Announcing ISVS-15 : Egypt in 2026
ISVS-15 conference will be held from the 28th - 31st October 2026, hosted by the Galala University of Egypt and the Asian School of Knowledge (ASK) of Sri Lanka. The conference will explore the significance of vernacular in the contemporary world and inspire the young designers to create culturally relevant poetics of spaces and things. ISVS-14 took place within the premises of the HUTECH at its wonderfully articulated academic setting, with an exhibition of design students work. ISVS-14 received 112 paper proposals of which 98 were accepted for presentation. It was a great event marking a milestone in the ISVS international movement. It is predicted that ISVS-15 in Egypt will be even a more significant event with an exhibition of the Work of Hasan Fathy and a workshop on Earth Architecture, offered by the eminent architect Ammar Khammash of Jordon.
For details, please visit https://www.Galala.edu.eg/isvs
Galala City, Egypt and the Historical Momuments
Releveance of Vernacular in the Contemporary World
ISVS-15 will held on the theme 'Releveance of Vernacular in the Contemporary World.' Egypt is full of Vernacular Settlements, Historical Sites, Wild life, Beaches and Nature. There is no better place to continue the journey of ISVS than Egypt, with its breath-taking Historical Monuments, the Vernacular Settlements including those the world reknowned architect Hasan Fathy brough attention of the world to, Nature and unmatched-hospitality. Galala University is indeed one of the best setting for the event, being away from the hustle and bustle of the city. Needless to say, Egypt is one of the world's best places to visit too. ISVS-15 will take place at the Galala University in Egypt. This is earmarked to be one of the most exciting events with an exhibition of the work of Hsana Fathy and visits to the fascinating places such as the Pyramids and the tombs of the ancient Kings and Queens.
Keynote Speaker 1: Prof. Pratush Shankar, Navrachna University, India.
Prof. Pratyush Shankar is an Architect by profession and is presently the Provost and the Dean of School of Environmental Design and Architecture (SEDA), Navrachana University in Vadodara, India. Before joining the Navrachana University, Prof. Pratyush was the Acting Dean of Architecture and Head of the Undergraduate Program at CEPT University where he had taught for more than two decades. He was recently honored as the International Ambassador for the University of Bonn, Germany and was also awarded the Alexander Von Humboldt Senior Fellowship in 2015 -17. He was hosted at the University of Bonn, Germany. His recent publication is with the Oxford university Press is titled “History of Urban Form: India”. He has also authored the book titled “Himalayan Cities: Settlement Pattern, Public Places and Architecture” published by Niyogi Publishers, New Delhi, 2014. He is presently also a Guest Professor at the Mundus Urbano Program at Architecture Faculty, TU Darmstadt, Germany. Pratyush runs a design practice along with his academic work. He was awarded the 22nd J K Cement Architect of the Year award 2013 in Residence Design Category, and has designed and built a large number of residential and commercial buildings in India. He was the Architect of the Year National Award for “Residence for three Artists”, by J K Cement, 2012. In fact, in his early career, he won the ‘Young Designer of the Year’ award in 2000. A Competition by ‘Indian Architect & Builder’, Mumbai, India. He is also the founder of CityLabs India, an initiative to improve urban research, training and raising awareness of the Indian Cities. He was the Creative Lead – Humboldt Residency Program 2023 – Our Precious Resources and Delivered the Humboldt KOSMOS LECTURE in September 2023, Berlin, He has been Honored as the International Ambassador for the University of Bonn, Germany in 2022. And has been Awarded Alexander Von Humboldt Fellowship, Germany in Experienced Researcher category in November 2014-17. He has also been hosted at the Universitat Bonn, Germany and has been Awarded Ford-Asia Fellowship 2008-09 by the Asia Fellowship Foundation, Bangkok for the study titled “Is there something like a Himalayan City” in Nepal.
Keynote Speaker 2: Architect Mariam Alazzeh, Jordon
Mariam Alazzeh, based in Amman, JO, is currently a lecturer at German Jordanian University. Mariam Alazzeh holds a Bachelors degree from the University of Jordon, a Master of Science (Structural Engineering) from Tokushima University, Japan and a Doctor of Philosophy - PhD in Earthen architecture from Université Grenoble Alpes. She is an ardent follower of vernacular architecture and particularly admires the earth buildings. Founder of Erth || Earthen Architecture Specialist |Passionate about earthen architecture and heritage conservation, with a deep appreciation for traditional building techniques and material science, Mariam works at the intersection of architectural conservation, sustainability, and innovation, ensuring that our built heritage remains a living, functional part of the modern world. Through hands-on experimentation, research, and capacity-building initiatives, she strives to bridge the gap between historical knowledge and contemporary practice. Indeed, her work extends beyond heritage conservation—it's about honoring cultural identity, embracing sustainability, and empowering communities through architecture that respects the past while building for the future. She brings experience from previous roles at 'Erth for Earth Architecture and Heritage Studies,' AK Habitat Engineers & Designers, Al Hussein Technical University (HTU) and Université Grenoble Alpes. She has built extensively with earth and understands the true potential of earthen materials in the contemporary world. At this conference, Mariam will share her visions for a better world based on the materiality of the earth.
