amman review - january 2011| amman institute

December / January 81

Spotlight106 ‘Why So Serious?’ In 2008, the first ever Amman Stand-Up Comedy Festival in the Arab world burst onto the city’s cul-tural scene, taking us all by storm; two years and two festivals later, the laughs just keep getting louder.

Feature82 Global Concepts, Local InitiativeThe Amman Institute for Urban Development in a nutshell.

Progress92 ‘A Park for Abdoun’96 ‘The New Ras El-Ein’100 ‘Restoring Faisal’

CITY IN PROGRESS:

82 December / January

Global Concepts, Local InitiativeThe Amman Institute for Urban Development (Ai) is engaging the local community in order to foster healthy, sustainable growth in the Kingdom.

FEATURE


Without careful foresight and intuitive plan-ning, urban development can be a haphazard endeavor. Physical planning efforts often fail to meet the needs of a population, while cultural and institutional barriers can halt progress al-together, and make engaging citizens a near-impossible task. The results of poor planning are easily identifiable: take a drive through Sweifieh, where you’ll find a congested laby-rinth of one-way streets and a remarkable lack of parking space to serve this highly commer-cial neighborhood. The entire area seems far too dated for its 11-year existence, and ulti-mately fails to promote a sense of community within the space.

When the Amman Plan initiative was undertak-en by the Greater Amman Municipality (GAM) a few years ago, the objective was clear: fos-ter continued urban development that is sus-tainable, efficient and engages the population it is meant to serve. The success of the plan has been quite remarkable: already, a pool of experts from Jordan and abroad has been es-tablished to handle the logistics of the initiative, which in 2007 won the prestigious World Lead-ership Award for Town Planning. While the Am-man Plan focuses on the growth of the city to 2025, the foundation established in conjunction with the plan has much broader, more long-term goals. The Amman Institute for Urban De-velopment (Ai), established in 2008, gives reso-nance to the phrase “think globally, act locally” by applying international concepts in a manner that reflects the local culture and environment.

More than a research institute, Ai classifies itself as a “think-and-do-tank”, developing and im-plementing strategies for urban governance, community planning and sustainable commu-nity development. Within this broad realm, Ai tackles a number of specific issues, including land management, physical planning, public policy, civic leadership, tourism development and environmental management. While the in-stitute’s name may not yet resonate with most, projects within the Amman Institute’s services include well-known urban planning ventures, such as the Airport Corridor Concept Plan, the Downtown Action Area Plan, the revision of the Aqaba Master Plan, and the Greater Irbid Master Plan.

Above and beyond these physical develop-ments, the great success of the Amman Institute lies in its efforts to engage the local community. According to founder and general manager of Ai, Gerry Post, community involvement in the institute’s activities has been remarkable. From the business leaders to everyday citizens, the organization is quickly giving individuals a sense of belonging, ownership and involvement in the future of Amman. Ai has held a series of forums, including ones that engage munici-pal employees, who can help identify the most pressing community issues. “When we enter a community we first organize a forum for mu-nicipal employees, and ask them, as citizens, what they think the issues are,” explains Post. “This process also identifies the leaders with-in that municipal administration, and we then

Ai Staff Global Map


approach the municipality to work with these leaders; it is these people that then help us fa-cilitate the larger community forum. This helps rebuild the bridge between local governments and their communities, a bridge that is often broken” Quite frankly, the level of involvement in Ai initiatives from the community has thus far been unprecedented.

Engaging people, of course, is never an easy task. Most individuals remain in a state of pas-sive disengagement from their communities, and motivating them to become involved is a particularly tricky task. The solution adapted by Ai to overcome this dilemma was simple: own-ership. Making citizens realize their stake in the city and getting them involved requires making them feel as though their voices are not only heard, but valued and respected. “Ownership transforms people’s lives, and then the plan be-comes more than a document, it become a way of life.” explains Hania Maraqa, VP of Research and Outreach at Ai. Ai’s engagement strategy involves working at the neighborhood level, with notable success stories including the Downtown area. “ We want to replicate what happened organically at Rainbow Street, it is a great example of how local citizens took owner-ship of their own future” Hania says, “…and it’s all happened through the residents themselves, such as Zeid Goussous, who has made a huge difference!” adds Post. In one particular com-munity forum in Irbid, attendance reached nearly 1,000 citizens, including kids who turned up on their own accord. “They had never been asked [for their input] before,” says Post, “and when something as encouraging as this happens, it changes people.” It seems that, already, com-munity interest and involvement in the future of Amman and other cities is skyrocketing.Children are explicitly targeted by these public outreach initiatives. Children, teens and young adults are actively encouraged to participate in a number of workshops, and these programs

motivate Amman’s youth to familiarize them-selves with their city at an early age. For exam-ple, the Ai staff and artist Zainab Faidhi recently teamed up with eight local children to come up with a story about Amman. In The Kite Mystery, two children make their way through the city in order to buy a present for their grandfather, and end up following a kite which leads them to their grandfather. The book, which will be dis-tributed in all public schools, is a unique and innovative soft marketing tool, encouraging and fostering interest in urban development and es-tablishing a culture of citizenship. As a result, Ai is promoting community involvement that is ultimately organic; growing and developing in Amman’s youth, and eventually filtering down to future generations through a natural process.

With community interest growing, it is inevitable that these younger generations will produce an increasing number of development-oriented pro-fessionals. Along with community involvement, the Amman Institute is hoping to continue to build up its staff of professionals, even after the Amman Plan is completed. For employees and professionals recruited by the Amman Institute, capacity building is a major objective. “We draw individuals from around the world to work with us - so-called ‘best practice people’ - and we then partner them with Jordanians in the same field,” says Hania. This mentor program is not only increasing the capacity of local profession-als, but is quickly drawing back some of Jor-dan’s most intelligent and talented expatriates, who return with a sense of service and duty to the community. “We want to address the brain drain problem,” Post says. “Jordanians have established a strong professional cadre, but the people are being exported. What we want to do is export the knowledge, but keep the individuals here in order to help Jordan grow.” With even greater vision and foresight, the in-stitute is increasingly making efforts to reduce this problem for future generations, engaging

FEATURE

Community involvement: The Kite Mystery, a book created by Zainab Faidhi and 8 local children, will be distributed in public schools.

The Kite Mystery’s two main characters


students in internship programs, and recruit-ing the best and brightest before they gradu-ate from university.

With success come a number of hurdles which Ai continues to overcome. “The biggest issue is discipline,” says Post. “To decide on a policy and stick to it is the greatest challenge.” Like-wise, improving on transparency and battling corruption is no easy task, either. The Amman Institute hosted the Second Amman Centenni-al Forum last year, under the title “Transparen-cy in Urban Governance.” The event included a lecture from Ronald MacLean-Abaroa, the former mayor of La Paz, Bolivia, whose book, Corrupt Cities: A Practical Guide to Cure and Prevention, has been translated into Arabic by

the institute. Ai is also working with the World Bank Institute on the development of a anti-corruption training program for local officials.

The Amman Institute for Urban Development has set the bar extremely high from their incep-tion; a risky venture for any organization look-ing to maintain long-term success and continual improvements. Nonetheless, Post has sufficient reason to be confident about the future of Ai. “Ai is offering something new to Amman residents and to Jordanians that was unheard of before,” he says. “But now they’ve seen it work, and people are joining the bandwagon and we’ve attracted regional interest. We’re now actively helping communities in Iraq and Palestine, and most recently Dubai has asked us to be a peer

reviewer of their new plan. This bodes well for Jordan to become a regional knowledge hub in the urban sector. If the bandwagon is promot-ing and fostering community development, and healthy, sustainable urban growth, perhaps this is one bandwagon worth jumping on board. “Ai is a unique type of organization that empowers staff and gives them a sense of ownership, deals with clients as partners and works towards gen-uine interactions with communities, “ adds Asma Al Khraisat, Architect and Urban Planner at Ai.

“Think global, act local” may not be a new con-cept, but it just might be what Amman needs to begin growing and developing in a manner that benefits those who matter: its residents.

ammaninstitute.com

“Ai is a progressive think tank that holds the potential to function as a regional hub for the exchange of urban planning knowledge”

Ai forum in Irbid


As part of its continuous effort to foster cul-tural and social development in Jordan, The Greater Amman Municipality (GAM) has an-nounced that Amman and Canada’s Quebec City have been selected as co-hosts of the 2016 Universal Forum of Cultures.

Established in 2004 by the Barcelona City Council, the government of Catalonia and the Spanish government, The Universal Forum of Cultures Foundation has brought together a comprehensive, international network of 3,000 thinkers that meet to “foster a public com-mitment to dialogue, creativity and common

sense in a quest for development that is just, humane, sustainable and peaceful,” according to the foundation’s objectives.

After being short-listed from among twenty other bidders, Amman was selected on Octo-ber 4th, 2010, based on its urban regeneration projects, its readiness to host the forum, and its public transportation systems and infra-structure, among other qualifications. Mayor of Amman, HE Omar Maani thanked the board and credited Their Majesties King Abdullah and Queen Rania, along with the government, for the success of the bid.

