Main Content
Date of lecture: October 1st, 2025
ABSTRACT
In the age of the Anthropocene, cities are expanding, technologies are outpacing regulations, inequalities are widening, and the climate is shifting with intensifying urgency. Yet, the essence of a city (its streets, food, gardens, and cultural rhythms) reminds us why societies long for safer, more meaningful, and more beautiful everyday lives.
This lecture examines how landscape architecture and urban design can serve as vital tools for resilience. By integrating climate adaptation, community well-being, and the stewardship of natural and cultural heritage, blue–green infrastructure offers pathways toward more sustainable and livable futures. Drawing on published design projects and research, Dr. Anne Gharaibeh will highlight the economic, political, ecological, and social barriers that shape implementation, as well as the practical challenges of embedding blue–green systems in urban environments.
The lecture also emphasizes the role of educators and practitioners in thinking systemically, acting responsibly, and fostering “wall-less studios” where students engage directly with communities and decision-makers. Such approaches underscore the potential for guiding urban transformations toward futures that are resilient, equitable, and profoundly human.
BIO
Anne Gharaibeh, Ph.D., is a Visiting Professor of Landscape Architecture at Rutgers University and former Dean of the College of Architecture and Design at Jordan University of Science and Technology (JUST). She holds graduate degrees in planning and landscape architecture from Texas Tech University and the University of Pennsylvania, as well as a Bachelor of Science in Architecture with honors from JUST.
Her teaching and research focus on urban resilience, blue–green infrastructure, and sustainable land-use planning, and she has mentored students across the Middle East and the United States. In practice, she has advised municipalities in Jordan and contributes to national initiatives through her role on the Economic Development and Modernization climate change and planning development teams of Jordan’s Royal Court. Her work has been recognized with the Shoman Prize for Researchers in Urban Planning and the Second Prize for the design of King Abdullah II Urban Park in Irbid, Jordan.
RESEARCH
Dr. Gharaibeh’s scholarship advances climate resilience through integrated approaches to landscape architecture and planning. She has published widely in international, peer-reviewed journals on urban growth modeling, climate-adaptive design, ecological connectivity, and regional economic resilience. Her pioneering application of artificial intelligence to urban growth assessment is widely cited, offering innovative tools for data-driven planning.
Alongside her academic research, Dr. Gharaibeh has led applied projects on urban redevelopment, heritage conservation, and climate adaptation for municipalities in Jordan. Her recent work explores rain gardens, blue–green corridors, and spatial planning frameworks for resilience, in collaboration with national agencies, the United Nations, and international academic networks. Recognized for bridging science, design, and community engagement, she continues to pursue cross-disciplinary partnerships that deliver practical and equitable solutions for climate-resilient urban futures.