Impact case study database

Brutalism is an architectural style of the 1960s-70s that has long been misunderstood, hated, and threatened with demolition - a plight paralleled by the threat of extinction that Victorian architecture had faced in the 1950s-60s. It comprises large concrete buildings that have often been dismissed as “ugly”, “crude”, “cheap” and “inhuman”. Calder and Malathouni’s research has enhanced cultural understandings of Brutalist architecture. Malathouni and Calder have engaged closely with stakeholders in important Brutalist buildings including Preston Bus Station, Royal College of Physicians London, National Theatre, and Barbican Estate. Their work has saved key buildings from demolition, enabled a key model of retention for Brutalist buildings, and influenced national press and international conservation organisations to champion Brutalism as a significant, important style.

Creating a landmark case in post-war concrete architectural heritage, and offering inspiration to heritage activists

Malathouni’s research (3.1) changed the future of Preston Bus Station and made it a landmark case in post-war architectural heritage. The building had a notorious past as regards the heritage protection of Brutalist buildings: since the late 1990s its listing had been strongly supported by heritage experts (Historic England and the Twentieth Century Society), but twice rejected by politicians. Malathouni’s research re-opened the listing case for a third time, and after fifteen years under the threat of demolition, the building was listed at Grade II.

Just one month prior to Malathouni’s listing application, Architecture Minister Ed Vaizey had noted how unlikely it was to have the listing case for the Bus Station reopened (5.2.i). Re-opening the listing case, less than two years from the previous [second] listing assessment, English Heritage (now Historic England) called this “an exceptionally unusual case” (5.2.ii). Normally at least five years should pass between successive listing assessments. The rapid re-opening of the case was due to Malathouni’s research (3.1) offering new information not previously taken into consideration in the earlier listing assessments.

The significance of the listing was commemorated by the “Heritage Alliance Heroes Award 2014” awarded to the “Save Preston Bus Station” campaign, the only time a twentieth-century building has won this award (5.3). A Professor at UCLAN, who was a fellow campaigner for “Save Preston Bus Station” and a Preston resident, acknowledged Malathouni’s research. as the “killer blow” of the campaign (5.6.iv).

The case offered inspiration to heritage activists and both Calder and Malathouni have been invited to offer their experience to other campaigns in support of Brutalist buildings, including the Birmingham Central Library (5.4.i) and Dunelm House, Durham (5.4.ii).

Exemplar collaborations between heritage professionals and grassroots initiatives

The listing of Preston Bus Station has been the subject of much discussion amongst heritage practitioners. It featured at events involving national and international heritage organisations such as ICOMOS (the International Council on Monuments and Sites – a professional association that works for the conservation and protection of cultural heritage places around the world), in Chandigarh, India (5.5.i); and ICOMOS-ISC20C (ICOMOS International Scientific Committee on 20^th-Century Heritage), World Monuments Fund, Getty Conservation Institute (the world-leading conservation organisation based in Los Angeles, CA, USA, and lead on the “Conserving Modern Architecture Initiative”), Historic England, RIBA, and Twentieth Century Society, in London, UK (5.5.ii). The Head of Buildings and Sites for The Getty Conservation Institute has provided a testimonial “in support of the research and advocacy work done by Christina Malathouni for the Preston Bus station”, where she has recognised its listing as “a formative case study” and explained that she has used it “as an example … in various training courses, lecture [ sic] and in decisions on 20^th century conservation” (5.7.i). The Director of The Twentieth Century Society sees the listing of the bus station as having “a much broader role” which she related to an “international re-appraisal of Brutalism” and to increasing funding for Brutalist buildings by international heritage bodies such as The Getty (5.6.c).

Malathouni worked side by side with heritage and architecture professionals as well as lay campaigners, as demonstrated by the diverse “Save Preston Bus Station” group included in the “Heritage Alliance Heroes Award 2014” (5.3). Malathouni’s research is therefore recognised as providing heritage professionals with a new exemplar about collaborative working across professional and grassroots initiatives. The pre-eminent expert in post-war architectural heritage in England and Senior Architectural Investigator for Historic England acknowledged how Malathouni worked closely with both heritage professionals and lay campaigners: “Christina [Malathouni] galvanised grass roots support in Preston and that has continued since the listing, there were then local groups joining in the campaign.” (5.6.a) Malathouni’s approach was also hailed by the Director of the Institute of Historic Building Conservation (IHBC) as “an exemplar approach” which can and should be “used as the hallmark for how you should proceed in these situations” (5.6.b).