Proud of Amman’s win to host the forum, May-or Omar Maani commented that the forum “is an event of high magnitude, locally, and on the Arab and international levels.” He went on to say that having won is an opportunity to show the whole world Amman’s “charm, deep-root-ed history, cultural movements constituents, and its dreams, ambitions, and accomplish-ments in all human and urban spheres,” and asks those concerned to unite and help make the event “a historic moment that is worthy of our Hashemite leadership, our good people, and our country.”

Amman and Quebec City selected as co-hosts of 2016 Universal Forum of Cultures

NEWS


Translating technical terms dealing with urban governance is a painstaking and often difficult and expensive task. To make this easier, Ai has developed an urban e-translator that now con-tains over 2,000 terms - and not just technical ones. Visit the Ai website to check it out!

Amman With a PlanIn October of 2010, Ai, the Greater Amman Municipality and Planning Alliance were award-ed the top two prizes in International Develop-ment Planning from the Canadian Institute of Planners (CIP).

The Award of Planning Excellence for 2010 was presented to the Amman Institute and planningAlliance for its new Zoning Regime, a project (due to take effect in early 2011) de-signed to help Amman effectively plan for the rapid urban growth that is expected to take

Organizing Communities, One Leader at a TimeThe Amman Institute for Urban Development (Ai) invited Marshall Ganz, a lecturer at the Har-vard Kennedy School of Government and a key player in the shaping of Barack Obama’s recent campaign, to conduct a training workshop and event about community building and organizing on June 2nd, 2010. With the goals of empow-ering Jordan’s community leaders to excel and triggering social change on both a small and large scale, Ai and Ganz put together an experi-ence that far exceeded the expectations of its participants and guests.

The two-day training was described by its par-ticipants as “a life-changing experience” and in-cluded six of Jordan’s community builders and organizers and targeted 25 of Jordan’s most active members of the community. The ses-sions were carried out by a group of coaches from Jordan and the MENA region, who were led by Nisreen Haj, a former student of Ganz and currently his deputy in Jordan.

The event that followed, titled, “People, Leader-ship and Change,” took place at the Hussein Cultural Center in Ras Al Ayn and was attended by 300 guests, including Mayor Omar Maani, the Minister of Agriculture, top officials, and many others. Ganz’s speech focused on the is-sues of leadership, community building, power, and shared values and interests. He explained how these issues can be properly used to pro-mote community change, mobilization, civic or-ganization and collective action.

The All New Urban E-Translator

HE Omar Maani with Marshall Ganz

place in the Kingdom’s capital over the next two decades. The Zoning Regime emphasizes the creation of landscaping, modern urban de-sign, large, open spaces, parking and building massing as crucial.

At the CIP Award Ceremony in Montreal, the Ai, now active in assisting communities through-out Jordan, Palestine, Iraq and Dubai, was also awarded with honorable mention for building capacity in international development.

NEWS


You’ve probably seen her work in Germany, London, Japan and nearly every other major city in the world. Joining that list of cosmo-politan locations is Amman; in February 2010, HE Mayor Omar Maani, signed an agree-ment with critically acclaimed ‘starchitect’ Zaha Hadid to produce working plans on the planned ‘King Abdullah II House of Culture and Art.’ The new performing arts center will be located near the downtown area at the in-

tersection of Princess Basma Street and Ali Bin Abi Talib Street. The designs include an educational center, several galleries, a 400-seat theater and a 1600-seat concert hall.

Taking inspiration from Petra as an oasis and sanctuary, Hadid’s design hopes to highlight the role of the future performing arts center as a hub of contemporary culture in Jordan. The location of the venue in the central valley

of Amman has further inspired Hadid to draw on Petra for its “interplay between architec-ture and nature.” The actual structure will be located within a larger plaza, both designed with intricate an d wide openings to create both a sense of welcoming and grandeur.

Construction is scheduled to begin in 2012. History in the making!

A Piece of Zaha Hadid for Jordan

Left and bottom: Hadid’s designs for the King Abdullah II House of Culture and Art

Below: Zaha Hadid with Mayor of Amman HE Omar Maani


Ai Looks South to Aqaba!

Urban planning has become a central feature of development in Amman as population growth continues to put a strain on the country’s infra-structure. Urban planning lies at the heart of de-veloping the economy, housing, sanitation, and transportation sectors of any city. It affects the lives of the population and their diverse needs and aspirations must be taken into account. Ai has teamed up with two professors from the University of Waterloo to find out how the Am-mani public is taken into consideration during urban planning projects in Jordan. The study aims to be a major part of a larger research project on development and urban planning in the Middle East. So far, Ai and Waterloo’s study

Ai and Waterloo University Join Forces

Since its inception, the Aqaba Special Economic Zone Authority (ASEZA) has been tasked with the development of the city not only as a tourism destination, but also as a business and technol-ogy hub - propelling ASEZA to develop and re-lease the Aqaba Master Plan in 2002.

Since its release, a range of factors have af-fected the development of the Aqaba Special Economic Zone since the announcement of the 2002 Master Plan. As a result, and in order to bring into sharper coherence the long-term development plans of Aqaba with the local, na-tional, and regional contexts that structure such development, Ai has been working with ASEZA to revise the 2002 Master Plan and has begun formulating an implementation strategy. Of inter-est to many of those involved and the general public, this process includes a conceptual de-sign of downtown Aqaba as well as the water-front as strategic locations.

To do their part in minimizing the negative im-pact they have on the Earth’s climate, The Am-man Institute for Urban Development (Ai) is in the process of rolling out a new initiative under its Sustainable Development (SD) Sector called the Carbon Neutral Initiative. Its mission is to explore ways of making Ai more climate-friendly and environmentally sustainable, and to devel-op a climate-neutral approach to its premises and operation. To accomplish this task, Ai is taking every measure it can to implement inno-vative and responsible environmental practices across the organization.

Carbon footprinting, a problem that is becom-ing more serious and garnering more attention today than ever before, is a measure of the im-pact (in terms of greenhouse gases produced) human activities have on the environment. Ai plans to reduce its use of non-renewable en-ergy sources, replace fossil fuels with sustain-able energy sources, and absorb carbon di-oxide to reduce the amount of carbon dioxide that it emits. By initiating this sustainable cul-ture, achieving its own objectives, and training its employees in the actions necessary to “go green,” Ai hopes to help other organizations in Jordan to do the same.

Doing Its Part

has taken the form of online surveys and fo-cus groups designed to engage a range of lo-cal citizens from different social and economic backgrounds.

NEWS


Doing Its Part

In its continuous effort to do its part in pre-serving the environment, the Amman Institute for Urban Development (Ai) and the Jordan Environment Society (JES) have signed an agreement to begin recycling paper. To ad-here to the standards of environmental, eco-nomic, and social sustainability, Ai and JES have come together in a partnership that not only benefits them, but also their communi-ties and country at large.

Under the agreement between the socially conscious organizations, Ai is to provide JES with paper waste on a regular basis. In return, JES will implement a regular environmental awareness program for Ai employees. JES provides Ai with a free, annually-renewable membership at the society, invites the in-stitute to participate in its many activities, provides it with regular reports about the amounts of refuse paper and its conditions, and returns back the recycled paper at the end of each year to be used again.

Use and Reuse


A Park for Abdoun

by Lena Ghannam

PROGRESS

In the heart of Abdoun, sitting among the shops that surround Ab-doun Mall and encased by greenery, this new park lies within an active commercial zone where high-end retail shops, restaurants and energetic cafes actively operate.


Installed at the heart of a bustling neighbor-hood, Abdoun’s new park - one of the Greater Amman Municipality’s latest and greatest ef-forts - aims to be the perfect green spot to re-lax and catch your breath. It’s been hard not to notice the modern, assymetrical structure that has gone up in the middle of one of Abdoun’s busiest commercial districts. The building sits in the midst of Asian-inspired landscape de-signs; flowers, grass, and greenery create an

undeniable contrast - albeit a beautiful one - with its surroundings.

Flanked on all sides by thriving shops, restau-rants, gyms, hair salons and coffee shops, park-ing has inevitably become a major hindrance to accessing the amenities of the area. One of the most fantastic aspects of the creation of the new park is that its plans include a dire solution to the area’s parking congestion - a problem


most of us in Amman face, particularly in this bustling sector of Abdoun. This problem has been faced head-on in designing the new park, and as part of its functional use the park affords a large number of below-ground and street parking for both park-goers as well as the pub-lic. Furthering the functionality of the park is an on-site cafeteria and a branch of the Housing Bank; ultimately creating a well-rounded expe-rience for park visitors, local patrons and those who work in the surrounding area.

Designed as a traditional Japanese park, visitors will find water, rocks, plants, and a bridge among the abundant horticulture. Above: (L) Details on park benches and pathway lighting have been attended to carefully, creating a thoughtful and beautifully designed space that stands out from other locations in the city (R) Abdoun Park stands out as a modern oasis amid the sand-stone brick buildings of the surrounding area

Commissioned in cooperation with the Japanese Embassy, the Icabana Club and the JICA Institution, the park’s creation will lend color, vibrancy and a soothing element to the commercial district in which it lies. Above: (L) Crisscrossing pathways lined with benches surround the modern Asian-inspired architecture of the on-site amenities building (R) Expansive green lawns cover the park’s grounds, injecting the area with eco-friendly and aesthetic benefits

In addition to the numerous uses Abdoun Park will provide to the community, considerable ex-panses of green lawn are set at various levels, providing raised areas above the noise of the street - affording visitors a green, relaxing spot to enjoy. Increasing the level of greenery in Am-man is a priority, and GAM is furthering their commitment to create an increased awareness of the importance of green spaces throughout the city; Abdoun Park is a prime example of that dedication.

