It caused a sensation more than 10 years ago in Israel. An Israeli solar power integration company called Sologic envisions a different kind of tree for societies, the eTree. This concept “tree” solar energy sculpture they developed for social good is a hybrid station for the wayward urban traveller.

Now Masdar City, an Abu Dhabi, UAE-based sustainability and innovation hub dedicated to making all cities a solution to climate change, has revealed a new installation called Solar Tree as its latest eco-friendly addition to its Eco Plaza.

Solar Tree was designed as an art piece to spark public engagement around sustainability practices. It is also an example of multi-purpose urban development. It mimics a natural tree, with its slender, asymmetric columns and 16 gently curved solar panels, providing a shaded seating area while also producing clean and renewable energy.

Read more: Masdar City the Eco-utopia that never happened

Featuring 16 bi-facial solar panels that capture sunlight from both sides, Solar Tree has a capacity of 50 kwh and feeds energy directly into the Abu Dhabi power grid. It stands at 5.5 meters tall and 10 meters wide.

The placement of Solar Tree was informed by a 2023 heat study of Masdar City. In collaboration with a start-up called FortyGuard, Masdar City collected six million data points using sensors and drones over a period of nine months.

These data points provided a thermal map of Masdar City and Eco-Plaza that identified zones of high heat that needed to be addressed. Other recent measures to address hot zones in Eco Plaza include new trees, shrubs, and turf, removal of dark paving, and water features.

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Just around the beginning of Covid something remarkable happened. After years of cold shoulders, the Arabian Emirati nations which make up the United Arab Emirates declared peace and friendship with Israel. It was a first from the Arab world to thaw out decades of boycotts and sanctions. While Israel has official peace with Jordan and Egypt, nothing could have prepared Israel for the open arms it received from Dubai.

The United Arab Emirates and Israel share ambitions in renewable energy and both face extreme water shortages. Some of the early partnerships in business and cooperation will be in these areas. Just recently Masdar, the net zero energy city that really has yet to take off, announced it will work with Israel on desalination technology. 

Desalination is mainly constrained by filters and the amount of energy needed to create the end product. Out of necessity Israel has developed an industry out of filter technology and renewable energy. 

“I can tell you that Masdar is already active in Israel and we are exploring opportunities to help Israel reach very ambitious targets,” said Mohammad El Ramahi, director of asset management and technical services for Masdar’s clean energy division in the United Arab Emirates. He was speaking at a panel discussion with Israeli and US energy executives at the US Pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai.

He explained how Israel and Jordan, which have an official peace treaty, but luke warm relations, want to use renewables in their energy mixes to 30 per cent by 2030.

“That is 15 gigawatts, which opens a great horizon for developers like Masdar to compete … against price and against value creation for the best welfare of the Israeli people and also create opportunities,” said El Ramahi.

Following the announcement the UAE, Jordan and Israel signed an agreement to develop a renewable energy and desalination plant in Jordan to slow climate change and add to the growth of clean energy in the country.

According to The National, the partners plan to build solar photovoltaic plants that can generate 600 megawatts of electricity in Jordan. The electricity will be exported to Israel, which will supply 200 million cubic metres of water from a new desalination project.

Feasibility studies for the project will begin in 2022.

The UAE became the first country in the Arab world to pledge to reach net zero emissions by 2050. Israel also pledged to become carbon neutral by the same year. Saudi Arabia pledged to be carbon neutral by 2060.  All promises are at least 30 years away which seems too late. 

But there is hope for peace perhaps: “The Abraham Accord not only opens horizons for [the] UAE and Israel, but also for US companies and for Jordanian companies to collaborate and explore opportunities in the spectrum of not just in renewable energy but also in sustainable water desalination,” said Mr El Ramahi.

Masdar not only built a model city in the United Arab Emirates, it’s also an energy company. They are an early developer of renewables in Jordan and their first overseas investment in a Jordanian wind farm in 2013. It also developed Baynouna, a 200MW single solar energy project located east of the capital Amman, which became operational in 2020.