Keynote Speaker 3 from Egypt is to be announced.
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The Theme
Theme: Relevance of Culture, Traditions and Vernacular Practices in the Contemporary World In an era marked by rapid urbanization, globalization, technological acceleration, and environmental crisis, questions of cultural continuity, identity, sustainability, and resilience have gained renewed urgency. Vernacular traditions—rooted in indigenous knowledge systems, local materials, climatic intelligence, and socio-cultural practices—offer time-tested responses to many contemporary challenges. The central theme of ISVS-15 seeks to critically examine how culture, traditions, and vernacular practices remain relevant, adaptable, and meaningful in today’s world. Rather than viewing vernacular as static, nostalgic, or belonging solely to the past, the seminar positions it as a dynamic, evolving body of knowledge capable of informing contemporary architectural practice, design innovation, policy frameworks, and community-led development. This theme encourages interdisciplinary exploration across architecture, planning, landscape, interiors, craft, fashion, performing arts, food cultures, and everyday practices—recognizing vernacular knowledge as an integrated way of living rather than a singular formal expression. It also invites reflection on how vernacular wisdom can address pressing global concerns such as climate change, sustainability, social equity, cultural homogenization, and loss of identity. The ISVS-15 seminar invites the scholars dealing with vernacular settlements and cultural heritage to explore the numerous ways and means of understanding cultural heritage. These may include oral, verbal as well as manual documentations, not to mention other means such as buildings and structures, manuscripts and traditional ways of keeping the memories of such heritage alive along with the most modern digital technologies. Accordingly, following themes are suggested, but the papers are not limited to these themes. Other innovative papers can also be presented.
Sub Themes
Theme 1: Vernacular Settlements, Traditions, and Culture
Theme 2: Vernacular and Traditional Landscapes
Theme 3: Engaging Traditional Values and Elements in Interiors
Theme 4: Traditional Furniture and Contemporary Innovations
Theme 5: Inventing Contemporary Fashions from Traditional Dresses and Motifs
Theme 6: Conservation of Traditional Heritage and Policies
Theme 7: Traditions of Music and Performing Arts
Theme 8: Earthen Architecture & Sustainable Materials: Bamboo, Straw, and Earth
Theme 9: Manifestations of Traditions and Graphics in Human Settlements
Theme 10: Traditions and Culinary Arts
Theme 11: Vernacular Architecture and Sustainability
Theme 12: Development and Cultural Change
Theme 13: Approaches to Architecture Promoting Traditions and Culture
Theme 14: Rejuvenating Vernacular Architecture through Design: Influence of the works of Hasan Fathy
Theme 1: Vernacular Settlements, Traditions, and Culture
This sub-theme explores the spatial, social, and cultural logic of vernacular settlements shaped by climate, geography, belief systems, and collective memory. Papers may investigate settlement patterns, dwelling typologies, social structures, rituals, and everyday practices that inform the making and inhabitation of vernacular environments, as well as their transformations under modern influences.
Theme 2: Vernacular and Traditional Landscapes
Traditional landscapes embody centuries of interactions between people and Nature. This sub-theme focuses on cultural landscapes such as agricultural systems, water management practices, sacred geographies, pastoral terrains, and indigenous land-use patterns. Contributions may address landscape resilience, ecological balance, and the cultural meanings embedded in traditional environmental practices.
Theme 3: Engaging Traditional Values and Elements in Interiors
Interiors serve as intimate expressions of cultural identity and social values. This sub-theme examines how traditional materials, crafts, spatial hierarchies, symbolism, and sensory qualities inform interior environments. It also invites explorations of how these elements are reinterpreted in contemporary interior design while retaining cultural authenticity.
Theme 4: Traditional Furniture and Contemporary Innovations
Traditional furniture reflects local lifestyles, craftsmanship, ergonomics, and material wisdom. This sub-theme invites studies on indigenous furniture traditions, making techniques, joinery systems, and material cultures, as well as contemporary innovations that reinterpret traditional forms for modern living, production methods, and sustainability goals.
Theme 5: Inventing Contemporary Fashions from Traditional Dresses and Motifs
Clothing and adornment are powerful carriers of cultural narratives. This sub-theme explores how traditional textiles, garments, motifs, weaving techniques, and ornamentation inspire contemporary fashion and design. It encourages discussions on cultural continuity, ethical production, identity, and innovation in fashions rooted in vernacular traditions.