PROGRESS


Above: As the greenery matures and the trees and shrubbery expands, the park will provide shady areas for family outings, long walks, lunch-breaks, reading - among other numerous activities

Unlike any structure in Amman, the on-site amenities building can be seen as a nod to the city’s fast-pace progression into the modern era

The project’s design provides full accessibility along its major pathways, taking into account the needs of the disabled – an issue that most residents of Amman know is rarely addressed. The park is also fully pedestrianized, with at-tractive diagonal pathways cutting across the lawns and providing access to any of the four main entrances which lead to all corners of the busy shopping district; creating an attainable oasis for the outside shopper and a convenient commercial access point for the visitor within park walls.

Abdoun Park successfully marries the much-needed elements of a place to unwind and take a walk, with the need for greenery among the stone buildings that populate the majority of neighborhoods and landscapes in Abdoun (and the city as a whole). Soon to be open to the public, the park will definitely be a happy addition to Abdoun and to anyone who passes through, looking for a place to breathe.


One Crafty MarketRas El-Ein Crafts Market is a continuous carnival celebrating Jor-danian cuisine and delicacies, coupled with a showcase of food, related crafts, music and fine arts.

PROGRESS


The Ras El-Ein Crafts Market - a carnival, for

tourists and locals alike - displays authentic

Ammani life after the electrification of the city in

the late 1930s. Hoping that the 1,720,000JD

restoration project will revitalize the market

and create renewed value on an old cultural

asset, the Municipality of Amman is commited

to economically and developmentally re-ener-

gize the market for the benefit of the city and

its citizens.

The flexible design includes the Electric-

ity Hanger and the Workshops Building. The

former is made up of “three longitudinal hori-

zontal layers of movements and functions,”

one of which houses shops, cafes, and res-


taurants. Another elevated layer tells the story

of the area, and the third is an open space

that can be used for exhibitions or flea mar-

kets, among other uses.

The Workshops Building, meant to provide

learning opportunities for its visitors, was ar-

chitecturally modeled after the original design

of the building that used to stand in that loca-

tion, respecting the significance of the place

and sustaining its industrial character.

PROGRESS


Restoring FaisalHolding memories of a past generation, the Faisal area is arguably the keeper of Amman’s modest begin-nings. Now fallen from its former glory, the city of Amman is already on task to bring Faisal into the 21st century and reclaim its position as the beating heart of the city . . . reminding Amman’s residents of its glory days - those past, and those on the horizon.

PROGRESS


During the mid-20th century, the main headquar-ters for the banks in the country were located in Faisal and Shabsough. But even before that, Faisal was also considered to be the main finan-cial hub within the city. The oldest bank in the city, the Ottoman Bank, was located in Faisal, and was followed by Al Masraf Al Zirahe’. Today the Arab Bank, together with other banks such as Al Ahli, Al Ittihad, and Al Urdon are all located there. The place is blessed with a sense of secu-rity, especially with the relationship between the banks on one hand and the Souq al Dahab on the other - which also represents another signifi-cant financial symbol of the city.

Faisal as the main financial hub in Amman

FAISAL’S GOLDEN DAYS:

Faisal was not only the physical meeting point of

all residential mountains within the city, but was

also the administrative and economic center

of the city. It was the home to several public

buildings such as the Post Office, the Ottoman

Bank, the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of

Justice, the Amman Municipality, and the police

center. More recently, several of these organi-

zations no longer exist or have moved to other

places in Amman, but there was a time when

Faisal really was the beating heart of the city.

Faisal as the beating heart of the city


People used to live in Faisal. The early settlements carried the names of Circassian tribes such as the Mahallat of Shabsough, Qabartai, and Abzagh. Master builders had built significant traditional houses in Faisal. What is most fascinating is the transformation of some of these houses - which used to serve as political meeting grounds - into coffee houses such as Balat al Rashid; once the house of political figure Wasfi Mirza Pasha, it was converted into a coffee shop in 1924. Another house in the Faisal area inhabited by the Circas-sian Turk family was turned into Hotel Baghdad al Kabeer. Famous residents of the downtown area include people such as Mohammad Ali Bdair, Fahmi al Zaeem, and Abdel Fattah Malhas just to name a few.

Emergence of a distinctive Ammani residential narra-tive in Faisal

Narrating everyday lifeThe myriad stairways of Amman were the earlier urban communal spaces in the city; they defined neighborhood limits and provided diverse ac-cess to the downtown area - namely to Faisal Street. Mainly used for residential access, they also supported commercial activity as they led to shopping districts across downtown. The steps stitched Faisal with the residential hills on the slopes of the 7 mountains flanking the down-town area.

PROGRESS


Old urban professionals At the end of the day, it was these urban dwellers and individuals who today grant meaning to places such as Faisal and who make its urban memory come alive. Unfor-tunately, the multi-layered beginnings of the city have not been fully - or even partially - narrated yet. The city is definitely under-studied and there is a crucial need for more critical analysis of its diversity and evolu-tion. Amman needs to celebrate its diverse beginnings by granting a voice to the roles of urban individuals, merchants and their respective businesses.

Regional mobility and connectionsFaisal Street, along with other similar places like Sahet al Marje in Damascus or Martyrs Square in Beirut, used to be the place of connection between cities within the Bilad al Sham (Levant) region. Not only did these places have a lot in common - as all were transportation hubs from where one could take a car to Damascus, Bei-rut, Amman or Jerusalem - but these places also housed a lot of hotels and cafes signaling an ac-tive relationship and mobility within the region in the middle of the 20th century. Waiting for the Taballat Company buses, which took travelers from Amman to Palestinian towns was a common scene near Faisal. These different places not only qualified the concept of Bilad al Sham at the lo-cal level but also provided the medium for sharing ideas and political views, migration, and trading commercial goods within the region.


Narrating guilds and com-mercial networks at FaisalFaisal hosts a wide array of commercial trades; everything ranging from textiles to banking to jew-elry to bookshops and electronics - it can all be found there. It is very important to understand the different networks between these diverse profes-sionals. For example, it is well known that family ties and networks prevail in the production and selling of jewelry. The profession dictates this network since the main patron is typically unable to depend on non-relatives for security reasons. Some of these families include Suradi, Abu Sara, Sakijha, Kalha, Jabasini and Imseeh.

PROGRESS


Traffic impact & pedestrian safetyGAM is aiming to refresh the commercial movement in the area, and to aid that goal plans are

underway to develop a street design that caters to pedestrians’ ability to navigate the area while

allowing drivers to pass through unobstructed. This is in order to ensure the safety and ease of

movement for both.

Urban emancipationUrban emancipation will transform Faisal from an urban space that is losing its economic vitality and symbolic - as well as actual - value into a vibrant urban space that is energetic and con-stantly active. Currently, the Faisal area is dominated by traffic and visual pollution. When these issues are addressed, Faisal will be restored as an environment suitable for both vehicles and pedestrians and it will once again assume its role and symbolic significance in the city.

Clearing visual pollutionIn order to restore the integrity of the classic architecture and stone that is a hallmark of the buildings in the Faisal area, new regulations will be implemented in order to highlight the unique quality and beauty of the storefronts, antique signs and the historic buildings.

WHAT’S NEXT FOR FAISAL?

While the restoration of Faisal is an important undertaking for the city of Amman, as it stands today the area still holds a great deal of its charm - how could it not? It’s built into the walls of every building, permeating the area. GAM’s aim for this historic location is to restore and enhance the streets and the walls themselves to let that charm shine more brightly than ever before.


Why So Serious?In December 2008, the first ever Amman Stand-Up Comedy Festi-val in the Arab world burst onto the city’s cultural scene, taking us all by storm; two years and two festivals later, the laughs just keep getting louder.

Behind the scenes, the Greater Amman Munici-pality - directed by HE the light-hearted Mayor Omar Maani (who knew?) - went all out and made 2010’s festival bigger (and funnier!) than any other stand-up act that’s landed in Jordan so far. Any one of the thousands of attendees noticed that this year’s line-up took a hilariously steroidal turn.

Dousing the (typically very, very tense) popula-tion of Amman with a much needed hysterical release, the festival brought a troop of side-split-ting comedians to the Al-Hussein Cultural Cent-er - the likes of which included not just Jordanian and Arab talent, but foreign laugh-masters as well – notably, world renowned comedians Dean Obeidallah, Omid Djalili and Gabriel Iglesias.

With any luck, the Amman Stand-Up Comedy Festival will be a jumping off point for hopeful local and regional comedians by giving them a place to not just express themselves, but to make the overwrought public wet themselves with laughter. But also self-expression, that’s im-portant too.

REVIEW:AMMAN was thrilled (not to mention giddy with laughter!) to interview some of the festival’s heavy-weight headliners to get their deep thoughts on our city, the people in it, and the boundless merits of comedic therapy:

by Lena Ghannam

“Every building in Amman [is] the exact same color. Is there a ‘style embargo’ I wasn’t told about?” Brian Scott McFadden

SPOTLIGHT


Brian Scott McFadden: One thing I hadn’t ex-pected was that every building in Amman would be the exact same color. Do they have paint over there?! Is there a ‘style embargo’ I wasn’t told about? I’m just sayin’. Also, I didn’t expect to find every American movie ever made available on DVD in Amman - even films that haven’t been made yet! It’s like some kind of Illegal copyright time machine over there!

