Many cities around the world are confronted with a critical question: on the one hand, they strive to safeguard their historical heritage, while on the other, they must manage the pressures generated by ongoing urbanization. This dual challenge often gives rise to conflicts, both social and spatial in nature.

Such tensions are manifested, for instance, in the clash between the demands of tourism and the needs of local populations, as well as in the friction between nationally constructed identities and the pressures exerted by the globalized economy.

On this basis, the workshop is structured around three main objectives:

• To examine the evolution of the historical urban landscape, as well as the tensions it entails, through the case studies of a major city (Athens) and a smaller urban center (Volos) in Greece.
• To compare these two cases in terms of scale, as well as their national and local significance.
• To discuss parallel case studies situated in diverse cultural contexts, including China, Morocco, and Europe.

Place of Venue: Athens (29/6, 30/6 and 1/7), Volos (2/7, 3/7, 4/7)

Participating Universities

1. University of Thessaly (Greece)
2. National Technical University of Athens (Greece)
3. Budapest University of Technology and Economics (Hungary)
4. Techical University Gheorghe Asachi of  Iasi (Romania)
5. Beijing University of Civil Engineering and Architecture, China
6. Euromed University, Dept. of Architecture, Morocco