Fellowship Received: 2018
Academic Supervisor: Hiroto Kobayashi
Academic Achievements, Social Engagement Initiatives:
While deeply interested in preserving built heritage and disseminating its history, I was a member of the 'Rabat-Salé mémoire' association. During that time, I acted as an architectural heritage volunteer guide to safeguard and promote my hometown's heritage, whether it is urban, cultural or social. Now, I am an organization committee member of the AIAC international architecture competition, which aims to challenge international architecture students to design proposals for urban heritage sites. This year, I helped organize AIAC in Marrakesh, thus spreading knowledge and awareness about Moroccan urban-architectural heritage.
Aqil Cheddadi is a PhD candidate and a lecturer at Keio University SFC. He received his architect’s diploma and professional licensure from the National School of Architecture in Morocco and later obtained his master’s in Media & Governance at Keio University. Aqil’s background spans various disciplines: urbanism, architectural design, environmental studies, informatics, and linguistics. His doctoral research investigates the use of algorithmic design to optimise urban form, focusing on Informal urban tissues of Morocco, including historic towns and shantytowns.
Brief Summary of Support Program Activities (SRG):
Title of the activity: Assessing Urban and Architectural Space in Moroccan Neighbourhoods: A Comparative Study on the Implications of Anti-Adaptive Design.
We investigate Moroccan neighbourhoods’ adaptation to environmental, socioeconomic and cultural change factors. We identify these factors and their impact on space to assess the evolution of communities in cities with different backgrounds. We will conduct ethnographic and architectural surveys in historical, formal and informal Moroccan neighbourhoods. We aim to evaluate and compare the degree to which they are (Anti)Adaptive, meaning they cannot adapt to evolving environmental constraints and their users’ needs, resulting in long-term deterioration. The study correlates top-down planning policies with the realities of practising space to determine long-term implications on urban landscapes.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/aqilcheddadi/
