Expertise Area: Environmental Land Use Expert

Heba Allah Khalil

Professional Experience

·       Cairo University, Faculty of Engineering, Giza, Egypt, 2000-current.

Professor of Sustainable Urbanism, Department of Architecture since December 2017.

o Teaching diverse undergraduate & graduate courses including Architecture & Humanities, Architectural Design, Working Drawings & Details, Community Design, Urban Planning, Community Development, Housing & Integrated Urban Systems.

o Principal investigator & team leader with multiple international partnerships in UK, Germany, Sweden, France, Morocco, USA, North Africa & the Arab Region focusing on Green & Healthy Cities, Gender Equity, Land Governance, Urban Metabolism, Resource Efficiency, Urban Climate & Informal Areas Upgrading, with a budget surpassing 1.5 million Euros.

Program Senior Coordinator of the Architectural Engineering & Technology AET program August 2018-current.

o Successfully leading the academic program with 70 courses, 300+ students, 40+ instructors & 70+ teaching assistants, overseeing program strategic planning, budgeting, supervision of education & accreditation.

·       Cairo National University, Giza, Egypt, 2025-current.

Head of Program, the Sustainable Architecture and Urbanism SAU program.

o Successfully initiating and leading the academic program with 58 courses, 100+ students, overseeing program strategic planning, budgeting, supervision of education & accreditation.

·       Chalmers University of Technology, Department of Architecture & Civil Engineering (ACE), Gothenburg, Sweden, 2022-2024

Visiting Professor, GENIE (Gender Initiative for Excellence)

o Contributing to both research & education within different courses in the field of social inclusion, gender equity, resource efficiency & urban microclimate.

·       American University in Cairo AUC, School of Sciences & Engineering, Department of Architectural Engineering, Cairo, Egypt, 2014- 2024.

Adjunct Professor since December 2017.

o Conducting Studios in Contextual Design, Vertical Studio A & B, Senior Project 1 & Senior Project 2.

·       Massachusetts Institute of Technology MIT, Department of Urban Studies & Planning DUSP, Special Program in Urban & Regional Studies SPURS, MA, USA.

Hubert H. Humphrey Fellow, September 2016 – June 2017: Research & teaching activities.

·        Participatory sustainable urban development, housing, informal areas & capacity building expert, 2009-current. Worked for multiple public agencies & international organizations as detailed below:

o VisionRI Connexion Services Private Limited, India: Urban Planning & Design Specialist & Team Leader, leading the team for the development of the Western Area Regional Structure Plan (WARSP), Resilient Urban Sierra Leone Project (RUSLP), Sierra Leone (Oct 2023-present), project funded by the World Bank.

o General Organization of Physical Planning GOPP, Egypt: Housing expert, Shubra Alkhiema city replanning (April 2023-Oct 2024)

 

o GIZ, Egypt: Urban Climate Resilience Expert for developing Local Climate Resilient Action Plan LCR-AP in Kirdasa, Giza, CBUID II, Egypt. (Sept. 2025-present). Climate Resilient Urban Development Expert, Institutional Development for Mainstreaming Climate Resilience & Socially Just Urban Development, for GOPP & UDF, CBUID, Egypt. (Jan 2024 – Nov 2024). Participatory Sustainable Urban Development Expert, developed Local Area Development Plans LADP for 5 unplanned areas, Qaliobya Governorate, within the Participatory Infrastructure Program, Egypt. (Sep 2021-Oct 2022 & Sep 2018-Jun 2020). As a Capacity Development Expert developed a capacity building program for Local Authorities in Cairo & Giza Governorate (defining needs, gaps, job descriptions & required training) within the Participatory Development Programme in Urban Areas (Dec 2013-Aug. 2014).

o World Bank, Washington DC: Urban Consultant for promoting Energy Efficiency in buildings & neighbourhoods in Cote D’Ivoire, Urban & Disaster Risk Reduction Africa group. (Dec 2016-April 2017).

o UN-Habitat, Egypt: Urban Development Consultant in multiple projects including developing the “Strategy for Sustainable Urban Development & Housing in the Arab Countries” for The League of Arab States (2014-2015). As a Housing Expert, developed housing studies & plans within strategic urban plans for 3 cities & city regions in Egypt (2011-2015). Stakeholder Facilitator & Community Liaison expert within the participatory process of strategic urban planning projects (2009-2012).

o General Organization of Physical Planning GOPP, Egypt & The League of Arab States: Informal Areas Development Expert, monitored, evaluated, prepared manuals & conducted a comparative study of Informal Housing Concept in Arab Countries (2009-2010).

