MASDAR CITY

Abu Dhabi, UAE
Foster + Partners

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has one of the highest rates of greenhouse gas emissions in the world due to its energy consumption to power its desalinization plants, air conditioning and highway systems in the arid nation. The government of Abu Dhabi provided seed capital to Masdar, a development subsidiary, to construct a hub for cleantech companies located southeast of Abu Dhabi beside the city’s international airport. The development was proposed as a zero carbon, zero waste city planned to rely on solar and renewable energy while following traditional Arab settlement patterns. The design is mixed-used and high-density, with a maximum distance of 200 meters to rapid transport links under shaded streets and courtyards, thus eliminating person vehicles. Masdar City was scheduled to finish construction of its two sectors in 2014, but the completion date has been pushed back to 2030, as only 5% of the intended development was completed in 2014, when only 1,300 residents lived full-time in Masdar, despite the original plan calling for 50,000 residents. The project is built on a slightly elevated platform, resembling a walled city, to allow for personal rapid transit pods. The development is now aiming for a 50% emission and waste target, as opposed to the net zero projection at the project’s inception. In addition to the development company, several international NGOs, including the World Wide Fund for Nature, Greenpeace and the United States Department of Energy have supported the project, though Greenpeace has leveled criticism at the project for erecting a new city instead of retrofitting areas, and other NGOs have raised concerns about the justness of the project, which uses labor from foreign-born Gulf state workers who have few rights in the UAE.

2014
1582 acres
29 feet above sea level

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