Living in Lebanon in the past few years (or decades) is like running an obstacle course; a continuous struggle to adapt to changing and increasingly difficult challenges. Since the days Lebanese civil war, the residents of Lebanon have experimented with solutions and adaptations to deal with crises. The “resilience” of the Lebanese is applauded by many. Nevertheless, managing everyday life weighs heavily on most, and is largely individualized. One of the few spaces where city dwellers come together for the management of some pressing daily life issues is the building committee; the collective of residents in a building that decide on building repairs, energy use, sanitation and hygiene, safety and security, and ‘concierge’ management, among others.
The building is the primary unit around which residents of Beirut organize collectively. It is literally and figuratively the space (a vertical space) in between the private (our homes, our personal spaces) and the public (the street, the shops, and the accumulated garbage). It is the site of intimate collective organizing, defining what the commons constitute and how we choose as city residents to deal with them. Buildings are also centre around which a multiplicity of stakeholders come together. Most buildings in Beirut are also laden with history; taking shelter together during the war, the different infringements on shared space, but also of long-lasting relationships. Old and new buildings and changing ways of dealing with services have meant, for example, that often water tanks and power generators replace play and parking areas. In that sense, the building is a space that portrays the everyday challenges of living in Beirut today, but also the space to witness the many ways in which people come together in community and solidarity, and attempt to innovate in the face of crisis.
We are starting the first phase of an ethnographic collective research that aims at documenting and analysing the crisis-ridden daily lives of residents in the city of Beirut, and the ways in which they individually and collectively negotiate, manage and resist the challenges of a city collapsing. The research takes the building as the primary unit and has the following objectives:
- Document the lived experience of the crisis on the texture of the everyday life of residents in Beirut, and their access to basic rights and services.
- Capture the different life-making coping and resistance strategies, specifically looking for what strategies and collaborations emerge from the cracks of those daily difficulties.
- Probe the possibility that building committees could inform other forms of collective organizing that are broader in scope.
A group of researchers working in a participatory research process are each studying the building in which they reside. Each researcher will be documenting the everyday life of their building and the discussions, challenges and successes related to managing the shared spaces. Researchers might also interview residents where possible, or do further research on the history of the building
The first phase of the research started end April 2023 (partially funded by the Regional Office of the Rosa Luxemburg Foundation in Beirut) as part of a longer research engagement. The first phase applies and tests the methodology and prepares for long-term research once further funding is secured.
We will strive to share learning from this research on our website and other media where possible. We would be happy to hear your thoughts on the research. Please share feedback, comments and suggestions below.