Masdar City: A
 Zero­ Emissions 
City
 in 
the 
Desert



Oil‐rich
 Abu
 Dhabi 
is 
building 
a 
green
 metropolis.
 Should
 the
 rest
 of
 the
 world 
care?

“If 
the 
Masdar 
project 
doesn’t
 justify 
itself 
financially, 
it
 could 
indeed
 be 
just
 a
 green
 playground 
for
 the 
rich, 
an 
environmental
 theme
 park 
that 
is
largely 
irrelevant 
for 
the 
development
 of
 sustainable 
technology 
on
 a
 broader
 scale. 
But 
if
 it 
is
 profitable, 
it 
could
 be 
a
 driving 
force
 for 
sustainable
 urban
 design.
Then 
the
 oil‐rich
 developers 
in 
the
 UAE 
and
 elsewhere 
might
 have
 a 
reason 
to 
build
 more
 green 
cities
 and 
skip
 constructing
 another
 ski
 slope 
in
 the 
desert.”

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