Gabriel Iglesias: Everyone was so helpful and friendly. I was expecting everyone not to be so welcoming to an American entertainer, but it was the complete opposite. Now, I’m telling everyone how great Amman is.

Dean Obeidallah: The thing I like the most about Amman is the people. Their hospitality is amazing. Often people I’ve just met at the come-dy festival will invite me to lunch or dinner at their house - in fact, they almost demand that I go! I also like the energy of the city; it isn’t overwhelm-ing like Cairo, or too sleepy like small towns in the US. Instead, it moves at a great pace, at least for me. The first time I came to Amman I was surprised by the drivers entering the circles, I was petrified! But now I’m used to the organ-ized chaos of Amman traffic.

Dean Edwards: I think what I appreciated most about my time in Amman was how hospitable and friendly everyone was to our party. From the staff of the festival to the people at the hotel and just everyone in general, I always sensed a level of supreme hospitality and warmth; which is re-freshing, especially coming from New York City. I travel internationally quite often, and so I don’t have preconceived notions of different regions when traveling abroad. I didn’t really experience anything unexpected in Amman ... except for when a young lady asked me to break-dance. [That] let me know that she DID have a few pre-conceived notions of me. LOL!

Edwin San Juan: I enjoyed the hospitality of the people. Everyone was so polite and welcoming and I didn’t expect the food to taste so good!

Omid Djalili: What’s there not to like? First off, the food is utterly exceptional. Had I stayed an-other few days they would have needed a winch and a crane to get me on to the plane . . . and of course, the hospitality. What I hadn’t expected was meeting medical doctors studying to be-come stand up comedians, not professionally but to help them become better doctors!

REVIEW:AMMAN: So, most of you haven’t been to Amman before.Welcome! We’ve loved having you guys here . . . in that spirit, tell us what you loved about being here.Did anything take you by surprise?

RA: Ammanis have come to be very passionate about their stand-up comedy, for good reason. Did you pick up on that? What did you think of the audiences and of the ASCF in general?

BSM: I didn’t think that my relationship material would get the remarkable response it did. Yes, it’s true that women baffle men the same way all over the world! I loved the fact that the crowds seemed to really appreciate the comedy so much. In America sometimes they see so much comedy the crowds aren’t always attentive, but they seemed to really hang on every word in Am-man and they got jokes I wrote that I’m not even sure I understood!

GI: [ASCF] was a very surreal experience. I’m a very popular guy back in North America, but here it was at a whole new level. People were so excited to take pictures [with me] and shake my hand. Meeting HRM King Abdullah was also a testament to how great things went. I have yet to shake the hand of any American leaders.

DO: I truly enjoy being part of the festival and am honored that the Mayor asked me to serve as the festival’s executive producer. It has been a great experience for me, and truly one of the highlights of my [15+ years] comedy career. The audiences in Amman have consistently been great laughers. It’s even more amaz-ing when you consider the reputation that Jordanians have for being so serious! All the comedians from the U.S. who perform at the festival are stunned by the amount of laughter and support our audiences show them. These comedians go back [home] telling the other comedians about the great crowds, which has made even more comedians want to perform at the [ASCF]. I can say honestly that one of the main reasons I enjoy working on the festi-

“Comedy can be divine – so much more moving than funny” Omid Djalili

val is because of the amazing support the au-diences have shown all the comedians.

DE: The ASCF, in comparison to other renowned festivals that I’ve done, stands up there along with the rest. The staff was courteous and profes-sional doing everything to ensure that I was able to concentrate on the task at hand - to give the audience the best show, possible. The crowds were awesome! They were extremely responsive and attentive which made performing so much easier and the atmosphere more relaxed. Ku-dos to the staff for arranging what might be the most organized & fun meet and greet with the audience that I’ve ever experienced. It was easy to reciprocate the gratitude to the audience be-cause of the personal one-on-one time we had with those who waited patiently in line, however brief that time might have been.

ESJ: The ASCF was enlightening. Three years in and they work like a well-oiled machine. They have seminars now! Very cool! The comedians were all very talented and the audience was great because everything was so new to them. They were all wide-eyed and hungry for good comedy.

OD: The festival was very well organized and impressive considering it’s the only comedy festival organized by the municipal authorities in the Middle East. I love the fact it’s “fam-ily friendly” too; I’ve always thought comedy should be for all and not just for adults. By being careful about the choice of material it stretches one’s creative capacities instead of limiting them. This is a significant contribution the East can make to the world - keeping it funny but also appealing to a more diverse audience, instead of the usual comedy club crowd we see in the UK and America.

RA: Ok, so you guys are comedians by trade and are always looking for new jokes. Did you pick up any new material in Amman? Any funny incidents?

SPOTLIGHT


The 3rd Amman Stand-Up Comedy Festival was made possible with the support of its Valued Partner, the MBC Group, Platinum Sponsor Royal Jordanian, Gold Sponsors Grand Hyatt Amman Hotel and Comprehensive Multiple Transport Company, Silver Sponsor Abdali, Bronze Spon-sors Zain, Events AVP and Advize Grey, Media Sponsors Hawa Amman, Omnia Media, Seagulls and our very own REVIEW:AMMAN.

It’s rare to come across an Ammani who hasn’t heard of Nabil Sawalha. Presiding as our co-medic claim to fame, Sawalha has consistently been on the Jordanian cultural scene parodying our country’s idiosyncrasies with wit and style. This year’s ASCF featured an entire evening dedicated to showcasing rising and aspiring Jordanian comics with Sawalha at the helm. Acting as both a mentor and friend, he took the time off from preparing his own set to MC the event and help develop the young comics’ talent; working with them on everything from diction to setups. Here’s his insider’s view on stand-up standards and the future of our (awe-some) local comedians:

REVIEW:AMMAN: What do you think surprised this year’s crowd about the line-up of comedians and vice versa? Nabil Sawalha: Some of the comedians are originally Arabs so [audiences] are extremely surprised - especially the young audience members - at how they’re from all societies and countries. As for comedians, the worst thing is to perform to an unintelligent audi-ence, because they just won’t get it, and Am-man gave us a great laugh.

RA: Do you think this year’s festival was better than the last?NS: The comedic competition was good; it

sharpened my wits. When you’re dealing with people with a lot of experience, you have to come up to standard. It doesn’t matter that my performance was in Arabic and that I’m perhaps the most experienced comedian in Jordan, there’s still a standard. It was all the young Jordanians who were performing with us (and a Saudi comic) who came up to standard that night.

RA: What are your thoughts on emerging local comedic talent?NS: The whole event for young Jordanians that I MC’d was excellent. None of them failed and some of them were very good. A lot of young people don’t want to be lum-bered with the politics of Jordan, so they’ve found a new outlet for their social frustra-tions. Also, there was no censorship apart from our own sense of right and wrong. They were also all commenting on social is-sues; no sex or fart jokes – because these are easy subjects – just intelligent and funny social commentary.

RA: What do you think of the ASCF in gen-eral, and the audience? How were the reac-tions and interactions from the audience?NS: It went brilliantly. The choice of comedi-ans was a good cross-section culturally and the audience was laughing a lot.

BSM: They kept leaving stuffed camels in my room. I think I got 7. I’m not sure if the guy who was in charge [of the hotel] has that thing from the movie ‘Memento’ where he didn’t re-member that he left one the day before, but every day was a new one. It was like Ground-hog Day meets Lawrence of Arabia - I ended up with 6 or 7!

GI: While shopping for a dress shirt a salesman measured me by hugging me instead of using a tape measure to determine my size. The funny thing was that his measurement was correct and found me a shirt that fit!

DO: It happened when I first arrived at the ho-tel and I walked through the metal detector. It beeped and the security guard looked at me and at all the bags I was carrying and honestly asked, “Do you have any bombs or guns?” He looked disappointed when I said, “No.”

DE: The funniest thing that happened to me in Amman was going to Petra and having some of the tour guides begin quoting lyrics and lines from popular rap songs to me. It was interesting to me to have them attempt to relate to me via

Tupac lyrics. As I said, some folks DO have their preconceived notions and it struck me as funny because I’m more Coltrane than Tupac. LOL!

ESJ: The whole time I was here people kept asking me for towels! Everyone thought I was a hotel worker and when they saw me by the pool, they were looking at me like I was going to get in trouble. LOL!

OD: What I hadn’t expected was finding out that a young man who had been suffering from clini-cal depression got slowly better when exposed to clips of me doing comedy on YouTube. I re-ally worried about the results but apparently he’s fine. He does the odd Godzilla impression now and again, but only when he doesn’t like the food in restaurants. They say one of the names of God is “the Humorist.” It’s incidents like this that showed me how comedy can be divine – so much more moving than funny. Otherwise ... making friends with overweight Arab men at the Dead Sea who, when seeing I had salt water in my eyes, kept singing Arabic pop songs to dis-tract me and cheer me up. Now that was funny.

You know, they say laughter is the best medicine. Not to say that Ammanis are ill, but it’s probably wise to try and find a cure for all this seriousness floating around town. GAM’s two steps ahead it seems, so keep it coming! We think it’s working. Isn’t it? LOL.