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The Tenth Session of World Urban Forum, the world’s most important conference on cities convened biannually by UN Habitat has just concluded. For the first time, it took place in an Arab country, the United Arab Emirates, and the host, Abu Dhabi, had much to contribute to the conversation. 

Throughout the week-long event, representatives of Abu Dhabi municipality, the UAE government and private developers took part in forums and panels where they unveiled projects that are going to transform the landscape and character of the capital. The overall trend is to make the city more pedestrian-friendly and community-based. 

Abu Dhabi is located on several islands and the downtown of the city is situated on the biggest of them. The design of the city center comes from the late 1960s when car mobility was valued over walkability.

Now, the authorities aim to make the city more liveable and to do so, they focus on developing islands surrounding the downtown area. They have already done so with Saadiyat and Yas islands. While the first one became a cultural district with Louvre and New York University, the latter has been established as a globally-renowned entertainment destination. Now, the government is looking at Al Reem and Jubail islands.

Many of the projects that are going to be developed come under the umbrella of “For Abu Dhabi” initiative, which has been allocated $2.18 billion USD to improve liveability of the main cities of the emirate.

One of them will be the city’s first urban forest located on Al Reem Island. The goal is to create a self-sustaining forest with diverse fauna and flora which will let residents of the city get in touch with nature. Al Reem is well-suited for this venture as it is surrounded by a mangrove forest. 

Another project underway on Al Reem is undertaken by a private developer. The Makers District is going to be the first vicinity of the capital focused on artists and creativity. The area is aimed to provide an alternative to multiple-lane roads and high-rise buildings that currently dominate Abu Dhabi. New neighbourhood will comprise of houses, shops, leisure facilities and a hotel – all with an emphasis on fostering interactions. 

The second of the above-mentioned islands is Jubail – until now perhaps the most pristine part of the city. Less than a month ago, Jubail made headlines of Abu Dhabi news because of the new mangrove walk that has been opened on the island. Mangroves are unique trees growing in shallow, salty water and the ecosystem that they create is characterised by exceptionally high biodiversity.

On the side note, mangroves are the most effective trees in carbon capture and sequestration. This type of forest covers more than 150 square kilometres of the UAE shoreline and it is a true gem in otherwise deserted landscape of the country.

To give the residents an opportunity to interact with picturesque mangroves on Jubail Island, a boardwalk was built and opened to the public. 

In May of 2019, a newly established governmental company has unrolled a development plan for the rest of Jubail. 400 hectares of residential, retail, leisure and business areas will be smoothly integrated with the existing landscape of the island. New district will also provide residents with opportunities for nature-oriented activities like kayaking, horse-riding and so on. 

All of the projects described are part of a greater vision for Abu Dhabi to become associated with environmental sustainability rather than oil economy, both in terms of local initiatives and global policy-making. In less than a year, the city hosted two high-level UN events related to climate action – the World Urban Forum and the UN Climate Meeting, a run-up event to the UN Climate Action Summit in September 2019.

Moreover, the UAE showed strong commitment to developing and implementing renewable energy during the World Energy Council Congress, the IRENA Assembly and the World Future Energy Summit which took place in Abu Dhabi in the last few months. 

While Abu Dhabi is still much less popular than Dubai for the common public, it does not need to be introduced to anyone with interest in innovation. Even though Masdar City, one of the UAE’s flagship sustainability projects, is considered to be failed, the country continues to develop solutions that are likely to become blueprints implemented in other parts of the region and the world.

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Etihad Airways has opened its new Etihad Eco Residence project in Abu Dhabi, the world’s first purpose-built, LEED Platinum-rated cabin crew accommodation project, offering . The project, resulting from a partnership with Masdar, provides 500 fully furnished one and two-bedroom flight crew apartments contained in 11 buildings at Masdar City. 