Following its listing, Preston Bus Station was successfully refurbished, winning four RIBA Awards and one RTPI Award and leading the award- winning architecture critic of The Observer to hail Preston Bus Station as “the leading exemplar of retention” (5.7.iv). The direct connection to Malathouni’s research as the enabler of the listing of the building, was highlighted at the official re-opening of the building following its successful refurbishment, in July 2018, when the Lancashire County Council Leader declared: “Thankfully it was listed, which effectively saved it. … And it is going to serve Preston and the people of Lancashire for generations to come.” (5.9.iii)

Shifting public opinion – from negative to positive – and supporting custodians to manage and celebrate Brutalist buildings

Calder and Malathouni’s research has enabled members of the general public and custodians of Brutalist buildings to understand their architectural value and change their opinion from negative to positive. Most Brutalism books have been picture-books, whereas Calder’s research (3.4, 3.5) and outreach activities (5.7.ii, 5.8.ii) provide accessible explanations of the artistic significance and technical achievements of Brutalist buildings which enable general audiences to re-consider their negative perceptions of these buildings. Comments received via the Royal College of Physicians programme evaluation for Open House and London Festival of Architecture events confirm this: “It challenged my thinking of architecture. I’ve often looked at buildings from the 50’s and 60’s with distaste ... I was lucky enough though to attend the tour hosted by Mr Calder and found it fascinating.” (5.7.ii). The award-winning architecture critic of The Observer places Calder’s writings and research, especially his book (3.5), in a “leading role” in the “shift from negative to positive” in the appreciation of Brutalism (5.7.iv).

Similar changes in the attitudes of non-experts have been noted in the case of Preston Bus Station. A series of public events at the Harris Museum in Preston – partly funded by Arts Council England – mark the public interest in Brutalism and Preston Bus Station with 15,912 recorded visitors to the main exhibition over approximately two months (65 days), an average of 245 visitors per day, as well as another 638 visitors to supplementary events (5.5.iii, 5.5.iv). The building has actually become part of everyday parlance. A Senior Architectural Investigator of Historic England reflected on how you hear about it in the most unusual settings, including a broadcast cricket commentary, and noted that “without Christina’s work that would not have happened” (5.6.a).

Overall, Brutalism and Preston Bus Station feature in numerous articles and other media coverage (5.8, 5.9). Calder’s book has been reviewed and listed in a wide range of outlets and is regularly included in discussions about Brutalism (5.8.i). The media interest in Preston Bus Station has been following its listing saga from the early 2000s to its renewed threat and third (successful) listing application in 2012 and other positive developments enabled by its listing in 2013, such as its successful refurbishment, its various awards, and the celebrations for its 50^th anniversary. This interest is unmistakeable in local media but expands far beyond that. Various aspects of the bus station’s history have featured in national and international media, and in leading outlets of the architectural press. In particular, the renewed threat of demolition in December 2012 and Malathouni’s third listing attempt were closely followed for over nine months - until the listing decision was announced in September 2013 and beyond. Regular reports appeared in the BBC News website, The Guardian, Building Design, and Lancashire Evening Post, whereas key developments were also reported by Channel 4, The Telegraph, The Independent, RIBA Journal, Architects’ Journal (5.9.i), and also featured in international architectural websites, such as World Architecture News and Dezeen (5.9.i, pp. 4, 5). Its cause was supported by prominent figures of the architectural profession, including the then President of the RIBA (5.10.i), and internationally renowned architects such as Lord Richard Rogers (5.10.ii, 5.10.iii) and Rem Koolhaas (5.10.i). Following its listing, the building was repeatedly included in various “top lists”, such as “the ten best underrated buildings in Britain” (5.9.ii) or “England’s most unusual listed buildings” (5.9.i, p. 5), the former presenting the Bus Station’s listing as part of “a sea-change in attitudes towards 20th-century architecture in recent years” (5.9.ii).

