Elyesh - ODDD ngo founder & director, researcher, sustainable development consultant,
Professor and activist.
"There is momentum throughout the country to make the Lebanese community more
walking, commuting by public transport and cycling-friendly, thereby making them
more viable. But, the actual state composition, strategies, and priorities won’t be
helpful in achieving such objectives on small nor large scale, leaving Byblos, the
oldest inhabited city in the world, to face a rapid and tough development without
evaluating its exposures to risks on social, economical and environmental levels.
Actually, the picturesque coastal city that has long been cherished for its cobbled
streets, charming port and idyllic beaches, is facing serious problems; such as
function gentrification, congestions, pollutions, CO2 emissions, wrong land
developments and strategies implementations, social inequity, etc.
To prove itself as a national and international model on the ongoing transformation
work towards a sustainable resilient city, it’s highly recommended to work on the city
weakest points, to change people behavior and enhance the city transportation
master plan and strategy thus to Optimize the city linkage and accessibility
infrastructure.
It’s all about creating a link between the citizens and the city of Byblos; by mean
connecting them to the adequate spaces and functions of their interest, integrating
smart mobility concepts in a progressive way, and building policies and behavior
change to make the city sustainable and resilient. To achieve such goal, we, ODDD
ngo, a collective of researchers, architects, students, activists and volunteers,
supported by Byblos municipality, decided to take the challenge and show the path.
Due to the lack of reliable data and sources, it was important to base our studies on
the actual context of the city, thus to be present on the ground and among city
inhabitants, officials, visitors, tourists and private sector. After a full year of studies,
surveys, site analysis, researches, questionnaires, car flow measurements and
organizing an international Lab on mobility and sustainability, we were capable of
assessing the main problems and issues the city is facing.
During the intervention in AUB, we will be showing the work in progress we achieved
and discuss the new master plan for the sustainable public transportation strategies
we are proposing for the municipality to adopt."