Sound & Stone from Palestine to the World | Elias & Yousef Anastas

We talk with architects Elias and Yousef Anastas, partners at studio AAU Anastas about their deeply researched practice, their dedication to using stone in innovative and ethical ways, and the many social, political, and cultural considerations around building in Palestine, and beyond. Our conversation touches on their many other collaborations including Local Industries, Radio Alhara, and Wonder Cabinet, and we discuss how their work—through sound and stone—continues to transmit Palestine to the rest of the world. Recorded on March 24, 2026   Elias and Yousef Anastas are architects from Bethlehem. Their practice advocates for a contemporary use of structural stone in architecture in Palestine and beyond, exploring the politics of building with stone as a pathway toward low-carbon structures, more resilient cities, and responsible quarrying. They participated in the Venice Architecture Biennale in 2021 with All Purpose, a stone installation proposing a new model of stone habitat. They cofounded Local Industries, a network of makers producing objects that range from furniture to experimental architecture, among them the Jamil Chair, now part of the Vitra Design Museum collection. Their work is also included in the Victoria and Albert Museum’s permanent collection. They have designed and built major public and cultural projects such as the Tulkarem Courthouse, the Hebron Courthouse, a reinforced flat stone vault in Abu Ghosh, and the restoration of Dar al-Majus in Bethlehem, among others. They also co-founded Radio alHara, a communal online radio shaped by over 300 contributors, and Wonder Cabinet, a space for experimental production in Bethlehem, for which they received the Aga Khan Award for Architecture.   Connect with Elias and Yousef Anastas 👉 https://instagram.com/aauanastas   Hosted by Yazan Kopty   Yazan Kopty is a writer, researcher, and community archivist. His work explores the relationship between narrative and power and advocates for storytelling grounded in self-representation and community collaboration. Shaped by his background as an oral historian, his practice aims to gather polyphony of voices and transform memory into a force for resistance, reckoning, and reconciliation. Since 2018, Yazan has been a National Geographic Explorer and lead investigator of Imagining the Holy, a community-based archive project indigenizing historic photographs of Palestinians and their homeland and activating them as sites of gathering, reconnection, and new cultural production. Beginning in October 2025, Yazan will be producer and host of This is Not a Watermelon, afikra’s podcast series reframing Palestine through conversations with experts and practitioners working to preserve its past, document its present, and imagine better futures for the land and its people.   Connect with Yazan Kopty 👉 https://instagram.com/yazankopty   Theme music: Peninsular, Tarek Yamani 🔊 https://spoti.fi/47I59ns FOLLOW & RATE THE THIS IS NOT A WATERMELON PODCAST:» Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/this-is-not-a-watermelon-palestinian-history-culture/id1726893137» Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1UWCL1ITtnJIJUExrb6itr?_authfailed=1» Anghami: https://play.anghami.com/podcast/1047932705THIS SERIES IS PART OF THE AFIKRA PODCAST NETWORK Explore all episodes in this series: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLfYG40bwRKl40ZRFvo_VVYg6i56flEjSKABOUT AFIKRAafikra | عفكرة is a movement to convert passive interest in the Arab world to active intellectual curiosity. We aim to collectively reframe the dominant narrative of the region by exploring the histories and cultures of the region – past, present and future – through conversations driven by curiosity.📍 Local events in 40+ locations worldwide http://afikra.com/chapters🎧 New podcasts + videos weekly http://afikra.com/podcasts⚡ Become a member: https://www.afikra.com/membership🔗 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/afikra_🔗 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/afikra.official🔗 Twitter: https://twitter.com/afikra Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.