Changing the way in which architecture critics and journalists think and write about Brutalism

Finally, Calder and Malathouni’s research has changed how professional architecture critics and journalists think and write about Brutalism. That is, non-academic experts who approach Brutalism from a strong knowledge base about architectural styles, theories and individual buildings have embraced Calder and Malathouni’s research for their own professional development. A prominent journalist and editor of RIBA Journal acknowledges Calder’s monograph (3.5) as the principal source on Brutalism (5.7.ii), and a leading writer and broadcaster on architecture notes that he has used Calder’s monograph “to deepen and enrich my own understanding of Brutalism” (5.7.v). These distinguished critics and journalists also acknowledge Preston Bus Station as a key Brutalist building (5.7.ii, 5.7.v) and Malathouni’s research was crucial for national newspaper articles and a BBC2 film on the bus station (5.7.iv, 5.7.v).

Our research provides scientific underpinning for the creation of new and revised Standards on building acoustics at a European and International level. These Standards are used to ensure the protection of health, welfare and privacy for the occupants, and a fair and accurate comparison of buildings and building products for construction companies and manufacturers. The main beneficiaries are test laboratories, consultants, manufacturers and government regulators that assess and regulate the acoustic performance of buildings such as dwellings, hotels, schools and hospitals. Our publications are referenced in the bibliographies of these Standards [5.1]. Our input is confirmed by the Chairperson for European Standardisation on building acoustics: “ *In CEN TC126, standards are improved and developed by building consensus between technical experts, industry and manufacturers. At the committee stage, this often relies on the availability of validated procedures/approaches from rigorous research such as that which is provided by the ARU at Liverpool.*” [5.2].

In terms of reach, the Standards are adopted by Standardization bodies from 34 European countries and 164 countries worldwide. Our active participation in Standards committees and Working Groups ensures our research addresses the needs of industry and government stakeholders. The Convenor for International Standardisation on building acoustics confirms our influence: “ *The work by the Acoustics Research Unit plays a significant role in shaping and improving Standards on building acoustics, and I look forward to this continuing in the future.*” [5.3].

Hopkins is Chair of the British Standards committee on building acoustics (2009–Present). Due to his research on sound transmission in buildings, he was appointed as Convenor of European and International Standards groups on the measurement of flanking transmission (2009–Present), and Convenor of 3 International Standards project groups on field measurement of sound insulation (2009–Present). Currently there are 10 International/European Standards which reference his sole-author research monograph ‘Sound insulation’ (2007) as a key text with 5 of these Standards being published during this REF period [5.1]. Due to his extensive research on the topic, Gibbs is the main contributor to the working group on the measurement of structure-borne sound power input from machinery into building structures (2013–Present).

Increasing the accuracy and practicality of field sound insulation measurements

Sound insulation testing is carried out according to European/International Standards to ensure traceability. The UK construction industry carries out approximately 35,000 field sound insulation tests per annum, providing a direct income of approximately GBP10,000,000 per annum for acoustic consultants. This is in addition to income of approximately GBP53,000,000 that UK acoustic consultants earn using these Standards in consultancy work on building acoustics.

An important driver for the revision of Standards on the measurement of sound insulation in the field (EN ISO 16283 Part 1 (2014), Part 2 (2018) and Part 3 (2016)) came from consultants and test laboratories who wanted to be inside the receiving room to (a) monitor background noise on construction sites due to high intermittent levels of noise and (b) reduce the amount of measurement equipment and cabling. The main driver from regulators and the building industry was the need for improved accuracy because 24 European countries use these tests to confirm compliance with National building regulations with mandatory testing in 7 of these countries. In addition, 11 countries have acoustic classification schemes for dwellings which require accurate field tests to ensure that dwellings are reported in the correct quality class because this affects house prices. To address these competing demands for practicality and accuracy, Hopkins used theory he had developed on the efficacy of manual scanning [3.3] to identify 4 manual scanning patterns that gave accurate estimates of the spatial-average sound pressure level and minimised body movement that might generate noise (particularly walking). These were incorporated in the revised Standards to allow hand-held microphones or sound level meters to be used to sample the sound field with the measurer inside the room.