“The opening of the landmark Etihad Eco Residence underscores not only the importance we place on providing superior housing to our valued cabin crew, but also our responsibility, as part of the greater Abu Dhabi vision, to play a part in transforming the capital into a global leader in smart urban planning, clean energy and sustainability,” Mana Mohamed Saeed Al Mulla, chief group support services officer at Etihad Aviation Group said at the ribbon-cutting.

The project is part of the airline’s crew accommodation strategy of providing superior, environmentally-friendly and facility-rich homes that are in close proximity to the city’s international airport. The Eco Residence demonstrates Masdar’s commitment to the “triple bottom line” of sensitivity to social, economic and environmental sustainability. The design minimizes use of materials with high-embedded energy ratings, and reduced transport-related carbon emissions (at least 20% of materials were either sourced or manufactured within 800 km of the project)  according to a statement. 

Each of the Etihad Eco Residence’s buildings has been designed using low environmental impact construction materials, which aid the reduction of strong sunlight yet maximize available natural daylight. Solar hot water systems provide 76 per cent of the community’s water demand and the buildings’ design encourages greater water efficiency and the reduction of potable water usage, as well as smart waste management.

An enhanced micro-climate has been created around each of the buildings using sustainable landscaping methods and massing the shape and size of the buildings, which captures the breeze for natural ventilation while offering protection from wind and dust. These features complement the urban environment and contribute to overall energy saving, while promoting biodiversity.

Masdar is collaborating with local stakeholders to pioneer a ‘greenprint’ for sustainable urban development at Masdar City using a holistic approach focused on integrating sustainable transportation initiatives, optimizing waste management, reducing energy use, water consumption and carbon emissions, and accommodating rapid urbanization.

Mark Scoble, Etihad Airways Head of In-flight Performance and Operations, said, “Our brief to the architects and designers of the Etihad Eco Residence was to create a development that is in line with Etihad’s environmental principles as well as a safe, secure and commercially viable residential precinct that embraces our acclaimed cabin crew community, who hail from over 120 countries around the world.” Etihad employs over 5,800 Abu-Dhabi-based crew.

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In 2006, former Vice President of the United States, Al Gore, released “The Inconvenient Truth”. Gore attempted to bring greater knowledge to citizens of the world of the seismic threat of Global Warming. That same year, a pioneering project which was set to cost circa $22 billion was envisioned for Abu Dhabi. See draft of vision below.

Masdar City, a vision of the Masdar company, overseen by legendary architect Norman Foster and backed by the Government of Abu Dhabi, promised an “ecotopia” which would revolutionize the way we live as humans.

The ambitious project which looked at hosting 1,500 green energy businesses with a combined workforce of 110,000 people in the first carbon-neutral city in the world would never be finished. In 2018, we should have been approaching two years of the completed project, yet Masdar City is now, instead, a shell which will take another 12 years to finish. What is even more anticlimactic is that the initial target of a zero-carbon city is now estimated to be approximately 50%.

“We are not going to try to shoehorn renewable energy into the city just to justify a definition created within a boundary,” Chris Wan, the design manager of Masdar City said.

“As of today, it’s not a net zero future,” he added. “It’s about 50%.”

What went wrong for Masdar City?

The concept of building the world’s first sustainable city was, simply, unsustainable. The global economic crash led to the project being severely delayed, yet many skeptics had questioned if the vision was too ambitious.

“Nearly all of the electricity in the current phase comes from a massive 87,777-panel, 10-megawatt solar plant along with building-mounted solar panels, and demand is kept in check by an impressive array of design features that minimize the need for air conditioning despite the desert locale,” was the description of the design particulars laid out in the Smithsonian.

“The site is higher than the surrounding land to catch breezes off the Persian Gulf; the short streets are narrow and laid out to maximize shade all day long; building glass is shielded by decorative terracotta grills; and a 45-meter wind tower pulls breezes from above and pushes them through the streets to create a cooling effect. The result: temperatures that the developers claim are generally 15 degrees cooler than the desert.”

