ISLAMIC CONTEMPORARY ARCHITECTURE AS AN APPROACH FOR SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY IN THE URBAN PARKS DEVELOPMENT

Abstract

Reviving Islamic urban heritage while enhancing contemporary identity is an important goal in all Islamic countries. Historical places can be an important part of society instead of being a burden, and they can be redeemed as cultural assets that can be used for their original function. Accordingly, this study focuses on the Al-Azhar Park project, considered one of the pioneering sustainable urban development projects recently opened in Cairo, Egypt. It is a promising restoration attempt to establish public parks by improving the cultural, social, and economic aspects of the adjacent Islamic historical area. Hence, this study aims to highlight a potential approach for designing sustainable parks by documenting one of the leading Islamic contemporary urban development projects. The study follows a descriptive and analytical research method by analyzing the integrity between architectural features in Al-Azhar Islamic Park and the historic Islamic urban around it. The aim is to show how landscape design can be used as a tool to enhance behavioral responses and activities. The results show that the bottom-up development method is the most effective strategy that prioritizes the local community's needs while restoring the Islamic historical sites and creating new functions suitable to generate the necessary income for the buildings and respond to the local community needs.