The widespread image of refugee camps only represents less than half of the world's refugee population, as the great majority of them are in urban settlements. This is caused by the phenomenon of global urbanisation, which has ultimately affected forced displacement. One of the most representative examples is the refugee crisis in Syria, referred to as 'urban' as most refugees live among host communities in Lebanon or Jordan, rather than in camps. Therefore, this thesis will explore through the case study of Beirut and Syrian refugees, the challenges of urban crises and how humanitarian practitioners have tried to adapt and develop new ways of responding to them.  The underlying context of urban poverty, the time frame, the great number of stakeholders and the coexistence with host communities, were identified as some of the most challenging features of cities in this research. In this context, refugees will have to navigate between dynamics of opportunity and vulnerability, and humanitarian actors will face crises that are already within others. Thus, to understand this reality means to redirect the focus towards new ways of humanitarian action, to urbanize the approach. Through a review of leading organisations, authors and research centres, we will identify the main challenges in responding to urban crises of mass forced displacement. This will be done under the theoretical framework offered by context analysis tools, as they allow for a better understanding of the political, economic, geographical and socio-cultural factors that give rise to a crisis. They will focus on the contextual understanding of the urban humanitarian response.

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The project examines, and experiments with, how one can use historical fragments as a starting point for the design of a 7000 square meter large civic center, or house of arts and culture, in Beirut, as this is a place where the urban development has had a very different point of departure the last decades. The historical fragments in this case has been a collection of postcards of various public buildings that existed in the city between 1890 and 1970. Many times postcards are the main record of history of historical places, but this is not the main reason why I chose it as a study object. I chose it because of their purpose; to communicate a story of the place it portrays to outsiders, to people whose only knowledge about that place comes from the image on its front and the restricted number of words that can be squeezed into the small area on the back. Given my position as a foreigner working in a context that, although having visited multiple times, is unfamiliar to me, I found this an interesting starting point for the project.

On s’intéresse dans cette thèse à la relation entre le degré de conscience qu’ont les locuteurs de la variation dans le cas de certaines variables sociolinguistiques à Beyrouth [et les appréciations rattachées à chacune de leurs réalisations lorsqu’elles sont saillantes], et la distribution sociale de chacune de leurs variantes. Dans un premier temps, sont présentées les représentations rattachées aux stéréotypes et traits saillants perçus par les locuteurs. Les deuxième et troisième parties du travail présentent l’emploi et la répartition sociolinguistique de dix de ces stéréotypes et traits saillants, ainsi que de quatre autres variables. L’étude de la variation et des représentations rattachées à certaines variantes se base sur un corpus de quarante-sept entretiens et conversations menés auprès de locuteurs aux profils variés. Il ressort de cette étude qu’une koïnisation est en cours à Beyrouth, en conséquence du contact dialectal entre les variétés parlées par les migrants et les variétés originellement parlées dans la ville. Cette koïnisation se fait par la perte de leurs traits saillants à la fois par les migrants, et par les résidents originels de la ville. En contrepartie, la variation observée dans le cas d’autres variables sociolinguistiques, dont l’emploi est corrélé à des facteurs sociaux comme le sexe, l’âge, l’appartenance communautaire (ou religieuse) et le niveau d’éducation, montre que les tendances différenciatrices entre les locuteurs sur la base de ces quatre critères sont, pour le moins, dynamiques, et que certaines d’entre elles vont croissant. / This thesis explores the relationship between the salience of, and social values attributed to, some sociolinguistic variables in Beirut, and the social distribution of each of their variants. It first presents the social values attributed by speakers to the stereotypes and to other salient features they perceive. In its second and third parts, it concentrates on the social distribution of two stereotypes, eight salient features, and four other variables. The study is mainly based on forty-seven interviews and conversations, and the speakers that were met had various profiles. One of the findings of the study is that the koineization process resulting from the contact between the dialects spoken by migrants and those spoken by ‘genuine’ Beirutis leads to the loss of distinctive features in both groups. On the other hand, it appears from the distribution and evolution of a set of ‘non local’ variables, that some of the linguistic differences related to such social factors as gender, age, religious and communal affiliation, and educational level seem to be, for the least, very dynamic, if not growing with time.

