The Center for the Study of the Built Environment (CSBE) is a non-profit, private study and research institution that aims at addressing the challenges that affect the built environment in Jordan and beyond. The built environment is defined in a comprehensive manner to include ..... more
We are pleased to announce the launch of a new version of the website for the Center for the Study of the Built Environment (CSBE). The new website will provide for improved and easier navigation.
As we have not completely finalized the transition to the website, we ask for your understanding and patience. If you have any questions or suggestions, or if you come across any missing content or broken links, please let us know.
Omrania and Associates and the Center for the Study of the Built Environment (CSBE) are happy to announce the 2013 sixth cycle of The Omrania l CSBE Student Award for Excellence in Architectural Design. The full announcement is available on the Award's newly-revamped dedicated website. (www.omraniacsbeaward.org).
How may we best manage and conserve our scarce water resources? Read Nourhan Al Kurdi's April Moustadam article, "Who Owns the Clouds?" to know more about issues related to water access, scarcity, and resourses in Jordan and around the world. The article, which is now available on the CSBE website, is the fifth of Nourhan's monthly series that deals with issues of sustainability in Jordan and beyond.
We are happy to announce that the 2002 publication “Designing a Play Environment with Children at Sahab,” prepared by Diana Omet with Mohammad al-Asad, is now available on the new CSBE website.
This publication deals with Diana Omit‘s experience in examining and implementing some of the ideas she had explored in her master's thesis on children's play environments through designing a play environment for and with a group of children at the PBC children’s club in the Sahab area of Amman.
We are happy to announce that a feature on CSBE activities and publications has been added to the recently-launched website of the Modern Heritage Observatory (www.modernheritageobservatory.org), under the Virtual Gallery section (http://goo.gl/FDv0q). The section showcases the collections and activities of the Modern Heritage Observatory - MoHO network members.
We are happy to announce that the Prezi presentation, “CSBE's contribution to the Instituting Water Demand Management in Jordan Project (IDARA),” is now available on the CSBE website.
The presentation explains CSBE's contribution to the Instituting Water Demand Management in Jordan Project (IDARA). In addition to designing and implementing a number of water-conserving parks in Jordan, CSBE's contribution to the project included developing short films, an architectural competition, publications, training courses, and capacity-building activities relating to water-conserving landscapes.
A complete high-resolution version of the film "Architectural Memories: The Student Years" is now available online. The 35-minute film explores the subject of architectural education. It features interviews with nineteen architects representing diverse age groups and training backgrounds. In these interviews, they talk about memorable student experiences that have helped form them as architects. The film was first screened at the fifth-cycle ceremony of the Omrania | CSBE Student Award for Excellence in Architectural Design, which took place at the American University of Sharjah on December 5, 2012.
Also, a 50-minute video has been put together about the Omrania | CSBE Student Award for Excellence in Architectural Design fifth-cycle ceremony. It features the opening remarks made at the ceremony, the film (except for the credits at the end), and the awarding of prizes to the winning students.
A set of Best Management Practices Guides on water and energy efficiency in both Arabic and English are now available on the CSBE website. The guides include the following:
Office Buildings Water Use Efficiency Guide
Hospitals Water Use Efficiency Guide
Hotels Water Use Efficiency Guide
Utilities Strategic Communication Guide
The guides have been produced as part of the Instituting Water Demand Management in Jordan Project (IDARA), which was funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and carried out in association with the Ministry of Water and Irrigation.
We are happy to announce our new CSBE Films website page. This page features a collection of films that CSBE has produced. The films available on the page so far address topics including the Omrania l CSBE Student Award for Excellence in Architectural Design, water-conserving landscapes, and Jordanian innovators. Additional films will be added to the page as they come out.
This 2007 report summarizes the results of a survey conducted by CSBE under the Instituting Water Demand Management in Jordan Project (IDARA), which was funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). The survey aimed at exploring the public's expectations of public parks in terms of functional requirements, recreational needs, and aesthetic appeal. Opinions about existing public parks and park services were sought, as well as aesthetic impressions of natural and designed landscapes.
The survey also aimed at discovering whether the public is aware of the concept of water-wise landscaping, and whether water-wise landscapes offers acceptable solutions to them. Looking into the public's aesthetic preferences for water-wise vs. water-consuming landscapes was also part of the inquiry.
The Landscape Water Use Efficiency Guide was produced by CSBE as part of the Instituting Water Demand Management in Jordan Project (IDARA), which was funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). The guide provides considerable information about the efficient use of water in the design, installation, management, and maintenance of urban landscapes in Jordan, whether new or existing, public or private. Its primary focus is on recreational parks, street medians, and traffic circles. It also applies to large urban landscapes found in conjunction with hotels, universities, hospitals, and some residences.
Potential users of this guide include municipalities, water utilities, NGOs and other organizations implementing water demand management programs, and landscape professionals, including landscape architects and designers, landscape installers, maintenance staff, and irrigation professionals.
Copyright ©2012 CSBE
