Spatial Practices of Public Life in a Contested Neighborhood: Readings from Zoqaq El-Blat (Beirut)

Abstract

Post-war Beirut's profit-led development, land commodification, and spatial securitization have transformed the Lebanese capital at the expense of public life and collective spatial practices. In numbers, accessible public open/green space per resident in Beirut stands as low as 0.8 sq.m., while the WHO recommends a minimum of 9 sq.m. per capita. Considering the current compounded crises, counting on public agents for the provision of new public spaces, such as gardens and plazas, appears out of the question. This thesis investigates the potentials of urban vacancies and open spaces in Beirut for the re-activation of public life, based on extensive fieldwork of the daily spatial practices of city’s dwellers in the peri-central neighborhood of Zoqaq el-Blat. The neighborhood scale may present more productive opportunities for interventions that can improve urban livability and collective spatial claims, especially when led by urban activists who are keen on advancing social and environmental justice and reclaiming the social value of land (Harb, 2018). The significance of this research lies in its contribution to further the understanding of urban vacancies as a tool to enhance socio-spatial practices in contested cities of the Global South, and to contribute to a reflective urban practice that aims to advance inclusive and ecological cities.