Dans un Beyrouth en pleine mutation, les habitats délaissés sont des lieux en suspens, condamnés à terme par la spéculation foncière. Notre recherche se propose d’examiner les transformations subies par ces architectures hors d’usage. Basé sur le terrain (près de 750 édifices répertoriés), les archives, témoignages et histoires orales, le travail réévalue également les pratiques artistiques et les regards qu’elles ont posé sur la ville. Cette imprégnation est d’autant plus importante que son déclencheur est un projet photographique entamé par l’auteur sur ce sujet. Trois chapitres sont consacrés aux interventions guerrières. Le premier, la bataille des hôtels aborde un espace disputé, le second explore la ligne de démarcation et le troisième s’intéresse aux baraquements, prisons et lieux de torture. Le quatrième chapitre réunit habitats informels, squats et autres réappropriations. Ces fonctionnalités qui s’enchevêtrent découlent de flux migratoires consécutifs à des violences. La guerre, plutôt les guerres, restent en toile de fond. / In a rapidly changing Beirut, neglected dwellings are places in abeyance, condemned to disappear as a result of land speculation. Our research aims at examining the transformations that these obsolete architectures undergo. The study, carried on site (nearly 750 buildings have been identified), based on archives, testimonies and oral history, also re-examines artistic endeavours and the way artists have viewed the city, which is particularly important considering that its trigger has been a photographic project undertaken by the author. Three chapters are devoted to belligerent activities. The first, on the “Battle of the hotels”, addresses contested space; the second explores the demarcation line and the third examines the military barracks, prisons, and torture centres. The fourth covers informal dwellings, squatted buildings and other reappropriations. It observes the background of entangled features stemming from migration flows that were triggered by the violence of war, or rather wars.

The signing of the Ta'if Agreement on October 22, 1989 marked the beginning of the end of the divisive and destructive Lebanese Civil War that had raged since 1975. The war was finally ended in March 1991, when the new Lebanese Parliament enacted the General Amnesty Law, which stated that there were to be no victors and no victims in the war ( la ghalib le maghlub). Unfortunately, this law allowed the Lebanese people to turn a blind eye to the ugly truths of the war, and it ushered in an era of uneasy silence in Lebanon. Today, as Lebanon's political battle for independence and a unified national identity continues, there is still no government supported public attempt to break this silence. I believe that this legislated lack of collective/public self-expression has rendered both the local and the Diaspora populations incapable of reconciliation with their recent traumatic past, let alone allowing them to forge a brighter future. This thesis investigates the unrelenting silence permeating every layer of Lebanese society today and proposes architectural solutions that may help to break the silence and thus reconcile Lebanese to their past. The core of this study consists of three architectural interventions aimed at breaching this silence. These are put into context through historical analysis, family interviews, and personal narratives from field research to Beirut conducted by the author in the fall of 2005, as well as photographs, maps, illustrations, and other documents drawn from first person experience. As such, this thesis probes not just the public, but also a personal experience in overcoming Lebanon's silence. Certainly, there can be no reconciliation based on silence.

The signing of the Ta'if Agreement on October 22, 1989 marked the beginning of the end of the divisive and destructive Lebanese Civil War that had raged since 1975. The war was finally ended in March 1991, when the new Lebanese Parliament enacted the General Amnesty Law, which stated that there were to be no victors and no victims in the war ( la ghalib le maghlub). Unfortunately, this law allowed the Lebanese people to turn a blind eye to the ugly truths of the war, and it ushered in an era of uneasy silence in Lebanon. Today, as Lebanon's political battle for independence and a unified national identity continues, there is still no government supported public attempt to break this silence. I believe that this legislated lack of collective/public self-expression has rendered both the local and the Diaspora populations incapable of reconciliation with their recent traumatic past, let alone allowing them to forge a brighter future. This thesis investigates the unrelenting silence permeating every layer of Lebanese society today and proposes architectural solutions that may help to break the silence and thus reconcile Lebanese to their past. The core of this study consists of three architectural interventions aimed at breaching this silence. These are put into context through historical analysis, family interviews, and personal narratives from field research to Beirut conducted by the author in the fall of 2005, as well as photographs, maps, illustrations, and other documents drawn from first person experience. As such, this thesis probes not just the public, but also a personal experience in overcoming Lebanon's silence. Certainly, there can be no reconciliation based on silence.

