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North Africa REGIONAL HUB
The North Africa Regional research hub is currently in progress and will be established,ished soon.
NORTHER AFRICA REGIONAL HUB
North Africa Research Team
Tunisia Hub Coordinator:
Mrs Amel Meddeb Ben Ghorbel
Heritage Association of the Medina of Tunis (ASM)
Research Coordinator:
Dr Majdi Faleh
Heritage Association of the Medina of Tunis (ASM)
Research Partners:
Dr Asma Gharbi, Mrs Nourchen Ben Fatma
National School of Architecture and Planning (ENAU), Tunisia
Professor Fakher Kharrat, Head of Department
National School of Architecture and Planning (ENAU)
Hub Research Activities
The Tunisia Hub runs a series of research investigations and public engagement activities for the study, analysis of policy advocacy of ‘Humanitarian Heritage’ in North Africa as a human-centric approach to cross-community, country, region collaborations around community heritage. We develop and link knowledge transfer between the ENGAGE Network's international partners and investigators and enable collaborative workshops with stakeholders, research partners and community representatives from regional chapters. These workshops will explore research methodologies, approaches and challenges to the models of partnership hubs.
Stakeholder Engagement
The workshops are designed to operate a number of engagements, meetings and focus group interviews to map local and regional perspectives in the co-design and co-production of heritage research priorities, challenges and creative solutions, as part of the ENGAGE Network's research agenda, methodology and delivery.
North Africa CASE STUDIES
Case Studies
We display here the case studies and their reports from North African countries. This regional hub covered case studies in Tunisia, Algeria, and Morocco. They include policy makers, international organisations, community representatives, researchers and NGOs.
Stakeholders Testimonials
first hand evidence on testimonials from interviews and public engagement with researchers, communities, NGOs and policy makers.
MATCHS 2021
Malaysia-Tunisia Cultural Heritage Studies (MATCHs) Symposium 2021 is the brainchild of the Department of Landscape Architecture, Kulliyyah of Architecture and Environmental Design (KAED), International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM). Every year under the subject of ALA3311: Landscape Heritage and Cultural Studies, the Year 3 students of Bachelor (Honours) of Landscape Architecture will undergo an academic tour to any heritage sites around the globe.
Due to the challenges of COVID-19 pandemic, the physical visit is no longer possible to take place. Thus, a virtual initiative has to be made in materialising the heritage academic tour to complete the requisites of this subject – and Tunisia is chosen as the country to be ‘visited’. The initiative by the Department of Landscape Architecture (KAED, IIUM) has eventually formed a mutual collaboration with a few institutions in Tunisia, namely; ENGAGE Hub Tunisia, National School of Architecture and Urbanism of Tunis (ENAU) as well as Polytechnic School of Sousse (EPS).
The students from all institutions are working hand-in-hand to make the symposium a success, supervised by the academics from all the collaborating institutions. MATCHs Symposium 2021 will be held on the 10th to 12th September 2021 and it offers interesting sessions and activities including keynote speeches and sharing sessions from prominent speakers, virtual exhibitions on UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Malaysia and Tunisia, student charrette as well as cultural exchange activities. It is hoped that this symposium will gather and unite numerous audiences from any counterparts of the world through knowledge sharing and networking.
Further details of MATCHs Symposium 2021 can be retrieved at: www.matchsymposium.com
Facebook: MATCHs 2021
Instagram: @matchs.2021
Youtube: MATCHs 2021
NEWS
MEDIA ANNOUNCEMENT: EL KEF – TALES OF MARGINALISED HERITAGE IN NORTH-WEST TUNISIA
On November 12th, 2021, the North Africa Regional Research Hub of the Engage Network and ARCHIAM (University of Liverpool) organised a closed symposium through its Tunisia Hub to discuss marginalised heritage in northwestern Tunisia and in particular El Kef. This new collaboration includes researchers from Nottingham Trent University (Majdi Faleh), the University of Liverpool (Giamila Quattrone) as well as ENAU in Tunisia (Asma Gharbi and Nourchen Ben Fatma). This first online expert meeting brought together researchers specialised in cultural heritage, cultural tourism, heritage management, and history. The rich debate helped researchers, policy makers, active leaders, and historians from El Kef and the UK to discuss the main issues facing marginalised heritage in El Kef, future challenges, and the priorities for revisiting cultural heritage across borders. It is important to highlight that revisiting cultural heritage and understanding the issues of territorial development in the region are key to the sustainable development of Tunisian cities.
Our deepest gratitude goes to our speakers including:-
· Prof. Gamal Abdelmonem, Director of the Architecture, Urbanism and Global Heritage Research Centre (CAUGH), School of Design and Built Environment Architecture at Nottingham Trent University.
· Prof. Soumyen Bandyopadhyay, Sir James Stirling Chair at the Liverpool School of Architecture.
· Ms. Amel Hachana, Director General of the Agency for Heritage Development and Cultural Promotion (AMVPPC)
· Ms. Bouthaina Gharbi, Founder of the cultural enterprise Animed.
· Mr Mohamed Tlili, historian and researcher, member of ICOMOS, expert and Consultant in heritage, municipal Councilor of El Kef (2018-2023), and chairman of the Culture Commission.
· Mr Walid Rahali, regional tourism Commissioner.
· Mr Ramzi JEBABLI, founder of Siccajazz Festival and lawyer.
· Ms. Asma Gharbi, lecturer and Engage Tunisia partner.
· And Mr Fakher Kharrat, ENAU Director, for attending the event.
Our Engage Network is also delighted to announce that, as part of this project, our Tunisia Hub Coordinator, Dr. Majdi Faleh, has been recently awarded the Fulbright Alumni Development Grant (ADG) by the United States Department of State and AMIDEAST to support the first phase of the research project which has already started. Majdi will soon conduct interviews on the ground with experts and stakeholders who interact with heritage in the region.
This research project titled 'Tabarka and El Kef: Tales of Marginalized Community Heritage in North-West Tunisia', started as a collaboration between Dr. Majdi Faleh (Engage Hub Coordinator, Tunisia), Dr. Asma Gharbi (Engage Partner, Tunisia), and Nourchen Ben Fatma (Engage Partner, Tunisia). It examines marginalized tangible and intangible heritage in North-western Tunisia, in El Kef and Tabarka.
The Medina of El Kef is rich in heritage from different eras (Numidian, Roman, Byzantine, Arab-Islamic) and remains a long-standing testimony of the peaceful coexistence of monotheistic faiths. The north-western part of Tunisia is characterised by a dichotomous situation that combines natural and historical wealth with stark poverty and a precarious economic future (Ayadi et al., 2006). In El Kef and Tabarka, however, recent urbanisation and policies have rendered fragile its cultural potential.
The grant was awarded to organise online workshops with experts in the field and local stakeholders, conduct further architectural fieldwork and ethnographic work in both sites, and write a journal article on the subject. Engage Hub Tunisia is collaborating with Nottingham Trent University, and Prof Gamal Abdelmonem as well as with Dr Giamila Quattrone and Prof Soumyen Bandyopadhyay, ArCHIAM, Centre for the Study of Architecture and Cultural Heritage of India, Arabia, and the Maghreb, at the University of Liverpool, to organise the workshop and develop the project further.
Congratulations Majdi and team and we look forward to the outcomes of this exciting project!
JUSOUR
JUSOUR: Building Bridges Between Australian and Tunisian Scholars Through Art and Architecture