“The audiences in Amman have consistently been great laughers” Dean Obeidallah

Jordan’s Own

Following the recent announcement that Amman has been named co-host of the Universal Forum of Cul-tures 2016, alongside the City of Québec, the festival - and its close collaboration and partnership with the NY Arab-American Comedy Festival - has no doubt contributed to making Amman an important destination for stand-up comedy and enhancing the city’s cultural offerings as a whole.


Motaz Attalla is a Cairo-based comedian and writer. His most notable performances include Comedy Rumble and the Todo Comedy Weekend, both Cairo-based events. In 2009, Motaz was a resident artist at Amman’s Darat al Funun. He is also a co-author of Needles to Rockets, a com-pilation of oral histories of iconic mid-to late twentieth-century consumer products, such as Nasr Cars, Rocket Chocolate and Savo Detergent.

Brian Scott McFadden is a New York-based actor and comedian. He debuted on The Late Show with David Letterman and followed that up with an appearance on The Late Late Show with Craig Fergusson. Brian’s film ap-pearances include Ice Age II, Robots, Unspoken, and Legally Dead. He was also the voice of the Budweiser Talking Monkey in the 2009 Bud Light Super Bowl Commercial. He has performed stand-up at Caroline’s, Comic Strip, Stand Up New York, The Improv LA and The Comedy Store.

Dean Obeidallah is a former attor-ney tuned comedian. In addition to being an executive producer of the Amman Stand-up Comedy Festival, he is the co-creator/producer of comedycentral.com’s internet series The Watch List, featuring an all-Middle Eastern cast of comedians. Dean has appeared on The Axis of Evil television special, which aired on Comedy Central and Showtime Arabia, as well as ABC’s The View, CNN’s Inside the Middle East, PBS’s Newshour with Jim Lehrer and Al-Jazeera’s Min Washington.

Dean Edwards is a comedian who’s career was launched by two seasons as a cast member of Saturday Night Live. His other appearances include Showtime’s Comics Without Borders and the development of the charac-ter of Donkey for Dreamwork’s Shrek the Musical on Broadway. More recently, Dean worked on Dream-work’s Scared Shrekless, which aired on NBC in October 2010 and he will appear in the upcoming independ-ent film April Fools. He also plans to release a DVD in the near future.

Omid Djalili is an actor and come-dian born and raised in Kensington, London. His first comedy show, performed in 1995, was I’m a Short Fat Kebab Shop Owner’s Son. In 2001, he was given the Time Out Comedy Award for Best Standup. He co-starred with Whoopi Goldberg on NBC’s Whoopi. Omid’s theatrical appearances include The Mummy, Gladiator, Spy Game, Pirates of the Caribbean III, and Sex and the City 2. He also stars in film The Infidel and co-stars in NBC’s The Paul Resier Show, both of 2010.

Aron Kader is a Hollywood-based actor and comedian currently per-forming at The Comedy Store. He spent several years in The Ground-lings Theater eventually becoming a member of the Sunday Company. Aron is a founding member of The Axis of Evil Comedy Tour, which debuted on Comedy Central in 2007. He has been featured on NPR, CNN, Newsweek, Time, and the Wall Street Journal. His televi-sion appearances include Comedy Central’s Premium Blend and FX Networks’ The Shield.

Gabriel Iglesias is a Long Beach-based actor and comedian. After filming his comedy special ‘Hot & Fluffy,’ Gabriel performed ‘I’m Not Fat . . . I’m Fluffy Live in El Paso’ on Comedy Central in 2009. The show is expected to be released on DVD in 2011. His comedy appearances include NBC’s Last Comic Stand-ing, Jimmy Kimmel Live, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, and ABC’s My Wife and Kids. His dramatic appear-ances include Showtime’s Resur-rection Boulevard as well as the independent films El Matador and The Surfer King.

MEET THE ASCF COMEDIANS

Sherry Davey is a New York-based actress and comedian. She was recently named one of the Hollywood Reporter’s Magnificent Seven and voted one of Improper Magazine’s Top Ten Comedians in New York. Sherry is a founding member of the traveling show “Mama’s Night Out” and appeared on the first and sec-ond season of Nick At Night’s Search for the Funniest Mom in America.

SPOTLIGHT


Mohamed Salem is an Egyptian comedian. He was a participant in both Damascus’ First Com-edy Night, Syria’s first stand-up event, and the first Arabic night of the New York Arab American Comedy Festival. Mohamed has appeared on Moga TV’s Moga Stand-Up and was the winner of the 2009 online competition Be A Part of the Amman Standup Comedy Festival.

Mohammed “MO” Amer is a Houston-based comedian. He is the writer and performer of Allah Made Me Funny – The Official Mus-lim Comedy Tour, which followed on the success of his comedy special, Legally Homeless: Trials of a Refugee. Mohammed’s appear-ances include BBC and CNN.

Meena Dimian is New York-based actor and comedian. He currently hosts NYC-TV’s Emmy-nominated CityScoop and Abu Dhabi 1’s Zahret Al Khalig. He played the lead in the 2008 NY Fringe Festival’s feature ‘Mean-while in Baghdad.’ Meena’s appearances include Comedy Central, CNN, and TLC. He is also a winner of NBC’s National Stand-Up for Diversity Initiative.

Edwin San Juan is a Los Angeles-based actor and comedian. He is the creator and executive producer of Slanted Comedy, a Showtime series featuring Asian American stand-up comedians. Edwin has appeared on Comedy Central’s Life at Gotham, Showtime’s Com-ics without Borders, The Payaso Comedy Slam, ABC’s Comics Un-leashed, BET’s Comic View and Si TV’s Latino Laugh Festival. His first film appearance was in I’m Not Like That No More (2010), a comedy co-starring Felipe Esparza and Paul Rodriguez.

Larry Omaha is a comedian of Yaqui Zapotec origins. His television appearances include Showtime’s Goin’ Native Comedy Special, Comedy Central’s Mind of Mencia, Entertainment Television’s Comics Unleashed, and Fox’s Culture Clash. Larry has also co-starred in several films including The Black Out, Tenth Day, and Tri-angulation. He has also recorded voiceovers for Discovery Channel’s How the West Was Lost and the videogame Mortal Kombat 9.

Omar Elba is a comedian originally from Alexandria, Egypt. After win-ning two Los Angeles stand-up competitions, he was booked as a regular at the Haha Café in North Hollywood. Omar can be seen on Showtime beginning in February 2011 as part of a show entitled Legally Brown, which is set to air 35 times.

Nabil Sawalha is an Amman-based actor, comedian and radio personal-ity renowned for his satirical writings and performances. He helped found the Jordanian National Theater and is co-founder of The Nabil and Hisham Comedy Theater. Nabil was also commissioned by HRM the late Queen Alia to establish the Princess Haya Cultural Center, which he directed until 1993. He currently hosts Mazaj FM’s daily show Nashret Ghaseel and is a certified Laughter Yoga Leader.

Ola Roshdy is an Egyptian actress and comedian. She discovered her passion for performance during pri-mary school when she won a “story tell-a-thon.” Ola has appeared in several Egyptian comedy films and starred in major sitcoms, TV series, and comedy shows.


Flip to page 128 to read the City in Progress section in Arabic!

إقلب إلى صفحه 128 لقرائه قسم حراك عمان باللغه العربيه


إقامته على تصميما أكثر يجعلنا عمان نقله العام هذا يشكل أن آملين سنويا، و العروض و المشاركة حيث من نوعية رفد الفنانين الشباب بالخبرات و المهارات

أدائهم. لتطوير الالزمه

بتنظيم الكبرى عمان أمانة تقوم فعاليات مهرجان عمان الثالث للكوميديا MBC مجموعة مع بالتعاون العام هذا ، األردنية الملكية البالتيني والراعي عمان حياة جراند فندق الذهبي الراعي المتعدد للنقل المتكاملة والشركة البرونزي و العبدلي الفضي الراعي و و زين و Events AVP و Advize grey

الراعي اإلعالمي مجلتكم ريفيو عمان.

من النادر أن تلتقي بعماني لم يسمع بنبيل صوالحة. استمر نبيل صوالحة

في المشهد الثقافي في األردن مداعبا خصوصيات بلدنا بخفة دمه وأسلوبه , و مترأسا قائمة كوميديينا األكثر شهرة .

نبيل صوالحة، لم يترك شيء من شر نكته و خاض بجميع الطرق المؤدية للضحك

من ضحك اليوجا إلى المسرح و أخيرا الكوميديا االرتجالية .

تحت مظلة مهرجان عمان للكوميديا هذه السنه، قام نبيل صوالحه باإلشراف على مجموعة من المواهب الكوميدية

الشابه لتحضيرهم لليلة التي خصصها المهرجان لهم. لقد كان مرشد و صديق

و مساعد لهم في تطوير طرقهم في األسلوب و األعداد.

التقت مجلة عمان ريفيو باستاذ الكوميديا

نبيل صوالحه ، و سألته عن رأيه في معايير “الستاند أب كوميديا” أو الكوميديا

االرتجالية ، و حول مستقبل كوميديينا المحليين.

