The Social Mission of Masdar

After reading Nicolai Ouroussoff’s article in The New York Times, I was expecting that further research on the development of Masdar City would make it comparable to the controversial Tata Housing projects I wrote about a few weeks ago. However, I believe Mr. Ouroussoff did not accurately describe the capabilities of Masdar City, as most see it as a scientific enclave for advanced sustainability research rather than a gated community for the rich.

            Even though Mr. Ouroussoff’s wrote his article from an architectural perspective, I believe he focused too much on form instead of function. To get a better picture of the layout and existence of Masdar City, I watched a recent two-part online feature on the project, the first of which can be seen here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIaz61zpLfs&feature=plcp. Robert Llewellyn, a British comedian/actor/environmentalist and host of the online show, interviews various representatives of the project (from architects, to operations and planning managers, to scientists) to gauge what direction they are taking Masdar City. Christopher Sorenson, director of the “New Ventures Unit” of Masdar City, comments that the purpose of the development project is to create a learning environment that will creating sustainable living solutions and then commercialize them to the rest of the world.

            By 2025, Masdar City hopes to be occupied by 40,000 residents (perhaps Mr. Ouroussoff was given an unrealistic figure two years ago). Yet what kind of residents might these be? While every large city needs a labor force that will run its education, medical, law enforcement, and sanitation departments, the majority of occupants in Masdar City are likely to be scientists and researchers, rather than the idle rich. According to Yousef Baselib, Director of Operations, the leadership behind the project “Want[s] Masdar City to be the largest lab for renewable energy.” As mentioned in the article, MIT sponsors a research facility that has become central to the city’s mission and existence. Masdar City also hopes to attract other corporations that would use the city’s amenities to their advantage. The Middle East headquarters of Siemens, the German electronic and computer engineering company, is already under construction in Masdar City and will be operational in early 2013.[i]

            Therefore, Mr. Ouroussoff’s assertion that “Masdar would have only limited relevance to the world most people live in”[ii] seems unfounded because of how early it is in its development. Masdar City’s entire purpose is to create and showcase new sustainable practices that can be adopted by other cities throughout the world. Simply having the wealthy pay a hefty monthly rent check does nothing to further its mission of social innovation. Yes, the project is openly funded by oil drilling, which is detrimental to the environment. Yet the directors of Masdar City have openly stated that everyone needs to be prepared for the day that the wells go dry. As that day draws near, foreign governments will be searching for alternative ways to update their infrastructures. Hopefully, the innovations created at Masdar City will present them with feasible options.

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[i] Masdar Press Release. “Siemens Headquarters in Masdar City Chosen for Top             Architectural Award.” 08/02/2012. Date Accessed: 10/10/12. www.masdar.ae

[ii] Ouroussoff, Nicolai. “In Arabian Desert, a Sustainable City Rises.” The New York             Times. September 25, 2010.