This thesis explores the relationship between state and civil-society in Lebanon. Earlier research show that there has been a presence of capable local NGOs in Lebanon for many years and that this has shaped the society. There is a gap in the research on the role of local NGOs after the Beirut harbour explosion on the 4th of August 2020. The aim of this research is to shed light on the contribution of local NGOs in Lebanon by exploring the contribution of local NGO Offre Joie and what difficulties they found when taking on some of the emergency response and rebuilding work after the explosion at Beirut Harbour. My theoretical approach states that a state owes a duty to care and protect its citizen and that in this case some of this responsibility was absent and instead taken on by the civil society and NGOs. Qualitative case study on Offre Joie, methods for collecting data include a semi-structured, in-depth interview with one Offre Joie board member, content analysis on a panel discussion that Offre Joies president was a part of and an impact report realised by Offre Joie. I found that they did encounter challenges but that these were not major enough to stop them in their efforts to rebuild and assist the community. They contributed by rebuilding the most affected areas and by utilising volunteers they brought a human side to the crisis. This human relationship and the solidarity between the people affected and the volunteers has been one of the biggest contributions. The role that Offre Joie took on after the explosion points to the reality of mismanaged governmental institutions, and that the role of local NGOs is extremely important at this current time to protect and safeguard the people within Lebanon’s civil society.

The aim of the competition work is to design the Museum of Modern Art in the cultural part of the city of Beirut. The Museum of Modern Art will take up a historical and symbolic site across from the National Museum in the Achrafieh district of Beirut. The Museum will be a dynamic contemporary place true to its social and cultural responsibilities. It will acknowledge the historical significance of the site and its adjoining institutions, providing a connective fabric across the city’s divide.

Nous narrons la toponymie de Beyrouth, considérée comme partie intégrante de l’idéologie du corps politique du Liban, installé à Beyrouth depuis 1920. Nous commençons par une réflexion sur les rapports entre centre politique, ses principes fondateurs, et toponymie: l’inscription toponymique est l’insertion ultime du politique dans l’aménagement. La toponymie beyrouthine inscrit le Grand-Liban (1920), et la Constitution libanaise (1926), sur les cartes. Elle inscrit le confessionnalisme politique résultant du Pacte national (1943) et ses symboles « sacrés », ainsi qu’une présence confirmée des « Orient » et « Occident » et un récit national libanais partiellement réinventé et présenté « en continuité ». Elle présente les signes d’une continuité urbaine visible. Nous mettons l’exemple beyrouthin en perspective avec ceux de Damas et de Dubaï : le premier est « réécrit » avec l’avènement du Baath en 1963 et présente une rupture toponymique avec le passé syrien pré-baathiste, ainsi qu’une présence triomphaliste du panarabisme; et le deuxième inventé afin de donner une profondeur historique à la carte de l’émirat et une dimension commerciale à ses noms des lieux. L’étude des inscriptions toponymiques, en parallèle avec les principes fondateurs du centre politique, permet d’approfondir la connaissance des systèmes politiques, leurs idéologies, et leurs politique d’urbanisme. / I narrate toponymy of Beirut, considered as a revelator and a marker of the Lebanese body politic, constructed in Beirut since 1920. This memoir begins by reflecting on the rapports between the centre politic (capital city or seat of government), its founding principles, and toponymy : the toponyme is the ultimate insertion of the political in everyday’s banality. Beiruti toponymy writes the Grand-Liban (1920), the Lebanese Constitution (1926), on the city’s maps. Also it inscribes political confessionalism, resulting of the Lebanese National Pact (1943) and its sacred symbols, thus a confirmed presence of « East » and « West » and a Lebanese national narrative partially re-invented and presented as a « continuum ». It also presents signs of a visible continuity of the local elite. We put the Beiruti example in perspective with those of Damascus and of Dubai : the Damascene one is « re-written » by the Baath rule since 1963 and presents a toponymic rupture with the Syrian pre-baathist past but a confirmed presence of pan-Arabism; the Dubaian one is invented in order to give a historical depth to the map of Dubai and a commercial dimension to its place names. Study of toponyms, in parallel with that of founding principles of the centre, can inform political systems, their ideological background, and their urban policy.