims to create hopeful interventions that envision a better future for Gazans and Palestinians.

Open Gaza engages with the Gaza Strip beyond the confines of siege and warfare, exploring how life can be improved within the limitations imposed by the Israeli blockade and outside the realm of violence and warfare. The contributions in the book offer diverse perspectives and approaches, drawing from various fields such as environmentalism, planning, activism, and academia.

One of the key themes of Open Gaza is the importance of community-driven development. Contributors emphasize the need to involve local communities in the planning and implementation of interventions, ensuring that their voices and needs are heard and addressed. They highlight the role of grassroots organizations and social movements in advocating for change and building resilience in the face of adversity.

Another theme is the use of architecture and design to improve the quality of life in Gaza. Contributors showcase innovative projects and initiatives that utilize sustainable building materials, renewable energy sources, and urban planning strategies to create livable and sustainable communities. They emphasize the importance of creating spaces that promote social interaction, cultural exchange, and economic opportunities, while also addressing the specific challenges posed by the Gaza Strip's geography and climate.

In addition to these thematic discussions, Open Gaza also includes case studies and examples of successful interventions that have made a positive impact on the lives of Gazans. These include projects that promote renewable energy, improve access to clean water and sanitation, and provide education and training opportunities for young people.

Overall, Open Gaza serves as a powerful testament to the resilience and creativity of the Gazan people. It highlights the potential for positive change and development within the context of the Gaza Strip, and encourages readers to explore new avenues for supporting and empowering the community. By engaging with the Gaza Strip beyond the confines of siege and warfare, Open Gaza offers a glimpse of hope and a roadmap for a better future.

Weight: 1886g
Dimension: 211 x 287 x 36 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781649030719