The reach of these Standards outside the building industry is evidenced by ISO 16283 (Parts 1 and 2) being used by the world’s largest maritime classification society, DNVGL, to measure sound insulation between technical rooms, work rooms and cabins on ships and offshore oil platforms [5.4]. This is a requirement to obtain a class certificate for their classified fleet of over 11,000 vessels and mobile offshore units.

Introducing new measurement methods to quantify the vibrational output of machinery Until 2009 there was no generally accepted procedure to measure the vibrational power output of building machinery. This changed when the reception plate method developed by Gibbs was used as the basis for EN 15657-1. However, this was limited to machinery installed in heavyweight buildings. To extend the application of the reception plate approach to any building (including lightweight timber-frame), our research led to it being superseded by a new Standard, EN 15657 in 2017, which applies to all types of building. This was achieved by incorporating the two-stage reception plate method that was developed and validated by Gibbs. This new Standard allows manufacturers of heating, ventilation, domestic appliances etc. to measure their products in laboratories and estimate if they will comply with noise limits after installation.

The reception plate was originally required to be resiliently isolated. To help test laboratories design the isolation for their reception plate, EN 15657 refers to research from Hopkins on using finite element modelling to predict the effect of different resilient materials. However, some test laboratories wanted to reduce costs by using an existing concrete floor that was bonded to other walls and floors. Research by Hopkins showed that this would give unacceptable errors. To circumvent this problem, Gibbs [3.2] developed an alternative approach using a calibrated structure-borne sound source; this was also implemented in EN 15657.

Through the adoption of our research, and its inclusion in EN 15657, at least 10 laboratories and manufacturers across Europe now have reception plates for product development. One of these is the globally operating Geberit Group, a European leader in the field of sanitary products who state: “ The *ARU research to develop the reception plate method that led to EN 15657 has significantly improved our acoustical measurement and prediction capability for Geberit products.*” and “ *For Geberit’s building physics laboratory, the improved experimental and prediction capabilities that result from the reception plate approach will give us an extra competitive advantage in the market.*” [5.5].

Extending measurement methods to give input data for prediction models

At the design stage, consultants and industry need accurate prediction models to assess whether a building is likely to comply with the sound insulation requirements. These models often require input data that is determined from acoustic measurements on a wide range of constructions. In 2015, Hopkins started revising EN ISO 10848 Parts 1–4 to (a) extend their application to field measurements of flanking transmission, lightweight buildings, machinery noise and low-frequencies and (b) improve the accuracy of measurement procedures in the laboratory and the field; these Standards were published in 2017. For heavyweight walls and floors these Standards required accurate measurement of the structural reverberation time to quantify the vibration reduction index that is needed to predict the overall sound insulation. Research by Hopkins [3.4] defined a new procedure to evaluate these reverberation times which reduced the errors; this was included in Part 1. Hopkins’ research predicting the errors in the vibration reduction index with different laboratory and field situations formed additional guidance in Part 4. To extend the standard to lightweight buildings, a calibrated structure-borne sound source and the new concept of a transmission function [3.6] were incorporated into Part 1 to give industry a simpler model for the prediction of machinery noise, particularly in lightweight buildings.

Improving the accuracy of prediction models for heavyweight buildings

The original prediction model for sound transmission in heavyweight buildings in EN ISO 12354 Part 1 used empirical relationships for the vibration reduction index. Hopkins (2014) identified 2 significant errors in these relationships. These were caused by (a) not considering all types of structure-borne sound waves and (b) the empirical relationships being based on experimental data which had bias errors due to the situations in which they were measured. To remedy this, Hopkins and co-workers in Belgium, Spain and France collaborated to develop more accurate relationships using numerical models that extended down to low-frequencies [3.5]. This was needed because previous changes to European and International Standards on field sound insulation measurements introduced more repeatable and reproducible low-frequency measurement procedures. The revised version of EN ISO 12354 Part 1 with these new relationships was published in 2017. This improved the accuracy of sound insulation predictions and reduced the risk of overestimating the actual sound insulation in the field at the design stage [3.5]. The main beneficiaries of these changes are acoustic consultants worldwide who use the model in the acoustic design of heavyweight buildings. The prediction model is implemented in commercial software and sold by 8 International companies [5.6].

