Zaineh will present her findings to the AIA Chicago community as part of AIA Chicago’s Award Ceremony. Her work will also be on exhibit at MAS Context, November 14 – December 5, 2026.
For media inquiries: David Chase, dchase@aiachicago.org, (312) 376-2745
September 3, 2026, CHICAGO: The AIA Chicago Foundation, the charitable, independent not-for-profit organization that supports scholarships, grants, and awards to strengthen Chicago’s architectural community, will present Zaineh Ghanayem, the 2025 recipient of the Martin Roche Travel Scholarship, as part of AIA Chicago’s Award Ceremony, where she will share findings from her independent study, “Temporary Permanence: The Urbanization of Jordan’s Refugee Camps.” Her work will also be featured in an exhibit at MAS Context from November 14 through December 5, 2026.
Established in 1926 by architect Martin Roche, FAIA, the Martin Roche Travel Scholarship supports independent study of architecture abroad. Roche, a key figure in the rise of the Chicago School of Architecture, designed some of the city’s earliest tall buildings. He partnered with William Holabird, FAIA, in 1881, forming Holabird & Roche in 1883. In his will, Roche directed that proceeds from his art collection support architecture students studying abroad. Past recipients have explored topics ranging from brownfield redevelopment in Germany to the link between design and crime in Medellín, and modernist religious architecture in Italy.
Ghanayem’s research investigates how refugee camps in Jordan have evolved from temporary shelters into permanent urban settlements, revealing the relationship between architecture, displacement, and belonging. Over the past seven decades, Jordan has hosted refugees from Palestine, Iraq, Syria, Yemen, and Sudan; many camps, once defined by emergency planning and humanitarian relief, have grown into dense, self-built neighborhoods that now blend seamlessly with Jordan’s urban fabric. Through photography, drawings, and models developed on-site in the Irbid, Zarqa, Wehdat, and Al-Hussein refugee camps, Ghanayem’s study connects architectural documentation with lived narratives, contributing to broader discussions on displacement, informality, and urban resilience.
“Immigrants and refugees are integral to Jordan’s cultural and economic life, shaping its cities and redefining what belonging means in an urban context,” Ghanayem said of her work. “Observing how these communities create permanence out of transience will inform design lessons about density, adaptability, and collective living.”
Zaineh Ghanayem is an architectural designer originally from Palestine and born in Jordan, who moved to Chicago at age seven. She earned both her undergraduate and graduate degrees from the University of Illinois Chicago, where she came to view architecture as more than the design of buildings — a discipline that explores how spaces can reflect and respond to the complexities of human experience. Her perspective is heavily influenced by her background and identity, and she sees architecture as a means to amplify marginalized voices and contribute to the broader discourse on inclusion and justice.
The Martin Roche Travel Scholarship awards a $6,000 travel grant to one undergraduate or graduate student enrolled in a NAAB-accredited architecture program at the University of Illinois Chicago, Illinois Institute of Technology, or the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Applicants must have a faculty advisor and propose an independent study of an architecture-related topic in a country other than the United States that does not qualify for degree credit. All proposals are evaluated by a five-member jury comprised of three AIA Chicago Foundation Board of Trustees members and two practicing architecture professionals who are not members of the Board. Following their travel, each recipient presents their work to the AIA Chicago community and is recognized on AIA Chicago’s communication channels, in Chicago Architect magazine, and at the Award Ceremony.
The AIA Chicago Foundation is a 501(c)3 organization committed to investing in Chicago’s next generation of architectural change-makers by awarding scholarships, grants, and recognition. The AIA Chicago Foundation is affiliated with AIA Chicago, the collective voice of nearly 4,000 licensed architects, emerging professionals, architecture students, and allied professionals in the Chicagoland area.
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