CAIRO PAPERS SYMPOSIUM: May 14, 2005
The workshop is organized in conjunction with the 14th Annual Symposium of the Cairo Papers in the Social Sciences, American University in Cairo.
From Modernism to Neo-Liberalism: Transformations in Middle Eastern Urban Landscapes
Over the last decade a rich literature has examined neoliberal
urban projects in metropolitan
contexts. Much less attention has been given to these developments in
the region. This symposium seeks to critically address the transformation
of urban life worlds in an era of de-industrialization and major structural
changes such as the collapse of regional populisms as viable ideologies,
the rise of religious nationalism and the systemic erosion of the welfare
state in the Middle East. Premised on the notion that a deeper understanding
of local social histories and urban practices is essential for a critical
and comparative discussion on the unmaking of modern citiscapes, the symposium
invites papers on a broad range of issues concerned with contemporary
transformations in cities in the region.