International Conference on Architecture and Urban Design

On behalf of Epoka University, we are pleased to invite you to attend the First International Conference on Architecture and Urban Design, which will be held at Epoka University in Tirana, Albania on April 19-21, 2012. We expect an international audience of about 150 persons, including academics, practicing architects, urban designers, and planners.
 
Web: www.icaud.epoka.edu.al
 
Email: icaud@epoka.edu.al
 
Abstracts must be submitted for review by *January 15, 2012.*

Participation fees: 120 Euro for international delegates, 60 Euro for Albanian and Kosovar delegates.

Delegates are free to decide how much to submit or publish. Authors may publish only an abstract in the Abstract book or a full-length manuscript in the Proceedings CD, which will be made available online. Delegates may also attend a conference without submitting or publishing any research. Authors may present their work during the conference either as (i) a 15-minute oral presentation, or as (ii) a poster session.

Conference tracks:

Architectural history and historic preservation
Green building technologies and materials
User-friendly public spaces
Architecture & urban design education
Construction management
Information technology in architecture & urban design  

Keynote speakers: 
 
Prof. Dr. Ardeshir Mahdavi, Technical University of Vienna, Austria.
Prof. Dr. Giorgio Gianighian, University IUAV of Venice, Italy.
Prof. Dr. Ilknur Kolay, Istanbul Technical University, Turkey.
Prof. Dr. Aspa Gospodini, University of Thessaly, Athens, Greece.
Adj. Assist. Prof. Dr. Deike Peters, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, USA.
Assist. Prof. Dr. Martino Tattara, Berlage Institute, Rotterdam, Holland.
Dr. Paola Ardizzola, MuseoArchitetturaArte, Pescara, Italy.
Mirela Kamberi, United Nations Development Programme, Albania.
Christos Passas, Zaha Hadid Architects & Architectural Association, London, UK.

Over the past twenty years, Tirana, the capital of Albania, has evolved into a dense, compact, and vibrant city of almost one million people, full of shops, cafes, restaurants, music, colorful buildings, and street life. At the same time, it is choked with automobile traffic, its older façades are crumbling down, and the traditional housing stock is being eroded to make room for condominium buildings. Sustainable construction technologies are in their infancy. High-tech high-rise architecture is juxtaposed with small scale informal additions to communist-era housing units and pre-communist oriental and Western neoclassic homes. While there is much private wealth in the country, the public sector has limited resources. This set of circumstances makes Tirana a very interesting laboratory for architects and urban designers & planners, and an enjoyable place to visit.
 

Epoka University is a newly established non-profit private university with 850 students, including 200 Master’s students. It has seven academic departments, including the Department of Architecture. The academic programs are compatible with the Bologna system. Epoka University fosters cultural diversity: students come from seven different countries in the region and 70 percent of the faculty members come from other countries. Epoka University has already established international ties with universities in the USA, the UK, Italy, Poland, Turkey, and Montenegro. The language of instruction is English.