Developing a new rating procedure for impact sound insulation

Korea and Japan currently assess impact sound insulation using measurements with a heavy impact source, and there was interest from test laboratories in using this source in Europe. Although the measurement procedures were included in International Standards, there was no internationally agreed method to calculate a single-number rating that could be used to assess annoyance. This rating was needed to identify acceptable levels of impact sound insulation for building regulations. Research using subjective evaluation studies by Lee assessed different ratings developed in Korea and Japan to identify the most suitable rating method. This rating is now included in the draft EN ISO 717-2 which has been approved by international vote.

The main strand of impact is on shaping heritage policy implementation through planning and design interventions with complementary strands of impact on culture and creativity, practitioners and professional services and society.

Shaping heritage policy implementation through master planning:

Bandyopadhyay and Quattrone have developed ten heritage management masterplans and strategy documents covering all geo-climatic regions of Oman, securing combined governmental investment of over GBP650,000. In 2016-2017, following the delivery of Heritage Management Plans for Mirbat and Salalah [3.5] and Misfat [5.1], ArCHIAM was commissioned to implement design interventions at 2 of these sites (Salalah, Misfat), significantly advancing the implementation of the 1980 Omani Royal Decree on the Protection of National Heritage. The management plans a) produced implementable, fully economically costed masterplans, integrating development with conservation, and b) shifted focus away from isolated monuments to settlements. Crucially, they helped the Misfat Cooperative – Al Misfat Al Ahlia – Bank Muscat and private stakeholders visualise and develop tangible partnerships in integrated tourism and economic development through design interventions. The National Heritage Council adopted the plans and disseminated these to stakeholder ministries (in Arabic/English), and directly to the public through the Heritage and Culture bookshop. 2000 bilingual booklets prepared by ArCHIAM were distributed to raise popular awareness of these initiatives, supported by national media coverage and state radio interviews. Following the Council’s recommendation, the Ministry of Tourism then invited ArCHIAM to develop a Heritage and Tourism Development Plan for the mountain oasis of Misfat al-‘Abriyin [5.1]. The Plan “provided a well-considered approach to showcase this heritage for tourists, and to facilitate appreciation through the development of tourism infrastructure and facilities for its stakeholders” and, once fully implemented, would “generate annual net gain in revenues of over GBP6,000,000” (Undersecretary, Tourism) [5.2.1]. The momentum around the Misfat masterplan has “assisted in driving an increase in the total number of guests stays to Ad-Dakhiliyah governorate [the administrative region] of 43.3% from 127,000 in 2017 to 224,000 by the end of 2019, as well as increased visitation of 28.8% to the…key regional attractions” (Undersecretary, Tourism) [5.2.1]. Additionally, it has encouraged the Ministry of Tourism to earmark 2 more sites for development (Birkat al-Mawz; Izki), which ArCHIAM had previously master-planned, and the Office of the Minister of State and Governor of Dhofar to invite a tender for consultancy services for development and rehabilitation of two traditional quarters, one of which – Salalah al-Wusta – was also master-planned by ArCHIAM. This is expected to prompt “other ministries to take the initiative” for other heritage sites (Expert, Tourism Services) [5.2.2]. The Misfat masterplan encouraged the Oman government to select Harat al-Bilad as a pilot project for heritage privatisation under its National Programme for Enhancing Economic Diversification, also known as Tanfeedh, “to develop with the local community and the other stakeholders” (Director General, Tourism Development) [5.2.2].

