Call For Papers: Contemporary Amman and the Right to the City

About the Conference

A city of four million inhabitants today, Amman’s expansion has become disproportionate to its urban history. The city has experienced an impressive urban growth over the past 50 years, driven by forced migration and market laws. Developing from a small rural settlement at the end of the 19th century, Amman evolved into a regional crossroad at the end of the 20th century, and has today become a symbol for the consolidation of Hashemite rule, and as a result, the site of its contestation. Amman’s exceptional position among other regional capitals and its recent urban history has forced its inhabitants to create narratives concerning the city’s foundation, invent urban traditions, and negotatiate ways of socialization.

As housing and upgrading policies have slowed down, and plans to develop a robust public transport system remain underdeveloped, Amman’s residents are struggling on a daily basis to circulate, house themselves and their families, study, work and relax. Public participation is regularly discussed in the media and public sphere, and residents are looking for ways to mend the gap between their aspirations for Amman, and the reality of living conditions in the city. In the 21st century, Amman has become an intellectual, diplomatic and economic center in the region. These changes have had a large impact on the daily life of the city’s inhabitants, on the composition of the population of the city and on its regional and international perception and influence.

This conference aims to present three interrelated themes through which the right to the city can be understood, articulated or negotiated. These themes include Urban Policies and Governance; Social Fabric and Urban Practices; and Living in Amman: Housing, Access, and Speculative Growth.

Organizing Committee: Myriam Ababsa (Ifpo), Falestin Naïli (Ifpo), Nora Akawi (Columbia University GSAPP; Studio-X Amman; Columbia Global Centers | Amman), Jawad Dukhgan (Studio-X Amman; Columbia Global Centers | Amman), Nadine Fattaleh (Studio-X Amman; Columbia Global Centers | Amman), Norig Neveu (CNRS; IREMAM).

Please submit your abstracts (up to 350 words) to info@ammanconference2018.com by June 30, 2018.

The paper topics must tackle one of the following themes:

1. Urban Policies and Governance
2. Social Fabric and Urban Practices
3. Living in Amman: Housing, Access, and Speculative Growth

Submitted abstracts will be reviewed by the conference’s scientific committee and organizers. Selected participants will be provided with travel assistance and accomodation for the duration of the conference.