ريفيو عمان: باعتقادك ، ما الذي فاجأ جمهور هذه السنة حول الكوميديين؟

وما الذي فاجأ الكوميديين حول الجمهور؟

نبيل صوالحة: ما فاجأ الجمهور كثيرا وخصوصا الجمهور الشباب، هو تعدديه

ثقافات الكوميديين ، و أكثرهم من أصول عربية. وأما بالنسبة للكوميديين ... أسوأ

شيء هو أن تؤدي لجمهور غير ملم ، الجمهور لن يفهم مغزى النكته أحيانا، و

لكن عمان ضحكت كثيرا.

ريفيو عمان: هل تعتقد بأن المهرجان هذه السنة كان أفضل من السنة

الماضية؟نبيل صوالحة: المنافسة الكوميدية كانت

جيدة، لقد أمتعتني و دغدغت ذكائي. عندما تتعامل مع أناس لديهم الكثير من

الخبرة عليك أن تلتزم بمعاييرك. كوني أكثر الكوميديين خبرة في األردن، أو

لكون أدائي باللغة العربية، ال يهم.

ما بها. التقيد يجب معايير هنالك إلى األردنيين أثار دهشتي هو نهوض

شاب أيضا هناك و المطلوبة، المعايير ما و هذا الجمهور، انتباه لفت سعودي

أتوقعه. لم

بالمواهب رأيك ما عمان: ريفيو الناشئة؟ األردنية الكوميدية

الشباب فعالية صوالحة: نبيل ممتازة. كانت قدمتها التي األردنيين

الكوميديين، من أحد يفشل لم جدا. كثير جيدا كان منهم والبعض

أن يكونوا يريدون ال الشباب من السياسي بالمشهد مثقلين

أوجدوا منافذ جديدة ، لذلك األردني بالمناسبة، و اإلجتماعية. إلحباطاتهم

احساسنا عدا عن رقابة يكن هنالك لم والخطأ. بالصواب الشخصي

قضايانا على كلهم الشباب علق لقد

عن نكت هناك تكن ولم االجتماعية إلى ذلك من مواضيع الجنس و ما

التعليق كان العكس، على بل ، سهلة االجتماعية. قضايانا على ذكي

رأيك ما ، عام بشكل عمان: ريفيو و للكوميديا عمان بمهرجان

وردود التفاعل كان كيف بالجمهور؟ الجمهور؟ من الفعل

المهرجان مضى صوالحة: نبيل كان الكوميديين اختيار رائع. بشكل

ضحك لقد ، ثقافيا ومتعدد جيدا كثيرا. الجمهور

استاذ الكوميديا


المعاني، عمر المهندس عمان، أمين جعل في يسهم المهرجان أن على أكد الكوميدي للمسرح هامة محطة عمان الثقافي الحراك تعزيز عن فضال االرتجالي،

المدينة. في

و كان انعقاد مهرجان عمان للكوميديا في فريدة خطوه يعتبر ٢٠٠٨ عام األولى مرته

األوسط، الشرق مستوى على نوعها من ٢٠ استقطاب في وقتها المهرجان نجح و موسمه في و الجماهير. من آالف و فنانا في التذاكر بيع في المهرجان نجح الثاني من زائر ٤٠٠٠ استقطب حيث قياسي وقت مثل عالميا معروفة شخصيات ضمنهم رسل بيتر و جبريل إجالسياس. و كان كل سنويا المهرجان تنظيم على دافعا ذلك

الذكر ويجدر عام. األول من كل كانون في شراكة اتقافية وقعت MBC مجموعة بأن لرعاية عمان أمانة مع أعوام ثالثة لمدة

الترفيهي. الحدث

حققه ما بأن المعاني المهندس قال و ما و متتاليه نجاحات من المهرجان في الستضافته ايجابية آثار من لمسناه

عمان تضحك من جديد لمدينتنا يعود للكوميديا عمان فمهرجان ، صحيح غير الضحك يحب ال شعب بأنهم األردنيين عن يقال ما أن يبدو الذي السنوي المهرجان يمتد و الماضيتين. السنتين في حققه الذي الهائل النجاح بعد التوالي على الثالثه للسنة العام )ديسمبر( و يستضيف هذا األول العاشر من كانون و الرابع بين ما MBC لمجموعة باإلضافة عمان أمانة تنظمه المجانية العمل ورشات من سلسلة تقديم المهرجان خالل من سيتم و العالم. أنحاء جميع من الكوميديين أشهر نيويورك في األمريكية العربية الكوميديا مهرجان يقوم و االرتجالية، الكوميديا مجال في خبراء بإشراف للمهتمين

فعالياته. إنتاج و المهرجان بإعداد

بقعة ضمء


التلوث البصريلفن الكالسيكي الرونق إعادة أجل من البناء ميزا طالما اللذان الحجر و العمارة قوانين تطبيق سيتم فيصل، منطقة في الضوء بتسليط تعنى جديدة تعليمات و و التجارية المحلات واجهات جماليات على التي التاريخية بناياتها و األثرية قارماتها من فريدة معمارية حالة شكلت طالما

نوعها في هذه المنطقة العريقة.

أثر األزمة المرورية و سالمة المشاة إعادة على حاليا عمان أمانة تعمل البلد وسط لمنطقة االقتصادي الرونق و ذلك من خالل إعادة تصميم الشوارع و األرصفة فيها. و الهدف من هذا المشروع المرورية السالمة و األمن توفير هو للمشاة الحركة تسهيل إلى باإلضافة السيارت على حد سواء، حتى يصبح و في التنقل و المنطقة استكشاف

خفاياها أكثر متعة و سالسة.

التحرير الحضري هذا التحرير الحضري لساحة فيصل سيحول و رونقه إليه يعيد و الحضري الفراغ هذا بدأ التي االجتماعية و االقتصادية حيويته المعطيات ظل في فشيئا شيئا يفقدها منطقة تعاني حاليا عمان. لنمو الجديدة فيصل من األزمات المرورية و التلوث البصري. عند معالجة هذه المشاكل ستصبح منطقة و السيارات و للمشاة صديقا مكانا فيصل أهميتها و مكانتها أخذ من ستتمكن ستلعب و أخرى، مرة الفعلية و الرمزية

دورها الحيوي المعهود في المدينة.


و المكان سكان إن المطاف، نهاية في األفراد الذين يصنعون يوميات المدينة، هم من يعطي أمكنة مثل شارع فيصل معنى و يحيكون الذاكرة الجماعية للمكان. لألسف لم نروي من قصص بدايات مدينتنا إلا القليل و لم ندرسها كما يجب، فهناك حاجة ماسة لتأريخ تطور المدينة و سرد قصص بداياتها التنوع و بالتعددية حافلة كانت التي الثقافي. هناك كثير من األفراد الذين حاكوا و ، الحضري تطورها شكلوا و عمان قصة سواء بانجازاتهم و بهم االحتفاء بنا يجدر حسن منهم و ثقافية، أم اقتصادية كانت أبو علي ، صاحب كشك أبو علي و هو أول ، كمال أبو علي و ، عمان في كشك كتب صاحب أول متجر قماش في سوق منكو، و افتتحا اللذان أمين قعوار و نجيب قبيصي باإلضافة البلد، في وسط الصيدليات أولى

إلى الكثيرين غيرهم.

النقابات و الشبكات االقتصادية التجارية األسواق من فيصل شارع كان الهامة في األردن ، حيث تعددت فيه المحالت التجارية الكبيرة و الوكاالت العالمية و كانت و األقمشة من متنوعة و عديدة سلع فيه من االلكترونيات. و المجوهرات إلى الكتب بين سادت التي العالقات فهم جدا المهم في المختلفين المهنيين و األعمال رجال من كان المثال سبيل فعلى الوقت. ذلك سيدة كانت العائلية العالقات أن المعروف الموقف في انتاج و بيع الذهب و المجوهرات. في شروطها تملي األسرية الروابط كانت هذه المهنة حيث لم يكن بإمكان التاجر في عائلته خارج من أناس على االعتماد العادة عائالت اسماء ذكر يجدر و أمنية. ألسباب و الكلحة و سارة أبو و سكجها و إمسيح يرتبط منها الكثير زال ال التي جباصيني

باالذهان عند ذكر تجارة المجوهرات.

صناع المدينة

مشاريع


شارع فيصل، مركز اقتصادي الكثير كانت العشرين، القرن منتصف في في المهمه للبنوك الرئيسية المقرات من الشابسوغ تقع في شارعي فيصل و األردن

بسبب األهمية االقتصادية لهذه الشوارع.

بنك أقدم هو و العثماني البنك كان لقد المدينة يقع في شارع فيصل. و كذلك في اليوم أما الزراعي. للمصرف بالنسبة الحال و العربي البنك من لكل فروع فهناك

األهلي و االتحاد و األردن في تلك المنطقة.

لقد عم في منطقة فيصل شعور بالحيوية فريدة ما بين البنوك الواقعه فيها و سوق الذهب هناك ، والذي يمثل أيضا رمزا للصحة

االقتصادية في البلد.