Masdar City in 2018

While Masdar City looks far removed from the picturesquely aesthetic model which was promised to us twelve years ago, there is undoubtedly a fascinating appeal for the curious mind and eager eye for a photo. A half-built ghost town tangibly crippled by the global financial crisis, the dream city now barely stands like a promising athlete struck down by an injury which robbed them of their true potential.

A unique design with an incredible lure, the more adventurous among Abu Dhabi’s intrepid tourists may find something endearing about this unrealized dream.

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Siemens, a German conglomerate and the largest industrial manufacturing company in Europe, predicts that by 2035, the Middle East power requirements will translate into 483 GW of power generation demand, an uptick of 277 GW from 2016 demand, and representative of an increase of more than triple from 5.6 percent (16.7 GW) in 2016 to 20.6 percent (100 GW) in 2035. (Siemens also operates a LEED Platinum headquarters in Masdar City.)

Solar power is forecast as accounting for approximately 61 GW of supply by 2035. The report highlights significant potential for wind power generation in Saudi Arabia and Egypt, but noted that this potential is not entirely reflected in the moderate capacity additions expected.

Mirroring the observations of industry experts, Siemens also noted that this means that reliable energy storage solutions and a stable and efficient grid is crucial. Dietmar Siersdorfer, Chief Executive Officer of Siemens Middle East and UAE told journalists at the Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week that the need to make grids smarter was “the most underestimated thing” in the global energy industry.

According to Siersdorfer, battery storage was sure to figure highly, and that hydrogen storage was a “holistic” solution. “You can build an eco-system for hydrogen”, he told Gulf Business, “This is because of its ability to act as a fuel for vehicles and also be utilized for other industries like petrochemicals.”

Although there will be a great rise of renewables in the Middle East, the report predicts that natural gas will still remain as the region’s primary power source, representing 60 percent of installed capacity through to 2035.

“A reliable, efficient, flexible and affordable power supply is the backbone of economic and social development in the Middle East,” said Siersdorfer. “While the energy mix will see significant diversification over the next 20 years, natural gas will remain the prime energy source for power generation in 2035.”

Baby steps towards a clean, green future.

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As an intern at Masdar Institute, I’ve witnessed firsthand how real and possible a drastically improved world is. Masdar serves as a real-life experiment of how our sustainable future might look like.

Solar energy generated by a 10-megawatt solar photovoltaic plant as well as panels mounted on the institute’s buildings provide nearly all of the electricity. Many ingenious techniques were used to decreasing the need for energy consumption. Masdar, which is the Arabic word for source, is also the name of the quickly developing sustainable city built with minimal Carbon emissions, and is where the Institute is located in Abu Dhabi, UAE.

The US department of Energy ranked the UAE 6^th globally in petroleum production for 2014, and listed 6 Middle Eastern countries in the top 15. With fossil fuels as the lead emitter of greenhouse gases and the biggest contributor to Climate Change, the Arab World will be a key player this December, when the world will turn its eyes towards COP21 negotiations in Paris. (See coverage of COP20)

COP21, the 21st UN Framework Convention on Climate Change Conference of Parties, comes with a long overdue goal; to achieve a legally binding and universal agreement on Climate Change. It is crucial for nations around the world to raise their ambitions and shorten their timelines.

The effects of man-made Climate Change will not spare this region. In fact, according to a report released by the World Bank during COP18 which took place in Doha, Qatar, Climate Change effects in the Arab World will be dire.

The Arab region has the lowest freshwater resource endowment in the world. Climate Change is expected to decrease water runoff further still by 10% by 2050, while demand is projected to increase 60% by 2045 due to increases in population and per capita use. This, along with changing temperatures, will also decrease agricultural production.

Furthermore, more people are moving into urban areas already due to droughts and resources shortage. A recent study mentioned by a National Geographic article says that rural-to-urban migration helped spark the uprising and consecutive war in Syria, which has displaced millions and killed hundreds of thousands of people.

The Arab region is already very vulnerable to wars and security threats. Another report released by the Pentagon affirmed that Climate Change will have immediate threats to national security. This is true all over the world, as the number of climate refugees keep going up, and resources become scarcer.

