Urban space is constantly changing: residents come and go, businesses open and close, streets and neighborhoods change their aspect and character. Archives and libraries conserve only a tiny part of the city’s memories, while most of them remain only in people’s private souvenirs and photo albums. 

The Urban Memory Project, developed by the Elijah Lab for digital humanities, aims to create a digital “memory map” which will be accessible from our phones and computers, and where we can share our memories of different places in our street, neighborhood and town. These memories can take the form of stories, photos, movies and recordings. By passing on our own memories, and discovering those of others, we can better know the places where we live. 

Our project is using the Historypin digital platform, and is currently in the first stages of field work in the city of Haifa, in close cooperation with the Haifa Municipality. A trial phase was conducted in Ein-Hayam, a historic, mixed Arab-Jewish neighborhood between Mount Camel and the sea.