ArCHIAM identified potential private partners in Misfat’s heritage development and mapped these against available governmental support [5.1]. To secure private funding for heritage management implementation (a national first), ArCHIAM worked closely with Al Misfat Al Ahlia and Bank Muscat. The momentum generated around Misfat in 2016-2017 prompted Bank Muscat to fund the Phase-1 implementation through its Corporate Social Responsibility Programme, increasing an initial commitment of GBP300,000 to GBP500,000 in recognition of the importance of this project’s contribution to national heritage and local development. The Misfat Phase-1 implementation by ArCHIAM represented a pioneering public-private initiative. This was the “first investment done by a bank in Oman” in heritage tourism development “to drive tourism to these heritage sites, encourage all other private sectors to look into these national projects as the impact is for the whole country” (Head of Branding and Innovation, Bank Muscat) [5.4.3]. The Ministry of Tourism is now “fully encouraging the approach adopted for developing Misfat al-‘Abriyin” as a “role model” to communities and private stakeholders at other rural heritage sites (Director General, Tourism Development) [5.2.2].

Changing professional practice through design implementation and training:

In 2016, Salalah masterplan led to the private commission to restore and reuse the 19^th-century Ghassani merchant family house (Bait as-Sail), an excellent example of Salalah domestic architecture, as an interpretation centre. The intervention (a) introduced new approaches to local heritage design practice, showcasing both public-private collaboration (ministry, private owner); (b) is the first adaptive reuse project in Oman, and (c) has helped to steer mainstream design and conservation practice in Oman towards sustainable development and sensitive contemporary design interventions in heritage sites. The Ghassani House conversion ( view the Ghassani House brochure) has also changed design and procurement practice in the Omani private sector by creating a self-sustaining private-initiative-led model for the interpretation centre. It stimulated over GBP400,000 private investment and employed a local SME contractor (Mosha Trading Establishment).

These approaches were scaled up to a settlement level when Bank Muscat awarded the Misfat Phase-1 detailed design to ArCHIAM, who were supported by Muscat-based consultant Architectural Wall Systems (2017-2018). To introduce effective stakeholder participation in design for the first time in Oman, ArCHIAM and the Misfat Cooperative organised a two-day community design workshop in Misfat (July 2018; participation: 40; male/female: 65%/35%, age range: 6-44 years; covered by press in Arabic and English) [5.3.1]. These sessions recorded requirements and aspirations using models and montages that informed the eventual design and long-term revenue generating strategies for a shop/info point, bakery and small restaurant. This public engagement initiative was publicised as a model for effective stakeholder participation in design nationwide and represented “a great opportunity for the local community to participate and give their opinions on how to safeguard, protect and develop their neighbourhood” (91% would like to participate again) [5.3.1]. The rehabilitated buildings featured in 2020 in a Bank Muscat-commissioned video screened at the Misfat tourism development initiative completion ceremony in the presence of the Under-Secretary of Heritage Affairs, the Bank’s CEO and the press **[5.4.1:** watch the video ; 5.4.2]. “In 2020 three local Omani youth opened the Rogan Café in the restaurant building, responding to a national call for interest launched by Al Misfat Al Ahlia. The business employs 7 locals and has been generating a gross revenue of approximately GBP5,690 per month” [5.5.1].

ArCHIAM’s pioneering adaptive reuse design was acknowledged as “different” and “added to [local] experience” (Project Manager, Bank Muscat) [5.4.3]. Its implementation between January and December 2019 was supervised to completion by ArCHIAM/ AWS. It has enhanced the professional capacity of AWS, which had no previous heritage or adaptive reuse expertise. The practice “learnt…how to do design of heritage buildings, incorporating modern fusion into the projects”, and has since applied adaptive reuse in other private projects in Oman, supporting skills development in Omani architectural practice (Senior Architect, AWS) [5.4.3]. The contractor, Omani Services Establishment, which too had no previous adaptive reuse experience, employed on site 9 staff and personnel and 34 labourers and operators (headcount: 43), and learnt about community-orientated implementation practice by involving, liaising and taking advice from the community, as well as fusing “modern and traditional concept [of construction]”, their “main achievement…from this project” (Project Engineer, OSE) [5.4.3; 5.4.4]. ‘Misfah Old House’, the only local B&B until recently, has seen a 25% increase in guest figures between 2016 and 2019 [5.5.2]. “On the back of the site development, 5 additional heritage style B&Bs have commenced operation in Misfat, with a further 2 under development” and “several additional activities have also emerged in the village including: a museum, a local honey and grocery store and a café selling local craft items” (Undersecretary, Tourism) [5.2.1].

