ABSTRACT
An overview of the 21st century reveals conflicts in cities worldwide with implications for public spaces and their users. A suitable context for investigation is Beirut, Lebanon, which after a 15-year-long war is still witnessing perpetual instabilities, yet efforts to reinstate public spaces continue. This chapter examines the work of one NGO, NAHNOO, whose public space activism contributed to the emancipation of Beirut’s largest urban park, Horsh Beirut, by opening it to the public after a closure of almost 40 years since the 1975 war’s outbreak. This demonstrates a relational approach to public space reinstatement in Beirut’s fragmented society.
