In October 2017, academics, students and practitioners from the Middle East came together to test and define elements for teaching the planning and design of resilience in Amman, Ramallah, and Byblos. 

As Amman looked to institutionalize resilience planning citywide, Resilience by Design University (RBD_U) was an opportunity to come together through a two-day event focused on the regional challenges of water, waste and transportation. The program partnered with local and regional universities to introduce resilience initiatives from the Resilient Amman strategy, and prototype solutions for local challenges. The program format was a two-day workshop split between theory and practice. The curriculum featured a mix of lectures, panel discussions, and workshops, and included practitioners and thought leaders from the fields of architecture, planning, design, engineering, technology, and the social and physical sciences locally and beyond.

Our goal was to create a framework that can be used by academic institutions while working to create solutions to real problems, fine tune the understanding of resilience, and interact with local and national experts. RBD_U Amman was organized by Rebuild by Design, PennDesign, 100 Resilient Cities, & Columbia University GSAPP.

Workshop Reports: Amman: Transportation | Amman: Water | Ramallah: Water | Byblos: Waste 

Media Archive: Schedule | Photos