Global heritage conservation practice was enhanced through two further initiatives. The Getty Conservation Institute’s inaugural Middle Eastern conservation course included an ArCHIAM-led week-long training workshop at Harat al-Bilad settlement, in Manah oasis, on urban conservation and reuse approaches (November 2018; 22 professionals from 12 countries). Bandyopadhyay was “involved in the visioning, development and delivery of the first course” at Harat al-Bilad (Head, Buildings and Sites, GCI) [5.6.1], “enhancing knowledge and shaping methodology for similar cultural sites” (Participant, GCI course) [5.6.2]. This marked a clear departure from established Getty practice of focusing entirely on buildings by moving the programme towards urban-scale conservation and reuse training. Similarly, ArCHIAM’s role in the earthen architecture workshops in M’Hamid oasis, Morocco, led by Quattrone with the NGO Terrachidia (2017 & 2019; 45 students/ professionals from 14 countries), “was instrumental in teaching…heritage development approaches and principles, participatory design strategies and methods, thus effectively complementing Terrachidia’s hands-on training in traditional earthen construction techniques” (President, Terrachidia) [5.6.3]. ArCHIAM’s work was globally disseminated (2,256 views, 81 countries, 5 continents) through an award-winning documentary film, “very useful for architects and architecture students”, to “recommend to anyone about restoration and workshops” (Coordinator, Istanbul International Architecture and Urban Films Festival) **[5.6.4:** watch the film ].

Empowering communities through outreach and public engagement:

ArCHIAM helped structure the Misfat Cooperative (Al Misfat Al Ahlia), the first heritage cooperative constituency in Oman, earlier a small 5-member company of young community members now formally approved with a 50-plus household membership. Through the Misfat masterplan ArCHIAM successfully argued and developed guidelines for cooperative formation in consultation with the local community, and attended conflict resolution meetings organised by the local sheikh [5.1]. The Cooperative formation enabled the development of sites under complex ownership, making Phase-1 implementation possible within the agreed timescale. Growing publicity surrounding Misfat masterplan attracted the Prince of Wales to visit Misfat (5 November 2016), which, along with an Al Jazeera documentary in Arabic (2017), enhanced the international visibility of the Cooperative. Today it advises the government on potential site development, as well as other rural communities about “how to convince people, how to change the culture, from where you start, what obstacles people have to take into consideration, how to tackle them in a professional way” (Chairman, Al Misfat Al Ahlia) [5.2.2].

Museum content development for the National Museum on Omani traditional architecture and water management systems ( aflaj) has raised awareness, enhanced perception and disseminated knowledge of the country’s history and heritage. ArCHIAM contributed to the Museum’s two prominent permanent galleries, ‘Civilisation in the Making Gallery’ and ‘ Aflaj Gallery’, through a curated feature wall of images and artefacts, digital visualisations and physical reconstructions, as well as touch screen interpretive material on the aflaj **[5.7.1:** view the National Museum of Oman brochure ]. The feature wall was regarded as “impressive”and yet “straightforward” to comprehend by curators and guides, while the bilingual interactive touch-screen display of the ‘ Aflaj Gallery’ “is a focal point” for the Museum’s French language guides and Visitor Services Specialists. The majority of the nearly 250, gender balanced, visitors surveyed (72%) were young students and professionals who felt inspired to undertake further research (53%) and attend talks and workshops (32%) following their visit to the galleries. For 77% of participants the touchscreen content as well as the knowledge presented on traditional architecture was very informative [5.7.2]. Funded by Research England (UK) and the National Museum, two workshops on Oman’s traditional architecture and aflaj irrigation system (July 2019) [5.7.3] engaged 40 schoolchildren, 7-17 years old, through craft activities and quizzes that raised awareness and broadened knowledge of Oman’s history and cultural heritage amongst the younger generation. Approximately 80% of participants learnt about Omani traditional architecture for the first time at this workshop and expressed a desire to learn more about the subject by attending other workshops (38%), visiting traditional sites/ buildings (26%), watching documentaries/ visiting other exhibitions (15% each), and reading (6%). 90% of participants thought the workshop on the aflaj irrigation system substantially increased their knowledge on the subject [5.7.4].