RAU

Research in Architecture & Urbanism https://www.archurbanresearch.net

About

Research in Architecture and Urbanism https://www.archurbanresearch.net RAU is an online platform that captures major research activities of Professor Ashraf M. Salama and colleagues, outlines efforts undertaken as part of key research projects that amount to a total of $ US 3.0 million dollars of research funds over a period of more than 30 years. The site includes links to research publications, different types of information of interest to architects, urban designers, and planners who are seeking to expand their knowledge on research in architecture and urban environments globally but with a focus on Gulf Cities and Egypt.as important contexts within the global south.

Research adopts several lines of inquiry and engages with ethnographic methods, environmental psychology approaches / environment-behaviour techniques, social science research tools, while implementing mechanisms for the trans-disciplinary co-production of knowledge. For more information visit page on >> Contexts, Methods, and Lines of Inquiry.


The platform includes research projects, books, articles and various forms of contributions categorised to address:

  1. Gulf Cities with an emphasis on work relevant to knowledge economy and urban qualities, housing transformations and multiculturalism, and assessment of image-making practices, urban open spaces, and city developments.

  2. Architecture & Urbanism in Egypt with emphasis on architectural and urban discourse, sustainable design for ecolodges and sustainable facilities for tourism, and issues related to unplanned settlements and informal housing.

  3. All Africa (North/East/West) which capture some of the PhD research works focusing on the Medina in North Africa, Lilongwe, Malawi, and Accra Ghana. The focus here is on housing transformations, quality of urban life, and inclusivity in the public realm.

  4. Europe & the Balkans which include recent research work on a number of cities that include Belfast, Belgrade, Bosnia, Glasgow, Gothenburg, mainly in the area of urban space assessment, spaces of migrant communities, and interrogating various cultural practices.

  5. Wider Global Contexts a section of the platform that engages with efforts undertaken in various contexts and reflects other context-free contributions, and regional or global categorisation including the Arab world, Middle East, the Mediterranean, Islamic world, and North America.

Professor Ashraf M. Salama

Is an academic, scholar, and Chair in Architecture at the University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, UK, Director of the Cluster for Research in Architecture and Urbanism in the Global South since 2014, and Former Head of the School of Architecture (2014-2020). He holds B.Sc. MSc. and PhD in architecture and has received his education at Al Azhar University in Cairo, Egypt and North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, USA. He has published over 170 outputs in the international refereed press; authored and co-edited more than 15 books. He is the chief editor of the Archnet-IJAR: International Journal of Architectural Research and Open House international. Professor Salama is the UIA 2017 Recipient of Jean Tschumi Prize for Excellence in Architectural Education and Criticism visit here >> or visit his professional website here >> https://www.ashrafsalamanet.net/ or the news blog here >> https://ashrafsalama.blogspot.com/

Key Research Collaborators - Recent

  • Professor Alain Thierstein, Technical University of Munich (TUM) - Germany

  • Professor Attilio Petruccioli, Sapienza University of Rome, Italy

  • Professor Abeer Elshater, Ain Shams University, Cairo, Egypt

  • Dr Ane Gozalez Lara, Pratt Institute, New York, United States

  • Dr Anthony McInneny, University of Newcastle, Australia

  • Dr Beatriz Maturana, University of Chile, Santiago, Chile

  • Professor Branka Dimitrijevic, University of Strathclyde, United Kingdom

  • Dr David Grierson, University of Strathclyde, United Kingdom

  • Dr Florian Wiedmann, University of Nottingham, United Kingdom

  • Professor Harriet Harriss, Pratt Institute, New York, United States

  • Dr Hatem G. Ibrahim, Qatar University, Doha, Qatar

  • Professor Hisham Abusaada, Housing & Building Research Centre, Cairo, Egypt

  • Dr Heba El-Sharkawy, University of East London, United Kingdom

  • Dr Katerina Nicolopoulou, University of Strathclyde, United Kingdom

  • Dr Lindy Osborne Burton, Queensland University of Technology, Australia

  • Dr Marwa M. El-Ashmouni, Beni-Suef University, Egypt

Research Teams

Research Assistants and Associates (on various projects since 2010 - first name - alphabetical)

  • Dr Adel M. Remali, Ahood Al-Maimani, Arwa Mamluk, Bassma Aboukalloub, Farah Barakat, Fatma A. Khalfani, Dr Huyam Abudib, Dr Laura MacLean, Nehal Ibrahim, Dr Nina Al-Mattar, Reem Awwaad, Dr Simona Azzali, Sultana Alnabet, Dr Sven Conventz, Velina Mirincheva, Wafa Al-Ghatam.