شارع يسرد حكايا سكان المدينة و بالسكان، مأهوال فيصل شارع كان لقد بعد من هناك االستيطان بدايات سميت قبائل شركسية مثل الشابسوغ، و القبردي مهمة تقليدية بيوت بنيت كما األبخاز. و باالهتمام الجدير من و المنطقة. تلك في كيفية تحول وظائف تلك البيوت عبر الزمن. فعلى سبيل المثال، كان ما يعرف بمقهى بالط الرشيد اليوم، بيتا يملكه وصفي ميرزا منه صالونا سياسيا قد جعل كان و باشا، و العامة الشخصيات أهم فيه التقت الذي الكبير، بغداد فندق أما السياسية. بيتا فقد كان الستينات، بداية انشىء في علي محمد الحاج الشركس. الترك لعائلة و األردنية الكهرباء شركة مؤسس بدير، عبد و ، الكهرباء” ب”أبو شعبيا الملقب في بيتا بنى من أول هو و الفتاح ملحس الزعيم. فهمي إلى باإلضافة عمان جبل التي المشهورة األسماء بعض هي هذه

اتخذت من شارع فيصل مكانا للسكن.

محطة حيوية في بالد الشام المرجة في شارع فيصل في عمان و ساحة بيروت كانت الشهداء في و ساحة دمشق منطقة في محورية ارتباط نقاط تشكل األمكنة لكل من هذه لقد كان الشام. بالد بالد في الحيوي دورها و الخاصة نكهتها في روحانيا متشابه كانت أنها إلا الشام، العشرين، القرن منتصف في ذاته. الوقت أمكنة الثالثة الحضرية المراكز هذه كانت دور و المقاهي و الفنادق فيها كثرت مراكزا جميعها كانت كما السينما أخذ راكب أي بإمكان للمواصالت، حيث كان تاكسي أو سيارة أجرة من عمان إلى القدس ترابط إلى يشير مما بيروت، أو دمشق أو تجسد لم المنطقة. في ثقافي و جغرافي على الشام بالد مفهوم األمكنة هذه كانت بل فحسب بجدارة محلي مستوى السياسية المواقف و األفكار لتبادل وسطا

باإلضافة إلى السلع التجارية.


الفيصل من جديد

سرد يوميات عمان

التالل التقاء نقطة فيصل شارع يكن لم شكل لقد فحسب، المأهولة العمانية للمدينة، أداريا و اقتصاديا مركزا أيضا األساسية العامة البنايات فيه فكثرت وزارة و التعليم، وزارة و البريد، من مكتب الشرطة. مركز و عمان بلدية و العدل، المدينة قلب فعال فيصل شارع كان لقد

النابض.

لطالما شكلت أدراج عمان مساحات حضريه تعرف فهي نوعها، من فريدة اجتماعية و طريق من أكثر تشكل و الحواري حدود شارع إلى أو ، البلد وسط إلى للوصول

بالتحديد. فيصل

لتزويد عمان في األدراج من الكثير بنيت من الحيوية المناطق إلى بمنافذ السكان

المطلة السبعة التالل ألدراج و حولهم. على وسط البلد ، أدوارا رمزية أكبر من ذلك، في االقتصادي النشاط تدعم كانت فقد العاصمة من خالل تسهيل وصول السكان حياكة في تساهم و التجاري، قلبها إلى سكان المنطقة في النسيج الثقافي لشارع فيصل الذي شكل معلما حضاريا مهما في

تاريخ وسط البلد.

زرت إذا اليوم، أما عمان. حكاية فيه ابتدأت الذي المكان بطاقة حتما ستشعر البلد، وسط في يوما تمشيت إذا إعادة إلى تهدف الكبرى، عمان أمانة بها تقوم التي المشاريع هذه اإلنشاء. قيد جدية مشاريع ستجد المدينة، وسط البلد األمانه هناك، فلطالما كان شارع فيصل، مركز وسط أهم مشاريع أحد عمان. شارع فيصل هو إلى مركز الرونق

الرمزي. ، و ، و االقتصادي الجغرافي

المدينة. فيه ذكرى الذي تسكن الشارع بدايات الضوء على المقال يسلط هذا

مشاريع

قلب المدينة النابض


تعد زيادة مستوى الخضرة في عمان أولوية, اذ أن الحديقة ملتزمة بخلق وعي متزايد

بأهمية المساحات الخضراء داخل المدينة.

الوصول امكانية المشروع يوفر تصميم آخذا الرئيسية, اجزائه لكافة الكامل

بعين االعتبار حاجات ذوي االعاقة وهي مسألة نادرا ما يتم تناولها كما يعرف

الحديقة مخصصة ان معظم سكان عمان. قفيها ممرات جذابة , بالكامل للمشاة

مائلة تمر عبر العشب األخضر وتؤمن الوصول ألي من مداخلها األربعة التي

تؤدي إلى الحي التجاري المزدحم.العناصر تمتزج حديقة عبدون بنجاح مع التي يحتاجها أي مكان للراحة والتنزه,

الحاجة إلى المساحات الخضراء بين ومع للمزيد من المعلومات الرجاء زيارة:

ammancity.gov.jo

أغلبية تقطنها التي الحجرية المباني المدينة. ومعالم أحياء

للجمهور, أبوابها عبدون حديقة ستفتح فتكون إضافة مبهجة لعبدون وكل من

يمر بها باحثا عن مكان للتنفس.


تواجه معظمنا في هنالك مشكلة عمان, أال وهي مسألة اصطفاف السيارات,

وخصوصا في هذا الجزء المزدحم من عبدون. تم التصدي لهذه المشكلة في

تتيح حيث الجديدة, الحديقة تصميم الوظيفي استخدامها الحديقة كجزء من

مواقف سيارات منها تحت األرض ، باإلضافة لمواقف بالقرب من الشارع لخدمة رواد

الحديقة. وجمهور باالضافة إلى وظيفة الحديقة االساسية،

هنالك كافتيريا وفرع لبنك االسكان. ستزود حديقة عبدون المجتمع بمساحات واسعة من العشب األخضر على مختلف

المستويات، باالضافة إلى استخدامات أخرى متعددة، فهي مزودة بمساحات أعلى من

مستوى الشارع لالسترخاء والراحة.

حديقة عبدونعبدون حديقة تقع مول، بعبدون تحيط التي المحالت وبين عبدون, قلب في الجديدة المغطاة بالخضرة، في منطقة تجارية نشيطة تكثر فيها المحالت الفاخرة

والمطاعم والمقاهي الحيوية،إذ ال بد من وجود فضاء حضري مفتوح للجميع.

مشاريع


سيتضمن “هنجر الكهرباء” المكون من “ثالث طبقات عمودية ,أفقية الحركة

والوظائف” المساحات التالية:"• محالت تجارية ومقاهي ومطاعم.

"• قصة المكان وايصال الكهرباء إلى عمان للتغير قابل مكانين بين مفتوح فضاء •

أو استخدامه كسوق ويمكن ومرن, أو للفعاليات ساحة أو للمعارض ساحة

موسمي. سوق

أنه بحيث مبتكر، السوق مشروع , التدخل من قدر أدنى على ينطوي

خاصة. مرونة وفيه

الفكرة الرئيسية وراء التدخالت وإعادة االستخدام التكيفي لسوق رأس العين

هي احترام أهمية المكان والحفاظ على طابعه الصناعي.

صمم السوق بحيث يبقي التدخل الهندسي عند أقل حد ، بطريقة تحفظ

نكهة “الهنجر” ومحالته. تم تمويل تصميم ومخططات المشروع من قبل الوكالة األمريكية للتنمية الدولية، وتم تغطية

تكاليف االنشاء من قبل أمانة عمان الكبرى.

للمزيد من المعلومات الرجاء زيارة:ammancity.gov.jo"


يقع سوق راس العين الحرفي في مكان “هنجر الكهرباء” التاريخي لعمان, الذي

بني في الثالثينيات. و يأتي متماشيا مع توجهات أمانة عمان الكبرى “بخلق قيمة

جديدة لموجوداتنا المحلية” و”لضمان بنية تحتية مناسبة داعمة للتنمية الثقافية

واالقتصادية للمدينة”, وسيخدم السوق كال من السياح والعمانيين في الوقت ذاته.

إلى المشروع انشاء تكلفة تصل دينار ألف وعشرون وسبعمائة مليون في مرنا السوق تصميم ويعد أردني.

ووظائفه. ترتيباته

سوق راس العين الحرفي الجديد قيد اإلنشاء

سوق راس العين الحرفي، هو كرنفال دائم يحتفل بالمطبخ األردني وأطباقه, باالضافة إلى أنه معرض للحرفيات المتعلقة بالطعام والموسيقى والفنون الجميلة, وواجهة

عرض للحياة العمانية اليومية بعد توصيل االضاءة للمدينة في أواخر الثالثينيات!

