With the aim of linking academic programs with municipal development projects, the Lebanese University - Faculty of Fine Arts & Architecture signed a cooperation protocol with the Municipality of El Mhaidthe, on 7 March 7 2019, in the Deanship building - Furn El Chebbak.

The protocol was signed in the presence of Dr. Mohammad Hosni Al-Hajj, Faculty Dean, Eng. Marwan Sharrouf, Mayor of El Mhaidthe, Dr. May Karameh, Faculty Director (Branch 4), Eng. Babel Kaissar, the professors Habib Sadek and Najib Matar supervising the program, and Mayssa Zaieter, Student Program Coordinator.

Dean Al-Hajj stressed the importance of the program as the third in the "University and its community" series after cooperation with the municipalities of Shmastar and Qsarnaba in the Beqaa, which are projects aimed at developing and expanding students' knowledge about urban heritage in its comprehensive concept, and the importance of architectural heritage and its preservation and integration in the context of local development and sustainable planning.

Mayor of El Mhaidthe thanked the Lebanese University, focusing on the importance of this agreement, as it constitutes a serious opportunity to form a knowledge base for local heritage, and to contribute ideas and suggestions of students and program supervisors to local development programs, expressing the Municipality's full readiness to secure all conditions for the success of this protocol.

Dr. Karameh indicated the importance of this protocol in securing a practical field of research for students of the Department of Architecture and working on real data existing with the local authority through its programs in objective reality.

Mr. Habib Sadek confirmed that this protocol provides the Municipality with a database on the local urban heritage and its peculiarities by documenting the existing reality and developing local development policies. He added that the agreement will result in a set of studies and maps that will be put at the disposal of the parties and a set of proposals that the Municipality will take into account in its future planning and implementation projects.

The protocol focuses on three points:

·         Documenting and studying heritage, urban and natural monuments.

·         Studying and documenting the local urban fabric and submitting urban rehabilitation proposals.

·        Establishing a technical database, patterns and configurations of local architecture and presenting model rehabilitation projects.