Al-Ahliyya Amman University holds the first International Architecture and Design Conference

On behalf of Prime Minister, Dr. Abdullah Nsour, the Minister of Public Works and Housing, Engineer Sami Halasa, inaugurated the first Jordanian International Conference for Architecture and Design entitled “Reality and Future Challenges”. The conference was held over two days, starting from Tuesday, 29/4/2014, at Al-Ahliyya Amman University, in cooperation with the Architecture Division at Jordan Engineers Association. The event was hosted in the presence of Amman Mayor, Mr. Akel Biltaji, and Salt Mayor, Khalid Al-Khashman, and a group of engineers, architects, and students from the departments of the faculties of architecture in the public and private Jordanian universities. 27 Arab and foreign countries participated in the conference.The conference aims to shed light on several aspects, including: strengthening communication among international, regional and local cultures, enriching research in the field of architecture and design arts, exploring new and advanced prospects in design, creating channels of communication between workers in the various fields of design and developing e-learning fields and techniques. The conference addressed several issues such as sustainable environmental design, the Arab reality impact on architecture and design, preserving architectural heritage and arts, the impact of the evolution of teaching methods on design, the impact of modern technology on architecture and design, creativity and science fiction in architecture, design, planning and urban design in a changing reality, and the aesthetic values in design and architecture .The conference featured workshops and discussion of 43 scientific papers contributed by ten keynote speakers , and a number of foreign scholars, including Professor Giovanni Alegrta of the University of Coimbra, Portugal, Yankofa Yardonov of the University of Sofia in Bulgaria, Semia Warcot of Paris, Dr. Ashraf Salama, Head of the Department of Architecture and Urban Planning at the University of Qatar, Dr. Jamil Akbar, of the University of Dammam in Saudi Arabia, and Dr. Balasim Mohammed Jassim, Faculty of Fine Arts, University of Petra. The conference included an exhibition in which a number of architecture firms participated. Designs made by Al-Ahliyya Amman University students were displayed in Arena Cultural Complex. In addition, an exhibition was hosted in Ras Al Ain which showcased paintings by Jordanian artists. The exhibition aims to enhance art and raise awareness about Jordanian artists.The participants at the conference concluded several recommendations including the need to develop implementation mechanisms to apply the principles of sustainability by government, academic and professional institutions, enhance the sustainability of buildings and archeological sites by circulating the idea of the open museum applied in the city of Salt by the Japanese Agency for International Cooperation and mainstreaming this experience to cities with traditional identity, activating the role of the media in educating local communities to preserve the privacy of places, with an emphasis on the importance of interaction with other cultures. Other recommendations were also adopted that aim to achieve the goals of the conference.