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Mrs. Bekkari introduced Tangier and its multi-cultural heritage through a series of slides and photographs. From 1923 to 1956 Tangier experienced what Ms. Bekkari referred to as an international epoch, during which mosques, synagogues, and temples were built indiscriminately alongside one another.

Archaeologists exploring Tangier might be disappointed to find that the work of past civilizations has been destroyed to make room for the new. Nevertheless, Tangier, which inspired some of the most important painters of the 19th and 20th centuries, as well as to numerous writers, remains a rich source of research for Art Historians.

Ms. Bekkari explained that Tangier expanded rapidly over the last half century; from 140,000 inhabitants in 1966 to over 1.2 million today. Immigrants, mostly from the rural areas, tend to settle first in the medina which is the most densely populated area of Tangier. Whole families will crowd into single rooms hoping to move to greater Tangier, which sprawls in disorder around the ancient city. This has contributed to the dilapidation of the inner city.

Ms. Bekkari lamented the neglect of the medina, noting that there are currently few incentives to invest in its reconstruction. Residents pay extremely low rents and their landlords do not have the means to maintain their buildings. The Tangier Medina Foundation's aim is to restore the medina and to develop initiatives to preserve it, both aesthetically and culturally.

In addition to the architectural programs in which the foundation is engaged, Ms. Bekkari and others have organized social programs aimed to empower the inhabitants of the medina, such as the women's literacy project. The hope is that a community-based reconstruction and preservation-effort can grow through educating the population.