Theme 6: Conservation of Traditional Heritage and Policies
This sub-theme addresses theoretical, methodological, and policy-related dimensions of conserving vernacular and traditional heritage. Contributions may examine conservation philosophies, community participation, legal frameworks, adaptive reuse, heritage economics, and the challenges of safeguarding living traditions in the face of development pressures.
Theme 7: Traditions of Music and Performing Arts
Music, dance, and performances are integral to vernacular cultures and spatial practices. This sub-theme invites interdisciplinary inquiries into how performing arts shape social spaces, rituals, festivals, and collective memory, and how these traditions adapt, survive, or transform in contemporary contexts.
Theme 8: Earthen Architecture & Sustainable Materials: Bamboo, Straw, and Earth
Focusing on material intelligence, this sub-theme examines earthen construction and renewable materials such as bamboo and straw, emphasizing their climatic responsiveness, low carbon footprint, and cultural significance. Papers may address traditional building techniques, modern adaptations, structural innovations, and policy challenges in mainstreaming these materials.
Theme 9: Manifestations of Traditions and Graphics in Human Settlements
This sub-theme explores visual expressions of culture in settlements—such as murals, symbols, signage, patterns, colors, scripts, and craft-based graphics. It examines how graphic traditions contribute to identity, legibility, storytelling, and sense of place in both traditional and contemporary environments.
Theme 10: Traditions and Culinary Arts
Food traditions are deeply tied to geography, climate, social practices, and cultural memory. This sub-theme investigates vernacular culinary practices, food spaces, traditional cooking techniques, and rituals, as well as their role in sustaining cultural identity, livelihoods, and community cohesion.
Theme 11: Vernacular Architecture and Sustainability
This sub-theme focuses on the intrinsic sustainability embedded in vernacular architecture, including passive design strategies, resource efficiency, adaptability, and long-term resilience. Contributions may analyze vernacular principles as models for sustainable design in contemporary architectural practice and urban development.
Theme 12: Development and Cultural Change
Modern developments often bring profound cultural transformations. This sub-theme critically examines the interface between development, modernization, globalization, and cultural change, questioning how vernacular traditions negotiate continuity and transformation, and how development can be reimagined to be culturally sensitive and inclusive.
Theme 13: Approaches to Architecture Promoting Traditions and Culture
This sub theme promoted the examination of the architects whose approaches to contemporary architecture are derived from the nuances of cultural practices of the ordinary people, vernacular and traditions. The papers can examine and reveal the already established or young architects work that include earth and straw, buildings, bamboo and other traditional materials as well those who employ traditional ideas and values.
Theme 14: Rejuvenating Vernacular Architecture through Design: Influence of the works of Hasan Fathy
This sub theme invites the academics and scholars in Egypt in particular to examine how the earliest interventions of Hasan Fathy in the recognition and promotion of Vernacular in Egypt has had far reaching impact upon the conceptualization and practice of architecture in Egypt as well as elsewhere in the world. The authors are requested to ascertain how developments in their countries have been inspired by the works of Hasan Fathy and the attention he brought to the significance of culture and traditions, along with the others such as Amos Rapoport, Susan Denyer, Paul Oliver and others.
An Invitation to Participate
ISVS-15 invites those who are involved in studying vernacular things and settings to focus attention to any of the above sub-themes under the main theme to propose research papers and presentations to be shared at the Seminar in Vietnam. This conference aims to foster critical dialogue, collaborative exploration, and creative experimentation, encouraging participants to examine how the translation of traditions can produce new design vocabularies that are meaningful, ethical, and contextually relevant. It is a call to reimagine the past as a source of innovation—where tradition is not preserved merely for nostalgia, but transformed to address the pressing questions of our time. Through a series of keynote lectures, academic presentations, design case studies, exhibitions, and panel discussions, the seminar invites architects, urbanists, planners, researchers, educators, and students to explore the intersection of vernacular heritage and their relevance in the contemporary world.
Publication
ISVS-15 will produce digital proceedings. Moreover, selected papers from the ISVS-15 will have the opportunity to be published in indexed journals such as the ISVS e-journal, and Archi-Texts e-jouranl or the SAAAK e-journal further contributing to the international academic discourse. We invite all the academics from around the world to be part of this significant event, exploring, exchanging, and expanding the discourse on culture, traditions and vernacular practices and contribute to advance the scholarship on vernacular and simultaneously contribute to making a wholesome world.
Please use the abstract template to prepare the abstracts. Once the abstracts are reviewed and accepted, authors must develop the final papers, which will be reviewed/revised/accepted for presentations.
Please make all the efforts to attend the Conference in person. You will visit the villages of Hasan Fathy, the Pyramids and all the wonders of the world: an opportunity you will not have again. You will also enjoy traditional Egyptian hospitality during your visit.
For any inquiries, please contact Ranjith Dayaratne at conference@isvshome.com