مشاريع


عمل المعهد في العام الماضي على المئوي تحت عنوان تنظيم منتدى عمان

“الشفافية في ادارة المدن”، وقد وتضمن رونالد السيد ألقاها الحدث محاضرة

الباز السابق لمدينة العمدة أبورا مكلين المعهد كتابه في بوليفيا، والذي ترجم

المدن: دليل عملي للوقاية “الفساد في والعالج” إلى العربية ، وعمل المعهد

لمكافحة تدريبية كذلك على تطوير خطة

المسؤولين للموظفيين الفساد الدولي. البنك بالتعاون مع معهد

المعهد على ترسيخ معايير لقد عمل جودة عالية منذ تأسيسه، وهو أمر

يصعب تحقيقه في أي مؤسسة تسعى النجاح طويل األمد، وتوفير إلى تحقيق التطوير المستمر، ولكن مع كل هذه

التحديات، فإن بوست واثق من أن المعهد

المعهد “ قدم سينجح في مساعيه. للمواطنين، مسبوق وغير جديدا شيئا

وها قد رأوا اآلن نجاح هذه الفكرة، ال قد للمشاركة”. يتقدمون فإنهم

العالمية األفكار “تبني مفهوم يكون أنه إال جديدا، مفهوما محليا” وتطبيقها

للبدء قد يمثل كل ما تحتاجه عمان الذي الصحيح بالشكل والتطور بالنمو

قاطنيها. يهم

إربد المحلي في المجتمع مشاركة


موضوع

ومدير المعهد ، السيد جيري بوست، فإن المعهد كان المجتمع مع نشاطات تفاعل

البلديات بدءا بموظفي مثمرا وفاعال، المعهد ينمي حيث بالمواطنين، وانتهاء

والملكية باإلنتماء حسا وبشكل سريع عند المدينة والمشاركة في مستقبل

هؤالء. وقد عقد المعهد عددا من الندوات، البلديات شارك في بعضها موظفو

التحديات القدرة على تحديد ممن لديهم “ نقوم السيد بوست المختلفة. ويضيف

البلديات، لموظفي الندوات بتنظيم المواضيع ونتوجه لهم بالسؤال حول أهم

العملية هذه للمواطن. بالنسبة بعد يمكننا تساعدنا في عملنا، حيث

ذلك أن نطلب من البلدية ترشيح بعض للتحدث المجتمعات تلك بين األسماء من

“. وبالفعل، إليهم والعمل معهم المجتمع فقد شهد مستوى مشاركة

تفاعال غير متوقع وال المعهد بنشاطات فإن تشجيع الحال، مسبوق. وبطبيعة

بالسهل، ليس أمر الشعبية المشاركة إذ يتسم البعض بحالة من االمباالة أو

المشكلة، ولحل هذه السلبي. التفاعل قدم المعهد طرحا بسيطا يتمثل في

الشعور على المواطنين فلحمل الملكية، بأهمية دورهم في تحديد مجريات األمور، ال بد أن يشعروا بأن أصواتهم مسموعة،

“ مقدرة ومحترمة. المدير لشؤون وتشرح هانية مرقة نائب الملكية “ تغير األبحاث والتواصل قائلة:

الناس، بالمسؤولية من حياة واالحساس

الوثيقة، فكرة المواطنة تتعدى وحينها ومن األمثلة الناجحة على ذلك، وسط

الرينو تحديدا( المدينة وجبل عمان )شارع فكل ذلك تحقق من خالل القاطنين

أنفسهم، أمثال السيد زيد قسوس، الذي قدم إضافات هائلة!” وتضيف مرقة، “في إحدى الندوات في مدينة اربد، وصل عدد

1000 مواطن، كان من الحضور إلى أكثر من بينهم األطفال الذي جاؤوا بملء إرادتهم،

ولعلها كانت المرة األولى التي يدلون مدينتهم. بآرائهم حول مستقبل فيها

واألطفال الشباب المعهد جيل يستهدف على وجه الخصوص، ويتم تحفيز األطفال العمل اإليجابي عبر ورشات التفاعل على

لديهم، بالمدينة المعرفة لتنمية حس زينب الفنانة المثال عملت فعلى سبيل

فيضي مع طاقم معهد عمان مؤخرا و المجتمع بالمشاركة مع ثمانية أطفال من

تأليف قصة تدور أحداثها المحلي على حول عمان. في “لغز الطيارة الورقية”،

المدينة لشراء التجول في يحاول طفالن المطاف بهما وينتهي لجدهما، هدية

إلى جدهما. بتتبع طيارة ورقية تقودهما هذا الكتاب ، الذي سيتم توزيعه في

التربية و التعليم، جميع مدارس وزارة لتنمية وتطوير أداة متميزة يمثل

بالمدينة في سن مبكر مما اإلهتمام الى تنمية فئة فتية عمانية تملك سيؤدي المدينة يتم توارثه عبر إلى حسا باالنتماء

. األجيال في عملية طبيعية وتلقائية

المدينة، المحلي في تزايد االهتمام ومع الكوادر البشرية يصبح ظهور جيل من في مجال تخطيط وحاكمية المدن أمرا إلى حتميا. وبذلك يسعى معهد عمان

الموظفين نخبة من ببناء االستمرار المختصين نستقطب “نحن المؤهلين. العالم ممن يتمتعون انحاء من جميع

المناسبة، ثم نعمل على إشراك بالخبرة الخبرة عنهم” يقول بوست. األردنيين ألخذ

التدريبي ال يعمل فقط النظام “فهذا على زيادة طاقات ومؤهالت اإليدي العاملة

األردنيين ايضا يستقطب ولكنه األردنية، بالذكاء الخارج ممن يتمتعون في

والخبرة والحس الوطني ، فنحن نود أن العقول نتصدى لمشكلة مسألة هجرة

والتي عانى منها األردن طويال. نحن نريد إبقاء األشخاص تصدير المعرفة، ولكن مع زيادة على األردن”. المؤهلين هنا لتطوير

ذلك، يسعى المعهد إلى الحد من هذه المشكلة أمام األجيال القادمة من خالل

األكفاء من برامج تدريبية وتوظيف توفير تخرجهم. قبل الجامعات خريجي

وإلى جانب النجاح ال بد أن يظهر عدد من يتعين على معهد عمان التي العقبات

تجاوزها، يقول السيد بوست: “ أكبر فالعمل اإلنضباط، لدينا هي مشكلة على تحديد سياسة واإللتزام بها هي

أصعب تحد يجب مواجهته”. كما ويعترض العقبات الكثير من المعهد طريق في سبيل تحقيق الشفافية، وقد

الورقيه كتاب لزينب فيضي باالشتراك مع ثمانية أطفال سيتم توزيعه في مشاركة المجتمع : سر الطائرة الحكومه مدارس


المعاصرة و الصحية الحضرية التنمية إن تحتاج إلى مشاركة المجتمع المحلى.

هذه فلسفة أثبتت جدارتها في أهم مدن العالم التي تجذب الناس إليها من كافة

أقطار األرض، و هي أيضا الفلسفة التي الحضرية للتنمية عمان يسعى معهد

محليا. تطبيقها إلى

إن العوائق المؤسسية و الثقافية قد

تؤدي إلى توقف التقدم الصحيح بشكل كلي، وقد تجعل من مشاركة التطوير مهمة عملية المواطنين في

مستحيلة. شبه

الكبرى مخطط أمانة عمان عندما أطلقت عمان قبل بضع سنين، كان هدف

التنمية أال وهو توجيه المشروع واضحا، والقائمة على المستدامة الحضرية

تفعيل دور السكان وإشراكهم في عملية و متطلباتهم. تحقيق بهدف التطوير

بنجاحات هذا اإلستشهاد اليوم يمكننا المشروع ، الذي حاز في عام 2007 على المدن. لتخطيط العالمية الريادة جائزة وبينما يسعى مخطط عمان إلى رسم رؤى وسياسات لعمان حتى عام 2025،

يسعى معهد عمان الذي أسس عام 2008 إلى أهداف وطموحات أبعد مدى.

المفاهيم تطبيق الى يطمح فالمعهد الموروثات الدولية محليا بشكل يعكس

منطلقا المحلية، الثقافية والحاجات تطبيق عالمي، “تفكير من مصطلح

محلي”. وال تقتصر مهمة معهد عمان التقليدي لمؤسسة المفهوم على

إلى تطوير وتطبيق األبحاث، بل تتجاوزها والتخطيط المدينة، الدارة إستراتيجيات حيث المستدامة، والتنمية المجتمعي

المواضيع المعهد عددا من يتناول األراضي، والتخطيط الحضري، إدارة مثل

الحضرية، والحاكمية العامة، والسياسات البيئية. وعلى واإلدارة السياحي والتطوير

الرغم من أن صيت المعهد قد ال يكون شائعا لدى الكثيرين بعد، إال أن أثره في

األردن كبير عبر عدد من المخططات البلد و مخطط منطقة كمخطط وسط

الكبرى. إربد العقبة ومخطط

المؤسسات الى مشاريعه مع وباالضافة يتحقق نجاح معهد عمان فإن المختلفة، من خالل جهوده الرامية إلى تفعيل دور

التطوير. ووفقا لمؤسس المجتمع في

لفريق معهد عمان العالمية الخارطة


موضوع

تفكير عالمي، تطبيق محليمن اكثر ما يميز مدينة عن أخرى أو منطقة عن أخرى هو حسن أو ضعف التخطيط. ولعل مقارنة بين شارع الوكاالت و غيره من الشوارع أحادية

اإلتجاه في منطقة الصويفية لهو شاهد على هذا الفرق.


بقعة ضمء115 عمان تضحك من جديد

يعود للكوميديا عمان مهرجان الثالث للمدينة في موسمه

مشاريع 123 سوق راس العين الحرفي الجديد

121 حديقة عبدون119 الفيصل من جديد

حراك عمان

موضوع 127 مفاهيم عالمية ، مبادرة محليه

قد ال يتعرف الكثيرين على اسم المعهد، إال أن اثره في مدينة

كبير عمان

amman review - january 2011| amman institute

Documents