Masdar: changing the world one green metropolis at a time

The world’s first entirely green city

So, they’ve build the largest mall in the world, the tallest sky-scraper, and the first indoor ski resort amidst a scorching 40-degree desert. Does it even surprise us at all that the UAE will now be home to the world’s first zero-carbon city?

Masdar: a green source?

Masdar City they’ve named it, Masdar meaning ‘the source’ or ‘the origin’ in Arabic – this city will host the headquarters of the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA). In its bid leading to their big win, the UAE provided rent-free offices, 20 IRENA student scholarships at the Masdar Institute of Science and Technology, as well as 350 million US dollars in loans supporting renewable energy projects in developing countries.
Located in sunny Abu Dhabi, the city will make full use of the local climatic conditions. It relies primarily on solar energy as its energy source, as well as other renewable energy sources. It is powered by a 22-hectare (54-acre) field of 87,777 solar panels with additional panels on roofs. It will be the world’s first zero-carbon, car-free and sky-scraper free city.

Down to the details – the exterior wood used throughout the city is palmwood, a sustainable hardwood-substitute using plantation coconut palms that no longer bear fruit.

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A hub for green companies

The city has been designed to become the ultimate hub for clean-tech companies. The first mover has been the university campus of Masdar’s Institute of Science and Technology. The institute, in cooperation with Massachusetts Institute of Technology, has been the mastermind behind the engineering, research and development of Masdar City. The institute’s building uses 70% less electricity and water than regular buildings of similar size, along with a metering system that ensures a constant regulation of minimal power consumption. “There are no light switches or water taps in the city,” states Gerard Evenden, the lead architect, very proudly. Movement sensors control both lighting and water to slash the city’s overall electricity and water consumption in half. Seimens has signed a ten-year lease contract for its regional headquarters that has been built in Masdar City, and has been rated the most energy-efficient building
in Abu Dhabi.

The project has been supported by WWF and Greenpeace, which however do also stress that there should be focus on not only building zero-free carbon cities from scratch, but to also retro-fit existing cities in line with this initiative.