2:00 PM - 3:00 PM

Welcome & Vision Talk

Introduction to the event and theme of the day

Natasha Haddad, Co-Host of Creative Dialogues

2:10 PM - 3:10 PM

Roundtable Discussion: The Shape of Feeling: Creative Practice Across the Senses

A conversation on how creative practice across film, theatre, and dance engages the senses to translate feeling into form.

Moderator:

Lina Khoury, Theater Director, Producer, and Assistant Professor of Practice / Performing Arts Program Coordinator at LAU

Speakers:

• Carol Mansour, Filmmaker
• ​Maya Zbib, Theatre Director, Zoukak Theatre
• Mazen Kiwan, Dancer, Choreographer & University Instructor at the Lebanese University

3:10 PM - 4:10 PM

Roundtable Discussion: The City Remembers: Trauma, Recovery, and Beirut’s Future

Exploring how Beirut carries and processes collective trauma, and what recovery and renewal could look like for the city ahead.

Moderator:

Dima Stouhi, Architect, Business Developer & University Instructor

Speakers:

• ​Samar Hawa, Project & Development Manager at Rebirth Beirut
• Ibrahim Zeidan, President of the Municipal Council & Mayor of Beirut
• Soha Mneimneh, Lecturer & Researcher in Urban Planning and Policy
• Khaled Nasser, Mental Health Consultant

4:10 PM - 4:40 PM

Roundtable Discussion: Empathy as Practice: Building Connection through Creativity

Examining how architecture, visual art, and dance can foster genuine connection, carry stories across generations, and build understanding between communities.

Moderator:

Jemma Chidiac, Architect and University Instructor

Speakers:

• Stephany Sanossian, Artist
• Nadra Assaf, Associate Professor and Chair of the Communication, Mobility and Identity Department at LAU, Performing Artist, Choreographer & Author

4:40PM - 5:40 PM

Roundtable Discussion:Still Human: Empathy and the Future of Design

A look at what stays human-centered in design as AI, branding, and new tools reshape how creative work gets made.

Moderator:

Rana Salam, Creative Director and Brand Consultant

Speakers:

• Nathalie Fallaha, Branding & UX/UI Expert
• Sinan Abou Hamdan, AI Expert
• Adam Jammal, Filmmaker & Creative Director
• Miquel Lacasta, Chair of Architecture and Interior Design at LAU

5:40 PM - 5:55 PM

Student Debate: Tool or Takeover? Debating AI’s Role in the Creative Workforce

A debate where two teams of LAU students go head-to-head on whether AI expands creative potential or threatens the value of human creativity, questioning what’s at stake for the next generation of creatives.

Moderator: Vanessa Dammous, Architect & Professor at LAU

5:40 PM - 6:40 PM

Workshops (parallel sessions)

Hands-on parallel workshops  see Workshops section below for details. Participants choose one session.

See below

1

Useful AI for Creative People: How to Do Less and Create More

Location: 801

Sinan Abou Hamdan, AI Expert

A hands-on session on using AI to cut down admin and non-creative tasks, freeing up time and energy for the work that matters plus how to use AI to shape ideas from concept to execution without losing your creative voice.

2

How Trauma Speaks

Location: 802

Carla Oannis Rached, Clinical Psychologist and Compassionate Inquiry Therapist

A grounded look at what trauma is and how it shapes us, how it lives in the body, how early beliefs shape self-treatment, and how understanding our inner “parts” can open a path toward healing.

3

From Ideas to Creation: An Introduction to Devised Theatre

Location: 803

Maya Zbib, Theatre Director, Performer, Writer, Co-Artistic Director of Zoukak Theatre

A practical introduction to devised theatre creating performance material from scratch through collective writing, improvisation, and simple scene-building exercises.

4

Inherited / Invented

Location: 804

Stephany Sanossian, Artist

An exploration of memory, identity, and personal experience as creative language participants develop their own personal phrase or visual statement drawn from what they carry with them.