Latest PhD Completions (2019-2021)

  • Dr Huyam Abudib (2019), Investigating the Contextual Characteristics of Housing Transformation in the Medina of North Africa: Tripoli, Libya, as a Case Study (Chair of Supervision Committee)

  • Dr Amira Elsemellawy (2019), Assessing the Quality of Transformed Public Spaces in Mediterranean Waterfronts: The Case of Alexandria, Egypt (Chair of Supervision Committee)

  • Dr Laura MacLean (2021), An Examination of the Quality of Urban Life of Residential Neighbourhoods in Lilongwe, Malawi (Chair of Supervision Committee)

  • Dr Noor Almansor (2021), Social Sustainability in Residential Urban Environments: Single-Family House Neighbourhoods in Basra, Iraq (Chair of Supervision Committee)


  • Dr Aisha Abu Bakar (2019), Prosperity and Slums: A Dynamic Trajectory for Positive Development (Member of Supervision Committee - Chair Dr Romice)

  • Dr Selma Harrington (2020), Other Modernism: Underpinning the Case of the History Museum of Bosnia and Herzegovina (Member of Supervision Committee - Chair Prof Dimitrijevic)


Scheduled PhD Completions (2021-2022)

  • Kristijn van Riel (2021), Inclusive Public Space: Young People’s Use and Perception of the Public Realm in Accra, Ghana (Chair of Supervision Committee)

  • Mohammad Almahdi (2021), Urban Fragmentation and Continuity of Saudi Cities: The Case of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia (Chair of Supervision Committee)


Latest External Supervision (2019-2021)

  • Dr Akash Angral (Completed 2019), Reshaping the Architect-Client Relationship through Digital Technologies (External Supervisor, with Professor Steve Love and Dr Stuart Jeffrey of the School of Simulation and Visualisation, Glasgow School of Art).

  • Nermin Dessouky (Scheduled for Completion, 2021), Places of Anticipation: On Design Use Values and the Ecology of Actors in Sustainable Neighbourhoods (External Supervisor, with Professor Patsy Eubanks Owens and Professor Stephen Wheeler of the Department of Human Ecology, Geography Graduate Group, University of California, Davis)


Current PhD Scholars, Supervision Chair (completion expected from 2022)

  • Asser Bakhaty, Krishnokoli Dutta, Monthian Nguitragool, Preeti Pansare, Saleh Almogrbe, Zhanar Omarova.

Awarding Organisations of Funding for Academic and Consulting-Based Research

  • Adams Group Architects & Consultants, Charlotte, NC, United States

  • Aga Khan Trust for Culture in Geneva, Switzerland

  • Archnet, Aga Khan Documentation Centre, MIT, Cambridge, United States

  • British Council/Newton Funds, London, United Kingdom (Competitively Awarded)

  • Centre for Inquiry-Based Learning, University of Sheffield, United Kingdom (Competitively Awarded)

  • Environmental Quality International, Cairo/Egypt and Virginia, United States

  • European Commission – Brussels, Belgium (Competitively Awarded)

  • Hagler Bailley Services, Arlington, Virginia, United States

  • Ministry of Higher Education Egypt, Cairo, Egypt (Competitively Awarded)

  • Msheireb Properties Chair in Architecture, Doha, Qatar (Competitively Awarded)

  • Qatar National Research Fund, Doha, Qatar (Competitively Awarded)

  • Qatari Diar, Doha, Qatar

  • Saedan Chair for Affordable Housing, KFUPM, KSA (Competitively Awarded)

  • Scottish Funding Council, Scotland, Edinburgh, United Kingdom (Competitively Awarded)

  • Tourism Development Authority, Cairo, Egypt

  • United States Agency for International Development, Washington DC, United States

  • University of Strathclyde's Studentship Scheme, Glasgow, United Kingdom (Competitively Awarded)

  • WHO-World Health Organisation – Europe Office, Bonn, Germany (Competitively Awarded)

  • Winrock International Environmental Alliance, Virginia, United States

  • Various Private Agencies and University Institutional Competitive Schemes

Co-Authors

In addition to many sole authorship and individual publications, more than 40 Co-Authors have collaborated with Ashraf M. Salama, including:

  • Aaron Davis; Abeer Elshater; Adel Muhammad Remali; Ahood Al-Maimani; Aisha Abubakar; Alain Thierstein; Aleya Abdel-Hadi; Andrea Hardy; Ane Gozalez Lara; Anna Katharina Grichting; Anthony McInneny; Asser Bakhaty; Bassma Aboukalloub; Beatriz Maturana; Biserka Mitrović; Branka Dimitrijević; David Grierson; Christine Samy Habib; Donagh Horgan; Farzad Pour Rahimian; Fatma Khalfani; Florian Wiedmann; Fodil Fadli; Harriet Harriss; Hatem G. Ibrahim; Heba Khalil; Hisham Abusaada; Hulya Turgut; Katerina Nicolopoulou; Kaj Noschis; Kristijn van Riel; Laura MacLean; Leanne Courtney; Lindy Osborne Burton; Marwa M. El-Ashmouni; Michael Crosbie; Mirjana Devetaković; Nada Shehab; Nicholas Wilkinson; Ombretta Romice; Peter Kellett; Reem Awwaad; Remah Gharib; Sahar Attia; Selma Harrington; Sherif El-Attar; Simona Azzali; Sven Conventz; Tamara Vukovic; Velina Mirincheva; Wafa Al-Ghatam; William O’Reily; Wolfgang Preiser; Yonca Hürol.