The preservation of 20th century architectural heritage, which is a nascent field generally and in the MENA region in particular, is wrought with challenges. The modern buildings we try to preserve face various issues: technological obsolescence, a general lack of recognition, stigmatization linked to its connection to the modern movement, an absence of funds dedicated to rehabilitation, scarce specialized local expertise, limited or inexistent archives and scholarship, unstable political regimes, urban development pressures and at times, informal occupation and active destruction.
Despite these difficulties, a group of architects, experts and scholars from the MENA region has embarked on researching, rehabilitating, adapting and reimagining modern heritage, with the hope to document and conserve the collective memory and genius loci. https://www.daniels.utoronto.ca/re-imagining-palestinian-modern-architectural-heritage