A 2014 report released by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) states that in order to limit the destructive effects of Climate Change, the world temperature rise will need to be limited to 2 degrees Celsius. The report states that in order to have a likely chance of limiting the increase by that much, we will need to lower global greenhouse gas emissions by 40% -70% compared to 2010 by mid-century, and to near-zero by the end of this century. This is no easy task and will require a “worldwide push over the next 15 years” according to experts appointed by the UN.

These alarming numbers and predictions are not to mention increasing floods, effects on tourism and historical sites, as well as larger gender equality gaps. Three years later since the publishing of this report, we are still short from having concrete action plans to contain these devastating effects, which the IPCC report says is still possible. The only way to avoid the worst is to act big, and act fast.

The scientific evidence is overwhelming: We are running out of time.

This is a guest post by Munira Sibai, an engineering student and environmental advocate who has attended the UN Climate Change negotiations in 2012 in Doha and in 2013 in Warsaw. 

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The intricate wood screens that protected windows throughout the Arab world are increasingly being reinvented – often at massive scale and using computer technology – to cover tall buildings as an oriental ornament, but also as a major element for sun-shading and passive cooling. Building owners report lowered maintenance costs too, as the screens minimize cleaning (and reduce water use).

The perforated aluminum skin of Qatar’s Doha Tower (aka The Burj Doha) in variegated depending on north, south, east and west exposures, in order to control day-lighting and provide bespoke interior shading.  The metal screen also reduces sand and grit build-up on underlying glass panels.

Saudi’s Breakwater Beacon is a honeycombed lighthouse that guides ships approaching the Red Sea port of Thuwal. This structure is loaded with imagery: it acts as an Arab wind chimney or “wind-catcher”, and the hexagonal precast concrete blocks are reminiscent of traditional mashrabiya screens and endangered native coral.

Louvre Abu Dhabi reinvents the classically vertical screen into a horizontal roof, which in turn – during daylight hours – casts a virtual mashrabiya pattern onto the museum’s walls.

Lusail District a mixed use development in Doha made harmonious in part by a common screen structure on the taller towers.

Windows projecting from the facade of residential buildings in Abu Dhabi’s Masdar Institute are protected by latticed concrete panels which control interior heat gain and minimize building maintenance.

Mucat’s Muttawar Lifestyle Community is a planned residential complex that incorporates classical elements of the Arabic courtyard house. Balconies, central gardens with water features, and mashrabiya screens sustainably maximize passive cooling.

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Despite the Masdar Institute buildings, the state-of-the-art Incubator Building, a small solar field, cutting edge research, not to mention Masdar’s various global renewable energy breakthroughs, many visitors to Masdar have insinuated that the initiative is somehow flawed because there aren’t very many people there now.

There are other complaints, including the relative inaccessibility of Masdar City from Abu Dhabi, the capital, where the action is taking place.

Related: Siemens inaugurates the Middle East’s greenest office building at Masdar City

But every new initiative takes time, especially starting from scratch as Masdar has done, so it comes as no surprise that the group smartly developed a certain amount of infrastructure before bringing in hordes of residents. Now they’re ready and we’re very excited to see the outcome.

Woods Bagot will be designing the 500 homes, and people are standing by to move in.

The National reports that the development has already been completely leased to corporations and educational establishments that will be owned by Masdar. This is one part of a wider $15-18 billion development plan that will culminate in 2,000 homes that will house up to 40,000 residents and 50,000 workers.

Mostly Masdar Institute students and educators are likely to live in the new residential neighborhood, as are blue collar workers and representatives of small and large business that set up shop in one of six office plots, but 750 homes will be available on the open market as well.

Tenders will go out in the next six months. And Masdar Director Anthony Mallows believes the city’s developed space should double from 150,000 square meters to 300,000 within a short two years.