·       Associated Consultants Office (Architects, Planners, Engineers), Cairo, Egypt.

Senior Architect & Planner/ Team leader & Housing expert, 2007-2014, lead various multiscale projects.

Architect, Sept. 2000- June 2004, concept, design development & construction drawings for diverse projects.

·       GIZ, Participatory Development Program in Urban Areas, Cairo, Egypt.

Consultant in Community Development, Facilitation & Program Evaluation, May 2004- June 2005, evaluated GIZ projects in Egypt & networked among local CBOs, NGOs & other consultants working in the area.

Selected Publications

Published more than 50 papers in journals, conferences & co-authored books. Samples of latest publications:

·         Khalil, H., Gammaz, S., Yousif, I., Haroun, M., Shahin, D. & Ragab, Y. (2025) Activating Urban Micro-Lungs in Highly Dense Cities: Green and Healthy Corridors in Greater Cairo Region, Cities & Health, https://doi.org/10.1080/23748834.2025.2496011.

·         Reckien, D., Juhola, S., Haque, A. N., Khalil, H. A., Lemos, M. F., Lwasa, S., Niamir, L., Osorio, J. & Visconti, C. (2025). Justice for Resilient Development in Climate-Stressed Cities in W. Solecki, M. Pathak, M. Barata, A. Barau, M. Dombrov, & C. Rosenzweig, ARC3.3 Climate Change and Cities. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009587105.

·         Zahran, R., Bahgat, H., Abd El Aziz, T. & Khalil, H. (2024) Joyful Living Labs – Pedagogical Approach for Urban Design Thinking Soft Skills, IJAR, https://doi.org/10.1108/ARCH-08-2024-0332

 

·         Khalil, H., Ibrahim, A., ElGendy, N., & Makhlouf, N. (2022) Enhancing Livability in Informal Areas: A Participatory Approach to Improve Urban Microclimate in Outdoor Spaces. Sustainability 2022, 14, 6395. https://doi.org/10.3390/su14116395

·         Eissa, Y. & Khalil, H. Urban Climate Change Governance within Centralised Governments: A Case Study of Giza, Egypt, Urban Forum 2022, 33(2), pp. 197–221, https://doi.org/10.1007/s12132-021-09441-9

·         Abdel-Moneim, N.M., Khalil, H.A.E. & Kamel, R.R. (2021) Developing QOL Index for Resettlement Projects of Unsafe Areas in Egypt. Urban Forum, 32(3), pp. 349-371. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12132-021-09419-7.

 

·         Khalil HAEE, Al-Ahwal A. Reunderstanding Cairo through urban metabolism: Formal versus informal districts resource flow performance in fast urbanizing cities. J Ind Ecol. 2021; 25:176–192. https://doi.org/10.1111/jiec.13056

·         Khalil, H., Ibrahim, A., ElGendy, N., & Makhlouf, N. (2018) Could/should Improving the Urban Climate in Informal Areas of Fast Growing Cities be an Integral Part of Upgrading Processes? Case study, Cairo, Urban Climate, 24, pp. 63-79. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.uclim.2018.01.007

·         Khalil, H. & Khalil, E.E. (2015) Energy Efficiency in the Urban Environment, CRC press, Taylor & Francis., https://doi.org/10.1201/b18098


Tata Emmanuel Sunjo

I am an Associate Professor and Head of Civil and Architectural Engineering at the University of Buea, with 11+ years’ experience in climate, environmental governance, disaster risk, and conflict studies. I lead two international research projects on climate adaptation and conflict resolution in Africa.


Alelegn Wenedem Agegnehu

I am Alegn Wenedem Agegnehu (LLB, MSc, LLM, PhD), an Assistant Professor and researcher at the Institute of Land Administration, Bahir Dar University, Ethiopia. I bring more than a decade of academic, policy, and consultancy experience at the intersection of land governance, energy law, and climate change. My research focuses on real property rights, renewable energy regulation, climate finance, carbon markets, and sustainable development. I have led and contributed to numerous interdisciplinary projects related to land policy reform, clean energy transitions, just transition strategies, and Indigenous climate resilience. I have collaborated with organizations including GIZ, IGAD, the African Development Bank (AfDB), and the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD), and have published widely on legal frameworks governing land and energy systems in Africa.


Rose MEDIEBOU CHINDJI

7+ years of experience in land governance, with expertise in gender, land access, and planning. Geographer and Associate Professor. URAMDER coordinator, NELGA Central Africa assistant. Author of scientific publications and speaker at several land-related conferences.