"The country needs this" says We Design Beirut organiser Mariana Wehbe

Against all odds, design festival We Design Beirut is going ahead this week. In this interview, organiser Mariana Wehbe tells Dezeen why she was determined to make it happen.

We Design Beirut is the Lebanese capital's first design week in five years, following a series of catastrophes that have reshaped the city.

Initially scheduled for late October 2023, the event was postponed at just two weeks' notice following the outbreak of war in nearby Israel and Gaza, with the violence spilling over Lebanon's border.