Image via Masdar City

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Terrorists and Houthi pirates probably come to mind long before honey when people think of Yemen, but the raw Yemeni honey Balqees had for sale at the recent Masdar Festival in Dubai we visited was far and away the yummiest honey I ever put in my mouth.

Read below to learn more about 8 varieties of Balqees company sells and what makes them so special.

1. Yemeni Sidr Do’ani from the Sidr tree is “Allah’s honey”

The Sidr tree, also known as Christ’s Thorn or the Jujube tree, has featured prominently in the Middle East region – the Pharaohs even used its wood to build some of their historically brilliant structures; it is also ubiquitous in Southern Yemen, particularly in Wadi Do’an. According to Balqees, thousands of semi-nomadic beekeepers gather twice a year to collect Sidr honey from the mountains in this remote desert region

2. Yemini Sidr Usaimi

Cooler than Wadi Do’ani, Usaimat is located in northern Yemen, where the resilient Sidr tree also grows en masse. But because the soil and climate are different, this honey with the same medicinal properties has a slightly different flavor.

3. Yemeni Sumar Honey

As you might have guessed, this honey is named after the Sumar tree in the Hadramout region. Said to be one of Balqees’ more popular varieties,  Sumar honey is said to have more of a caramel tone without being excessively sweet.

4. Yemeni Sidr Wasabi

It isn’t green and it isn’t spicy, but Sidr Wasabi honey from the Wasab region between the north and south of Yemen has a very rich toffee and butterfly flavor that distinguishes it from Baqees’ other honey types. This is thanks to the area’s unique soil and climate. The Sidr tree goes wild here.

5. Yemeni Wildflower Honey

Wildflowers grow in one of the remaining areas in Yemen that is not polluted – also in the Hadramout region, which means honey harvested in this region takes its unique flavor not only from the flowers combined with the climate. This may be one of the most delicate and sweet smelling of the company’s offerings.

6. Yemeni Herbal Honey Fusion

This fusion is comprised of royal jelly, propolis, ginseng and ginger with a Sumar honey base. Balqees claims this mix has “amazing healing properties and strengthens the immune system” and delivers a “powerhouse of energy, vitamins and minerals.”

7. Raw Honey, Cinnamon and Sesame Seed Fusion

Commonly used as an alternative treatment in both oriental and Ayurvedic medicine, both honey and cinnamon are known to have a plethora of healing properties. Combined, they are potent. Raw Yemini honey is combined with Organic Ceylon cinnamon from Sri Lanka and a few sesame seeds to deliver a sweet spread with a nutty flavor.

8. Raw Honey and Royal Jelly Fusion

Balqees enriches Raw Yemeni Honey with Royal Jelly, which is left unprocessed in order to retain all of its organic attributes. This appears to be the company’s most nutritiously potent fusion. “It is an instant energy building food containing remarkable amounts of vitamins, proteins, lipids, glucides, enzymes, mineral substances, amino acids, antibacterial and antibiotic components,” the company states in their brochure. It is also said to help cell regeneration and preserve youth.

(Not featured here is a Saffron honey mix that Balqees had for sale at the Masdar City Festival. The saffron comes from Iran and gives the raw honey such a gentle but distinctive flavor – so subtle, so delicious.)

(Related: Baloyolu – Turkey’s first honey tasting tour)

Founded by Riath Hamed, who has spent a lifetime cultivating his sweet tooth and who traces his roots to and spent a year in Yemen, Balqees works with local apiaries and small scale beekeepers – ensuring not only superior quality, but also a sustainable development.

“What experience taught me is that to guarantee the quality of my honey, I needed to have my own apiaries. I went into business with a Yemeni honey producer, who is renowned in the industry and made an exclusive deal with him and his farms. That way I know I am going to get the very best,” Hamed said.

“I’ve spent a lot of time in Yemen with the beekeepers, tasting the honey and learning from beekeepers who have been in the industry for generations. They helped me to understand the nuances of the honey, the regional variations, how to know when the honey has been adulterated or when it is absolutely pure.”

Some images via Tafline Laylin for Green Prophet

::Balqees Honey

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