Regeneration of heritage sites is a quite recent phenomenon in the West Bank. When regenerating cultural, natural or historic heritage, attention is paid not only to the structures themselves, but also to the socio-economic and cultural value the heritage can have for the population. Therefore, a focus on sustainable management of the sites is very important.

In order to create awareness about the importance of regeneration and to support capacity building, the Belgian Development Agency (BTC) in cooperation with the Ministry of Local Government have organised a Summer School for students in urban planning and architecture. The Summer School will develop a concrete exercise in spatial planning, urban regeneration and the rehabilitation of historic buildings in selected villages as a “training on the job”.

In total 45 students participate in the month long summer course, starting on the 20th of July. Among them 30 students are Palestinians, while 6 students are international students. They are supervised by international experts and teaching assistants and professors from three different Palestinian universities. 
 
"The summer school gives me the opportunity to practice in the field what I have learned at university" - Lina, participant in the summer school

In every region students target a different aspect of regeneration. In the North students mainly focus on the landscape in Sabastiya, Burqa and their surroundings, under the supervision of Al Najah University. The exercise concerns the spatial planning for the conservation and revitalization of historic settlements, and the rehabilitation of the cultural landscapes to connect spaces with economic assets.

The students working in Birzeit University work on urban planning and design of the historic centre of Deir Ghassane. Conservation and revitalization will be part of the research and appropriate guidelines and bylaws for regeneration of urban fabric will be addressed.

The students in the Palestine Polytechnic University (PPU) of Hebron at last focus on the rehabilitation of historic architectural ensembles in As Samu’. The students, guided by the teaching assistants and professor of the PPU define strategic interventions to implement regeneration strategies.

At the end of the summer school these three perspectives will be collected in order to create a manual that helps the Ministry of Local Government and Municipalities to start up regeneration projects. 

Here you find more in-depth information on the Summer School.