Around fifteen students from five Lebanese universities — the Lebanese Academy of Fine Arts (ALBA-Balamand University), Saint Joseph University (USJ), Lebanese American University (LAU), Lebanese University (LU), Open Arab University (AOU) — as well as a high school: Sagesse High School, participated in the creative writing contest “Abitare illegale,” organized by the Italian Cultural Institute in partnership with ALBA-Balamand University.

This contest invited participants to write a reflective text inspired by anthropologist Andrea Staid's work “Abitare Illegale” (Living Illegally), published in the bilingual volume "The book of pleasure for those who aspire to cross horizons: The world between the lines of science."

Four candidates were selected for the relevance of their reflection and the richness of their references: Nour Emma Heraoui, a first-year product design student at ALBA; Mohammad Khamis, a master's student in architecture and urban planning at ALBA; Karen Merhi, a language and translation student at LU, who chose to present her project in Italian; and Léa Hankash, the only participant from Sagesse High School.

However, it was Emma Nour Heraoui who really impressed the jury, "with the development of a personal discourse stemming from a lived experience, and not solely based on an obligation of critical analysis of the read narratives," as highlighted by the dean of ALBA, Professor Fadlallah Dagher, when awarding her the first prize.

“Through reading this collection of articles, which blends anthropology and architecture and offers a cross perspective on our way of inhabiting the world and seeing things differently, we wanted to encourage Lebanese students to think about the issue of illegal housing, by encouraging a critical thinking approach and dialogue,” said the director of the Italian Cultural Institute, Dr. Angelo Gioé, during the award ceremony for the four winners.

Rethinking illegal housing

During a ceremony held on April 8 at the Abdullah Lahoud Foundation auditorium at ALBA, the four candidates each took turns reading their reflections before a jury composed of Dr. Angelo Gioé who chaired the jury, Professor Fadlallah Dagher, Dr. Maroun Daccache (LAU), and Dr. Joseph Zaarour (USEK).

Each participant offered a personal reflection on a potential urban regeneration process in a given city. For Emma Nour Heraoui, the contest winner, it was "the feeling experienced after an earthquake and the fear of losing her home and the family nest that is her entire life and well-being," that motivated her entire reflection. For the young student, these "abitare illegale" mentioned by Andrea Staid are "an act of rebellion" against the human and social injustice experienced by all these homeless people deprived of roofs, a revolt that pushes them to rebel and build shantytowns.

She based her proposal for urban regeneration in her city on three axes: "Bringing back the nature unjustly excluded by humans from dwellings, turning these into artificial places devoid of any human warmth; reintegrating natural materials into construction by building houses tailored to the needs of those who inhabit them; adopting a slower pace of life, which allows appreciation of the small pleasures of life and absorbs what surrounds and assaults us."

For Mohammad Khamis, who earned the second prize for the coherence of his text, it is "the technological boom and the expansion effect of cities following the industrial revolution, which led to the demolition of marginalized, unsanitary neighborhoods illegally occupied by citizens and workers."

"New reconstruction under control in the 20th century allowed the welcoming of new residents with higher social status, leading to social distinction and exclusion," he notes in his text. Regarding the urban regeneration process he proposed, Khamis chose the city of Beirut, marked by history and crises, suggesting "rethinking spaces, not only as possibilities of urban revitalization but as a means of bringing these infrastructures closer to the communities they serve."

"This could include transitioning to a model focused on autonomous neighborhoods where essential services are accessible on foot or by bike, as well as transforming neglected spaces, deemed as non-places, into a dynamic space capable of meeting social, cultural, and urban needs: redevelopment of public green spaces, creation of central markets, and community meeting places."

Karen Merhi, who earned the third prize for the "creativity" of her text, admits that it is "Staid's vision, which advocates the right of every person to have their own home," that greatly inspired her and gave her a lot of hope in reconsidering these illegal dwellings. "Unfortunately, Lebanon is plagued by the emergence of illegal housing that has destroyed the beauty of our city and suffocated all the remnants it contains, especially in the city of Saida where I was born," she asserts firmly during her presentation in Italian.

"This city has always fallen victim to illegal and unsanitary constructions encouraged by a certain class of politicians who favor their personal interests at the expense of their city. But today, the election of a new president gives us hope to regain control of the country and rebuild it by showcasing all its beauty, particularly in Southern Lebanon, long marginalized and neglected."

For Léa Hankash, "the difference between these two worlds visible in the city — between wealth and poverty, seen through these unsanitary houses next to the new buildings — creates a kind of rupture within the population," says the young high schooler.

"The state should not develop one part of the city at the expense of the other," she asserts. "Everyone should be given the chance to live decently." Of Beirut's phoenix-esque history, Hankash says, "We must resist to preserve the old homes that create the entire identity of Beirut and tell the story of this city, demolished seven times, rebuilt seven times. Today, by building these modern buildings that no longer resemble Beirut, we are demolishing the city for the eighth time, stripping it of all its soul and history."

This competition allowed young people to rethink these dwellings with a humanistic approach that goes beyond the material, to return to the roots and nature that were integral to human habitation.