INTRODUCTION

Being the first intervention to be executed on site, it was chosen as a small-scale project (to be realized within one week), to get a better understanding of the community and understand their perception of the project’s interventions. It executed in the framework of a workshop focusing on participatory planning aiming at the following:

1. To build in cooperation with the community a small eco-friendly structure (based on the choice of mud as a building material) that can be useful to them.
2. To get in touch with the community in order to gain a better understanding of the social context. This was achieved through in collaboration with the Ezbet community, and through observations on their lifestyle along with conversations and interviews that were initiated with them.

CHOICE OF THE PROJECT STRUCTURE

Bound by a time frame of seven days, limited space availability, and by our target group (adult and senior women), we decided that an oven was a good choice for our project as it is a crucial item in the context of the traditional Egyptian village. However, when the idea was shared with the community, it was initially met with surprise. The reason being that even though the inhabitants originally came from villages, they were affected by the lifestyle of Cairo. After further discussions with the community, it was agreed to build an oven (that is interpreted in a contemporary design) aiming to preserve their culture by reviving one the features used in traditional village houses. Through our discussions, we learned that a number of ovens of such kind existed over rooftops and not on the streets, in order to relive the streets of smoke contamination. Unfortunately these ovens required high maintenance to withstand all weather conditions and were not sustainable.

CHOICE OF THE PROJECT LOCATION

Based on our aims, it was decided to build the oven at a central location of Ezbet Abu Qarn. It was located behind the small mosque with a high flow of traffic in front, and near a coffee shop frequented by the majority of the residents.

After narrowing down the choices of location to one zone, the team visited and consulted the community to choose the most suitable spot for the project. Finally, a street corner at an intersection was chosen. This street corner lies next to a small local shop, and between several families who took the initiative to hold the needed maintenance. From that point, the community members helped us measure the place and design the oven to fit in the chosen street corner.

THE PROJECT AS URBAN ACUPUNCTURE

Considering the scale, the project can be defined as an urban acupuncture project as it alters the use of the space by consequently stimulating various social and economic activities. On the other handwe chose to place the oven in a public space so that, on a practical level, women would share the oven, and on a social level, it will create a public space where women can meet and work together, and where children can play. Therefore we introduced the oven project in the form of a socioeconomic activity.

WORK PROGRESSION

COMMUNITY PARTICIPATION

Looking at the time frame that was set, the realization of the project was challenging. However, the participation of the community and their contribution was impressive, as they facilitated with ideas, designs, tools and building materials. Throughout the execution, men, women, and children were working hand-in-hand with our team starting from material handling, storage to the construction itself, sharing their professional knowledge of handling brick work, and learning from our experts about the handling of mud construction.

ACHIEVED TARGETS

THE ROLE OF EZBET ABU QARN IN THE CONTEXT OF THE PROJECT

Ezbet Abu Qarn was the pilot area for Ezbet Project: It helped us get a better vision of how to approach a new area and its community, how to apply the learnt lessons and theories in a more professional way, and how to adjust them to suit the society of the area in focus. Also, retrieving from Ezbet Abu Qarn as a project that mainly focuses on sustainable development, it was necessary for our team to make sure that our role has ended, and that the community is ready to take over the progress, and to lead their own path of development.