Digital Humanities stand at the crossroads of applied mathematics, computer science, and social sciences. CEDEJ’s Digital Humanities team comprises 17 people, including geomaticians, librarians, and archivists who work closely with Egypt’s Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS) and the Bibliotheca Alexandrina (BIBALEX).

CEDEJ’s Digital Humanities team developed digital resources for the social sciences, in particular through processing big data. The CEDEJ-CAPMAS geoportal features 14 Egyptian censuses from 1882 to 2017; the Egyptian press archive contains 1,8 million press clippings from 1951 to 2017; the Egyptian caricature archive offers 10,000 caricatures from 1976 to 2010; finally, CEDEJ’s map catalog allows its users to order digital maps from among its 6,500 map collection.

The Digital Humanities team also participates in social science programs, including a project on the ecological cost of data. It manages CEDEJ’s library, map library, and IT platform and servers, with databases backed up through CNRS’s Huma-Num social science and humanities research infrastructure.

Its researchers are involved in emerging projects, including:

1. New Capitals of the Global South

We are launching a preliminary reflection on new capitals in the Global South based on a comparison between Cairo’s New Administrative Capital and Indonesia’s new capital city, Nusantara. We will study the circulation of urban models and international references, the creation of “iconic” architecture, and the influence of China on both projects.

2. Desert Urbanization and Public Health in Cairo

Cairo’s urbanization is taking place in extreme conditions which development is making worse, in particular and paradoxically in wealthy neighborhoods. The aim of the project is to look at this active urban front in an arid zone and to identify the health risks it generates.

3. Arch Eco

What is the environmental impact of data acquisition, processing, and archiving? What tools could raise awareness and allow for training, auditing, labelling, and managing ecological costs? How to better support ecological sustainability among decision makers?