Global Ecovillage Network/Solution Library/Masdar city

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To develop sustainable cities in hot climates.

Using new renewable energy technologies and enhanced traditional design practices, a desert city aims to serve as a sustainable model for future cities in hot climates.

Abu Dhabi has among the highest per capita energy consumption on the planet. Still, Masdar City has been planned and developed to utilise the abundant solar power potential and uses enhanced traditional design practices to create natural cooling. The city is surrounded by walls that exclude hot desert winds. Streets are short and narrow, angled to provide maximum shade, and a 45m-high wind tower captures cooler breezes and directs them into the streets. This results in an impressive 15 to 20 degree reduction in temperatures from the surrounding desert.

Buildings themselves employ design features such as terracotta walls perforated with Arabic Patterns that shade windows and receive their energy from efficient solar power plants. Masdar is a sustainable mixed-use development designed to be very pedestrian- and cyclist-friendly and forms a stark, relaxed contrast to the uncomfortable, energy-hungry cities of the region. For smaller-scale developments and eco-villages, Masdar clearly demonstrates that traditional building practices can be highly effective when employed wisely and thoughtfully.

• Green Building.
• Renewable Energy & Transport.

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ILlF34KJMJw
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Masdar_City
• http://www.masdar.ae/en/masdar-city/detail/one-of-the-worlds-most-sustainable-communities-masdar-city-is-an-emerging-g